Sometimes you chose book by its cover, and I was very lucky and pleased with my decision.
Modern writing set in 1930s with Agatha Christie's atmosphere. Very nicely put together with good detective work.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital copy of this book.

Sometimes all you need is to discover a new cozy historical mystery series! This really hit the spot during these current dreadful times. I fell in love with the time period, the setting, and with the protagonist, Amory Ames. Shhh, I also really liked her playboy rogue of a husband, Milo, and can't wait to read more of the installments -- which I intend to do directly.

The synopsis provided here on the book page describes the premise and plot quite succinctly and I'll give no spoilers. This was entertaining and well-written even as it was fairly predictable. I enjoyed all of the period detail and description and had fun guessing which of the many suspects would prove to be the killer. I'll probably begin the second book later today as this was a very quick read.

Thank you to NetGalley and At. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for this e-book ARC to read and review. I also have the 8th book in this series from NetGalley and will work my way there.

My second Amory Ames mystery, and though just as entertaining as the first one I read, the characters still weren't as interesting. Amory is likeable enough, but there is so little to describe her, or to really infer of her personality, than say her husband, Milo. It became more annoying than anything, that he kept being referred as so handsome and that he could, basically, get away with anything when it came to women. Add to that, he didn't seem to have a personality aside from being a ladies' man and charming; no emotions to speak of, just sort of...monotone in description. Nothing more to him than his looks and charm. I found very little to like about Milo as there was nothing really to know, he wears a mask and no one ever knows what he thinks or feels, he seems to be the most handsome man ever, and he can charm a lady. I didn't see much in the way of character development, especially between Amory and Milo.

The mystery was interesting enough, the denouement was less exciting than I had hoped though. My assumption on who the killer is turned out correct, but I was disappointed in how it unraveled. Like Milo, the murdered had little to no personality to speak of, until the end when the motive came out.

All in all, the book kept my attention. I quite like the two Amory Ames novels I've read and will read the others in the series. I hope the author will continue with the series as well, hopefully with a bit more character development, if not, it will still be an entertaining read nonetheless.

3.5 / 5.0 stars

This first book in series was a delicious introduction to the Amory Ames mystery series by talented author, Ashley Weaver. There is depth to her very human characters, each one a bit flawed in their own special way. The interplay among characters is quite believable, as emotions run high throughout the story. One gets a strong sense of time, place, and the glitz and glamour of the Bristish aristocracy on holiday at the seaside. It doesn't take long for a corpse to appear on scene. Then it's off to the races to figure out who had it in for the poor soul.

England, Summer of 1932
Amory Ames, is a delightful young aristocrat whose errant husband of five years, Milo Ames, has caused pure embarrassment to her and brought shame to their marriage. In her frustration and sorrow, she is at a crossroad in her life. She tires of hearing the tawdry gossip concerning Milo and his playboy exploits all over the continent. Shortly after he returns home to Kent, Amory is visited by Gilmore Trent, the fiancé she jilted when swept up into the vortex of Milo's exhilarating and thrilling existence. Gil seeks out Amory on the pretense that he needs her assistance in shepherding his sister, Emmeline, away from a disastrous engagement to Rupert Howe. Would she please consider joining them at the seaside and advise Emmeline away from a marriage which would
problably become too much like her own. Sure, why not get away and head for the seaside? What's good for the goose is surely good for the gander. And off they go, leaving Milo behind, or did they?

That first night at the Brightwell, dinner was awkward and a bit stiff with all the posh friends of Gil's and Emmeline's. It didn't take Amory long to size up the members of the group and determine who was friend and who should be avoided at all costs. By the next morning, it appeared that one of their party had taken a spill over the hotel balcony and wouldn't be joining them for breakfast or any subsequent meals. As it was Amory who spotted the body, she decides to take on the sleuthing work to figure out who really is friend and who is foe. Then enter stage right, Milo Ames, just to stir things up and provide fodder for the gossip rags.

This was a fun story with a bit more depth than most cozy mysteries. This seems to be the way of most historically set mysteries. With six books already out in this series, it would appear that this reader has some catching up to do and they're looking forward to it.

I am grateful to author Ashley Weaver and her publsiher, Thomas Minotaur Books for having provided a free uncorrected digital galley of this book through NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.

A refreshing and atmospheric murder mystery set in the 1920's at an English seaside resort, the Brightwell Hotel. The author has captured the mood and atmosphere of this nostalgic time period and has eloquently and skillfully woven this into the depths of the character development.

The central character, Amory Ames, attempts to solve this delightful murder, along with struggling personally with her philandering husband, Milo. Milo just happens to arrive at the hotel after the murder has taken place, only to complicate things further for Amory.

Ashley Weaver has delightfully established her protagonist, Amory Ames, and as we learn this is just the first in many stories to follow. I look forward to reading her future novels.

I want to thank St. Martin's Press and Net Galley for this advance copy.

“We all sat on the terrace, enjoying our tea and tolerating one another’s company. None of us realized, of course, that within twenty-four hours, one of our party would be dead.”

I love a good murder mystery set among the English upper class. Dead person or not, we still have to dress for dinner.

Murder at the Brightwell by Ashley Weaver had so many elements that I loved. It has a glamorous, 1930’s Golden Age vibe and a heroine, Amory Ames, who is wealthy, self-assured, and yet in a complicated marriage with a playboy husband. It’s set at a gorgeous seaside resort amongst a group of alleged friends who don’t seem all that close. The book wasn’t just about the murder, but also about Amory’s personal life. The mystery slowly unraveled and kept me guessing. It was just elegant and smart and I loved it, especially the banter between Amory and Milo. It sort of reminded me in tone of the Maisie Dobbs series, except Maisie is a private investigator and Amory is a regular woman drawn into sleuthing.

This is the first of 6 books (#7 comes out in September!), so I think we know how this ends for me. 🤣 I’m an unashamed series addict.

So thankful to a new group of #cozymysteryreaders who introduced me to this book! Also, this book is “Read Now” on @netgalley and I’m thankful for the free copy.

Murder at the Brightwell is fast-paced, well-written mystery novel with witty dialogue, interesting characters and just enough red herrings to keep you guessing until the very end. I enjoyed the intricate relationship between Amory and Milo, they are a couple that reminds you of legendary duos from vintage movies. I thought it was a very entertaining piece of fiction.

After 5 years Amory Ames wonders if she made the right choice in husbands. Milo is a charming playboy, content to spend his time in pursuits other than being with Amory. When Gil Trent, the man she threw over for Milo, asks for her help in dissuading his sister from marriage to charmer Rupert Howe, she gladly accepts. What starts as a quiet week at the seaside soon turns complicated when Rupert is murdered, Gil is accused, and…oh by the way…Milo unexpectedly appears. Amory works, at times grudgingly with Milo, to solve the mystery, resulting in a potential resolution to their tentative relationship.

I really enjoyed these characters. Amory is intelligent, warm and kind. She finds herself unsure of decisions she has made and is trying to come to grips with her situation. Milo appears to be a shallow charmer…but I believe there is more to him than what we see in this book. The exchanges between these two are intelligent and witty, and reminded me of other smart and sophisticated pairing like Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, and of course Nick and Nora Charles. I truly enjoyed the realness of their relationship.

I loved the setting and dialog in this story. A weekend at a seaside resort with a group of friends and acquaintances (how very 1930’s!). The dialog was perfect for the time as were the attitudes of all of the characters. The mystery was well-plotted and realistic, and I found myself unsure of the outcome…almost until the end.

This is such a delightful and entertaining read! Once I started reading I needed to keep reading, and I had to make myself put it down. I’m really can’t wait to read the next in this series and see more adventures with Amory and Milo!

When ex fiancé Gil Trent telephoned Amory Ames and asked that she accompany him for a week to the Brightwell Hotel, Amory was bemused. It seemed that Gil’s sister Emmeline was engaged to Rupert Howe, a ladies’ man that Gil didn’t trust. He knew Amory’s marriage of the past five years to Milo was shaky at best and he hoped Amory could persuade Emmeline to rethink her engagement, based on Amory and Milo’s marriage.

Amory’s arrival at the Brightwell and the subsequent events, which included murder, an arrest, danger as Amory investigated, and the shock of seeing Milo arrive on the scene, all culminated in a conclusion which saw the remaining guests leaving the Brightwell, probably never to return…

Murder at the Brightwell is the debut historical mystery/cozy novel by Ashley Weaver, and is also the 1st in the Amory Ames series. It was fun, lighthearted (even with murder at its core!) and highly entertaining. The days of polite society, women who – dressed to the nines – look down their noses at anyone deemed less important than they are, are fortunately not so prevalent these days. I thoroughly enjoyed this one, and look forward to searching out the second in the series. Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read in exchange for my honest review.

Murder At The Brightwell is an entertaining murder mystery set in England during the 1930's. A large group of wealthy people, including a young woman named Amory Ames, gather at a seaside resort for a holiday. When one of the guests is murdered, Amory decided to do a bit of detective work to try and find the killer. This is the first book in Ashley Weavers series and I enjoyed reading an exciting story with little violence. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital copy of this book.

An enjoyable light murder mystery, set before the 2nd World War. Very well described. I could picture the dresses, the hotel and the various groups of people.

Really liked it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I read an advance review copy of the book. This review is voluntary, honest and my own opinion.

I definitely chose this one for its cover and I was very lucky that the content was as good!

Written in the style of an Agatha Christie novel, the book is set in an English hotel in an age when the wealthy indulged in afternoon teas, dressed formally for dinner and everyone smoked. Amory Ames is one of the wealthy, beautiful, intelligent and unhappy in her marriage. She is invited by her ex fiancé to join a party at the Brightwell Hotel and the story proceeds from there.

I found the writing to be good and the characters interesting. There were lots of them but that was necessary since quite a few of them died and there needed to be sufficient of them left to confuse us as to the identity of the murderer. There were plenty of red herrings too which kept things adequately mysterious.

It was all very enjoyable and set the scene up for the books to follow in the series. I will certainly be looking out now for the second book.

Good mystery, I enjoyed it once it started, the beginning does not pull you in. However, if you stay with it, the story does become interesting, very Agatha Christie! It doesn't feel English, or set in the thirties. That is the disappointing thing, the words could be changed to pull in the thirties, and the way the upper crust of Britain spoke during that time period. Another mistake is the absence of gloves, no lady would have been caught dead without her gloves, hat, matching purse, and shoes! There are pictures of my Grandmother from this time period, she always is in a hat, and gloves, plus, we have Hollywood to thank for old movies made during this time period. On the plus side, the murders were well done, as was the surprise of who did it? I did enjoy the mystery. This would make a good series.
I highly recommend! Thanks!
carolintallahassee.com

Excellent Golden Age-style murder mystery combined with romance and comedy of manners
This is the first of the series I’ve read and I look forward to reading more about the Nick and Nora-like (but much richer!) lead characters

I thought this was one of the best historical mysteries I've read in awhile. It defintiely left me wanting to immediately pick up book two. A great recommendation for anyone who loves light, romantic mysteries in the vein of Maisie Dobbs and Her Royal Spyness. Milo definitely gave me some Darcy vibes, but what I love about this series is that Amory and Milo are already married, which is quite a refreshing change.

"Murder at the Brightwell" reminds me of novels from the Golden Age of mystery. The characters are interesting and described in a way that makes them come alive to the reader. The main premise is a classic one: a group of people are on holiday at a seaside resort. One of them is murdered. The question is "Who is the murderer?" I enjoyed the interweaving of the different plot lines and how the personalities of the potential murderers are revealed. I also appreciated the subtle interplay between Amory, the main character and amateur sleuth, and her estranged husband Milo. The seaside setting adds drama to the plot.

I received this novel from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Murder at the Brightwell by Ashley Weaver. In this cozy mystery, Amory Ames, is a wealthy young woman with what appears to be a philandering husband, Milo. Milo is frequently traveling, and stories circulate about his exploits. Amory is tired of it. She desperately loves her husband but is tired of him traveling and not paying attention to her. As the book opens, Milo has just returned home but Amory is not feeling very welcoming. Then a surprise guest comes to the door. It is Gil, the man Amory was engaged to when she met the dashing Milo. She feels bad about how she treated Gil. Gil has come to see her to ask if she would go to the Brightwell Hotel with him to join a group of friends. Part of the group is his sister, Emmeline and the man she is crazy about, Rupert Howe. Gil thinks that Amory can convince Emmeline that she should dump Rupert because of her experience with Milo. While there are some warning bells that this is not a good idea, Amory decides to go not as much to be of help and to get away from Milo. She finds that when she gets to the hotel that perhaps this was not a good idea because everyone thinks that she is back with Gil. She does try and talk to Emmeline but she can see that Emmeline is so taken with Rupert that she doesn’t think that she will be able to dissuade her.

And then there is a murder. And Milo arrives at the hotel. Why? And who committed murder?

Overall, it was not a bad story. This book is the first in a series of 5 Amory Ames mysteries. I would read the rest. Here is the part that I don’t understand – this book was given to me as an ARC (advanced reader copy) but it came out in 2014. Not exactly an advanced reader copy when the book has been out for 5-6 years and there are 4 books in the series that came out after this one. So, I am a bit befuddled by this and slightly irritated that I didn’t notice this. BUT overall, I think that if you are looking for an English mystery, this would be a good choice.

“Murder at the Brightwell” is an enjoyable, cozy whodunnit reminiscent of classic 1930s mystery books.

Amory Ames regrets marrying her playboy husband, Milo, and wonders how her life would have turned out if she’d married her ex-fiancé instead. When that same ex-fiancé and longtime friend, Gil, turns up after five years asking for her help in a delicate matter, Amory feels she can’t refuse.

She accompanies him to a seaside hotel for a party with several others, allowing the gossips to assume that she has left her husband and returned to Gil in an attempt to convince Gil’s younger sister, Emmeline, of the dangers of marrying in haste. Things get even more complicated when Emmeline’s fiancé is murdered, placing Gil as prime suspect.

When Amory’s husband, Milo, shows up at the Brightwell Hotel, Amory has to try to put her confusion aside and join forces with her husband to help solve the mystery.

This was a fun book full of charming characters and witty banter. The cast of characters and 1930s seaside setting were perfect for fans of Agatha Christie. The sleuthing couple reminded me of Nick and Nora Charles, or Tommy and Tuppence. It was a delightful read and I’m looking forward to the others in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley for the review copy.

What an enjoyable book! This is the first book I've read by Ashley Weaver and I have to say I really liked it. The characters were likable and fun to get to know. I enjoyed reading a story in an older setting, 1930s in this case, and enjoying all the formal speech patters or the well-to-do of that era. It's great beach-reading. Nothing too involved or taxing, so it's a terrific story to read in between other, more intense books, I'd say!

The mystery itself was well-written for the most part but was conveniently closed at the end, meaning not much suspense. (Great if you don't want to be stressed out by the story itself such as in darker mysteries) Sure 1-2 of the characters were thought to be guilty for a while, but it had a clean closure at the end which made me think "Ok - that's over. Let's retire to the sitting room, shall we?". The end of the story could have had more depth to it..

I'm not sure what to make of the rocky relationship between our protagonist, Amory, and her husband, Milo. I like them both, but can definitely feel the strain of the relationship. We'll have to see how this progresses in future books. Her character though was fun and smart and considerate - all great qualities. I wish she didn't question herself so much when it comes to her husband - part of why I don't really know what to make of it. (Says I, the single person!)

If you're looking for something light that doesn't require too much thinking, I recommend this book. It's a great vacation book when your goal is to relax. I look forward to reading more books in this series.

This book was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I’m not sure what I think about this novel. I did enjoy reading it. It kept my interest throughout. But in the end, I was quite disappointed by the wrap-up.

What I liked the most, and what kept me reading was – more than the mystery – the relationship between Amory and her husband Milo.
The two find themselves in a profound crisis after being married for five years. Milo seems to have lost all interests in his wife and leads a life of amusement alone around the globe. Amory, though still in love, is embittered by his disinterest. When Gil, her former boyfriend, turns up asking her for help, things turn on their head.
The dynamic between Amory and Milo is fantastic, especially thank to Milo, who’s a complex character and one the reader, just like Amory, never know whether to trust. It’s obvious that there is alchemy between the two and that they seem to care about each other in spite of everything, but there is always also mistrust, especially on Amory’s part.
I did want to see them together again, still, when the story ended, a lot of questions remained unanswered, though it may be meant to. This is only the beginning of a series, after all. I enjoyed the evolution of the relationship a lot, but in the end, things seemed to settle a bit too nicely. For me, at least.

The mystery was a total mess. Amory asks questions around, but there never seem to be a strategy to her actions. As a reader, I never saw a design. Everything was very ramdom. And when the revelation came, I found it quite contrived and not really too logical. There were also a few red herring that were quite clumsily executed.
In truth, I found that the mystery was only there to spice up a romance, and the funny thing is that I don’t think the romance needed spicing since it was a lot stronger than the mystery.

The characters are a mixed bag. There are a lot of them, as it’s expected in a mystery, some are more interesting and complex than others. But they never created a community (of characters, I mean). They all seem to act independently from each other. Motives very seldom crossed or integrated. It was all very hazy, and in the end, I couldn’t tell everyone’s role or motive. Always unsatisfactory in a mystery, as far as I’m concerned.

So, it was a good read. I’m not at all sure it was a good mystery.