The "locked room" setting for this historical mystery is a dirigible which, at the end of the 1800s, is an elegant (at least for the first class passengers on the ship) place where several brutal murders take place. Cora Beaumont, who is an incredibly wealthy American heiress betrothed to the younger son of a British duke, is the owner of the blimp. and she is also a strong and determined woman who is not going to let murderers on her ship go undetected.

Cora is also challenged by her questions about her fiance, Terrence, when she realizes that she is much more interested in and attracted to his brother Nicholas. As Nicholas and Cora stealthily go through the halls of the air ship looking for clues as to who has been murdered and why, we are introduced to members of a theater troupe and other travelers on the blimp.

The setting of the dirigible seems rather constricted, and the description of the air ship itself seems a bit fanciful. Nonetheless, Cora and her friend Phoebe (Phee) present two women who are determined to identify who the nefarious people are on the air ship.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

I truly enjoyed reading A Lethal Engagement. Cora and Nicholas make a really good investigating team. The author did a great job with the plot and dropping little hints about how the personal lives of the main characters would turn out by the end of the book. The murder mystery itself was very clever and kept me guessing until the reveal. I can't wait until the next book comes out.

Delightful read! Really enjoyed the mystery and characters plus the aeronautical history was intriguing!

A Lethal Engagement by April J. Skelly is an interesting and fun whodunit in the unusual setting of a dirigible traveling over the Atlantic. A twist to the story is the very forward-thinking arrangement of the main character, Cora Beaumont, securing her own financial identity independent of her husband upon her marriage. The story has several twists and turns, including one that was a bit anticipated though also welcomed.

Skelly has created a compact arena for Cora to fight against the once-timely ideas reducing women's stations to appendages of their husbands, dependent on them financially for everything. The progressive ideas Cora--and her father through his dowry arrangement--are happily fun, and Cora's efforts to maintain her dignity when put up against the snotty society women and the men who want to retain the status quo are enjoyable.

The murders themselves are grisly and I love that Cora does not let her discomfort reduce her to the stereotypical swooning woman of the time.

Those who enjoy strong female characters fighting against inequality will enjoy this book, as will those who like a good whodunit.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest review.

In this story you follow Cora and Nicholas as they deal with some unexpected events on an airship that is traveling from the US to England. They are two people who reluctantly have to team up investigate the turn of events that has taken place.

I am a sucker for a locked room mystery and this one was really well done. It was really nice to be able to get the perspective of both Cora and Nicholas throughout the book and it helped you to really get into the minds of both of the characters. I cannot fully give it a five star because I did find the unmasking of the villain a little predictable but it was still very well written.

The weirdest part of this book for me is the fact that as a huge romance reader, I actually felt that the romance in this book was a little overdone. I would have liked it more if it focused on the mystery aspect and the romance was more of a secondary aspect. That being said, it was still a very cute and sweet romance to see and I did like how it was slowly build up to and wasn't an immediate thing.

This is a good story, I found the romance at times a bit much, but the whole being on a blimp over the Atlantic ocean and trying to outrun a storm (lightning could hit and destroy the blimp) along with trying to solve a murder, made it enjoyable. Cora Beaumont is an American in 1890 and has just become engaged to Terrance Tristan, the second son of a Duke from England. Cora, who is the daughter of the designer/maker of the blimp, Lady's Air, Terrance, his brother Nicholas and Cora's best friend are all travelling on the blimp to England. Being American, Cora is not as respected among the other travelers, most of whom are English, and especially the ones with an aristocratic background. Not long into their voyage, Cora is advised by the captain that a body has been found and a card had been left with the body. Cora and Nicholas (who is the first son and in line to become the Duke), begin investigating, and in rapid succession another two bodies are found. Cora also begins to notice that Terrance, her betrothed, hasn't been around as much as her should be, always seems to find an excuse to leave her with either her friend or Nicholas. Overall I enjoyed the book and I would look forward to reading another by this author. Thanks to #Netgalley and #Crooked Lane Books for the ARC.

What an interesting start to a new series!

Cora is an American woman who is engaged to the second son of an aristocratic English family. In addition to her dowry, her late father gave her an inheritance, which includes the family airship company, that she'll retrain control of if she marries. If she doesn't marry, a loathsome half-brother gets control. As she takes off on the maiden voyage of her family's airship, bound for Southampton, she's relived that a more free life is ahead of her.

Things start to go wrong, though. Her fiancé has suddenly lost interest in her. She hears that accommodations on the ship might not be up to par. Then a woman is murdered in third class and the captain treats her fiancé's older brother as the one in charge instead of her.

She's determined to investigate the murder before they arrive in England. Her fiancé's brother steps in to help her, as his brother has become unreliable.

The pace is fast and the writing kept me interested. I couldn't help but google airships to see what they looked like inside. I hope this is the first of many in the series!

Cora, the daughter of a successful American businessman is set to marry Terrence, the second son of a Duke.
They, along with Terrence's older brother Nicholas and cousin Ophelia are on the maiden voyage of Cora's airship,
headed to England. Not all on board are happy with the engagement. When a dead body is discovered, Cora and
Nicholas investigate while keeping the murder quiet. Does the murder involve either Cora, her deceased father or
the suffragette movement? In addition to the captain's displeasure with Cora's involvement with the investigation.
she must also deal with Terrence's indifference. Story told form Cooa's and Nicholas' POVs. Murderer was a
complete surprise.
#ALethalEngagement #CrookedLaneBooks #NetGalley

Fantastic! Tense, kept me on my toes and the historical setting was perfect for the mystery element.

1890

An airship bound for London is thrown off course by a murder on the first night of its transatlantic voyage in this locked-room historical mystery debut.

American heiress, Cora Beaumont is celebrating her engagement to Terrance Tristan, the second son of a duke. Their union will solidify Cora’s place in British society and her put in a rare position of power, but as they embark on the Lady Air’s maiden voyage to England, Cora soon finds that not everyone in society is accepting of her recent engagement and tensions fly high as the airship. When a body is discovered on the first night on the ship with a calling card for Cora on the victim, she is determined to find the killer among the passengers.

A Lethal Engagement kept me entertained from the beginning to the very end. It was contained to the airship and the fact that I didn’t get a good sense of the airship was a bit of a letdown for me because it could been a good part of the plotline quite well, otherwise, I did enjoy all the characters. Cora and Nicholas made a good team at solving the murder, and I do have to admit I was surprised at who the murderer was. The red herrings offered did have the desired effect on me.

My gratitude to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books. All opinions are mine and honest.

I am a big fan of historical mysteries so this book immediately caught my attention. A Lethal Engagement takes place entirely on an airship flight from America to England in 1890. Such an intriguing setting!

I really enjoyed the alternating chapter perspectives of main characters Cora and Nicholas. The mystery kept me intrigued and guessing until the final reveal. Be sure to add this to your TBR if you’re looking for something fun and unique!


Many thanks to the author for a complimentary copy of the book! All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Good to Know:
Descriptions of dead bodies

An airship bound for London is thrown off course by a murder on the first night of its transatlantic voyage in this locked-room historical mystery debut.

What a fun "closed room" historical mystery this book was. It features a plucky, undaunted, female protagonist and almost all the aristos are looking down their noses at her. She'll show them!

American airship heiress, Cora Beaumont, is accompanied by a number of souls on the maiden voyage of airship, "The Lady Air," as they fly above the Atlantic on their way from New York City to England. They are one chaperone, Mrs. Beesly, Cora's dear friend Ophelia Hortense, her soon-to-be fiancé, Terrance Tristan, and his brother Nicholas, the future Duke of Exford and Debensley. While Terrance struggles with the thoughts of impending marriage, Cora has far more at stake - that of her financial independence. If that isn't enough, bodies are piling up. If she doesn't get to the bottom of the misadventures, she may quickly kiss her future prospects goodbye.

Author April J. Skelly has crafted a delightful cozy mystery, with an excellent plot line, well-developed quirky characters, and lots of charm. The writing is solid and flows effortlessly. The research which went into the book's writing is rich and cleverly shared with the reader. There are harrowing moments endured by the beloved protagonist that keep the reader on tenterhooks and then gently places all back on solid footing. There are a number of red herrings and potential suspects thus maintaining the suspense throughout the story. As good as this story is, it is my desire that this is the start of a wonderful mystery series. Hope springs eternal!

I am grateful to April J. Skelly and her publisher, Crooked Lane Books for having provided a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.


Publisher: Crooked Lane Books
Publication Date: April 22, 2025
No. of Pages: 320
ISBN: 979-8892421058

This new book's summary immediately grabbed me: a trans-Atlantic voyage on an airship; locked-room mystery; Victorian setting; promises of romance = yes, please!

And overall, I have to say I really liked it, and actually thought I was embarking on a Steampunk adventure given the airship settings (and how spacious and modern they were described for 1890). The pacing was very engaging and fast-paced so that I kept at it until the very end without switching to the other 4-5 books I usually have on the go.

As an avid historical mystery reader, especially of the Victorian era, however, I did feel the author's writing style and usage of phrasing and aristocratic titles could be improved and more historically-appropriate, even with most of the story being told from the female main character, Cora's, American's perspective. For example, my understanding is that unmarried women can use their honorific titles 'Lady Ophelia', but would only become 'Lady Davenport' when they married (to match their titled husband's title of 'Lord Davenport'). This kept switching throughout with several of the titled characters, which at first distracted and then just annoyed me.

In terms of character development, I found myself really becoming invested in Cora, Ophelia and Nicholas. For the most part, they have well-rounded personalities with mostly believable motives, although I sometimes felt the timing was too fast for how these evolved though. I really did like Cora and her intellect, interests and abilities that were frowned upon, especially for young women of wealthy backgrounds of her time. I also really appreciated Lord Nicholas Tristan from the start for his good heart and care of Cora and those around him. He was refreshingly progressive and almost too modern for someone of his privileged ranking and background. I was able to justify it more with the aforementioned Steampunk context I chose to base this on though.

The plot structure was also engaging and coherent, and I enjoyed all the late night traipsing by Cora and Nicholas to discover what was going on. I liked the addition of the acting troupe as well, and felt they could have been used more. Without spoiling anything, the big reveal was excellent, however, the ending felt rushed and became confusing when they landed in England. Is there more to come?

Overall, it was a very promising start with some potentially great characters whom I could become more invested in if they were to be given more adventures. I'm intrigued by the political seeds evoked as this was during the suffragist movement era and how that could impact Cora's character, vocational and romantic developments. I would definitely keep reading for more of her and Nicholas...and hopefully her return to some cool archeological mysteries!

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for sharing this ARC, I look forward to seeing the next installment of Cora's adventures!

When I read mystery in 1890 set in an airship, I screamed count me in!

Overall, it was a fun quick read. If you enjoyed Bridgerton and want historical romance with a mystery plot, you'll certainly love this.

From the beginning I knew that some creative liberty had to be taken for the airship specifically. Even though they were invented by then, I don't think they were used for actual commercial travel til decades later. And even then, it wouldn't have been the multi-class extravagance that the author uses here. But I generally don't mind if it's used for the right reasons. And to a great extent here it's used as a cool backdrop and setting for the plot.

This is a historical romance book with a mystery plot not a historical mystery with romance subplot. Every chapter is filled to the brim with sentences about the two main characters' attraction to one another. Every move or update to the mystery is to highlight how 'different' the FMC is and attract the handsome MMC's attention.

The characters themselves are fine.
Overall I enjoyed the book, but I found myself not connecting with them as much as I thought I would.

I grew tired of how we had to read over and over again about how 'unlike the other girls' the FMC is. I love a strong female lead. It's why I pick the books I do. It just felt so repetitive.

Every chapter had to bring up how she's American and how she's against wearing corsets and is so different from the snobby noblewomen (except for Phee who has my heart and I wish she had been the main character!)

The side characters felt a bit caricateurish in that their animosity was overplayed to make us feel bad for the FMC and see the MMC defend her. Especially the captain who I don't think would've criticized her so openly when she's engaged to such an influential family even if he was a sexist pig.

The MMC is handsome and swoonworthy but overall very modern. A man like him historically wouldn't have been nearly so open-minded. But hey, I enjoyed him as the romantic interest, keeping in mind the creative liberty taken.

The mystery itself was fun but I feel the ending was a bit abrupt and the motives of the murderer were a bit weak. But I think overall it was fine.

So, all in all, read this if you're in a romantic mood and enjoy the creative extravagant setting. And say hi to Phee for me, she's delightful.

This book is an easy 5 stars! 'A Lethal Engagement' jumps right into a late 19th-century adventure with a fantastical airship, high stakes puzzles, slow burn romance, and tensions in the fight for women's rights in England and India. The story follows 2 POVs: Cora, a compassionately courageous American heiress set to marry into the high-class Tristan family, and Nicholas, the dreamily honorable heir to the dukedom. I found Ophelia to be a delightful friend and cousin to the main characters throughout the story. Trigger warning that the murder scenes are a bit graphic in description, but it does contribute to the plot.

If you enjoy reading amateur detective mysteries, then I recommend this book to you! I certainly hope this becomes a series, because there is so much more to this budding romance and investigative duo that I want to see.

Special thanks to the Publisher, Crooked Lane Books, and Net Galley for a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this lovely story.
I chose this book hoping for a fun mystery, trying to break out of my comfort zone as someone who is decidedly not a romance or a historical fiction reader.

I admit it took a bit for me to get into this one, as the beginning was a bit slow, but by the end I was devouring every page! The mystery was just deep enough to not be blatantly obvious, but with enough hints for me to actually say "I f***ing KNEW IT!" with satisfaction when the truth was revealed.

And the romance?? Omg! I never thought I'd be swooning over such small things as brushing fingers or stealing glances, but the tidbits of romantic tension building up throughout this book probably had me even more invested than the actual murder mystery. The author perfectly invokes the electric feelings of a new crush, where every tiny touch feels monumental, with the added zest of it being societally scandalous - WITHOUT an awkward love triangle, miscommunication tropes, or all the spice that makes some books uncomfortable to read in public.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed A Lethal Engagement, and I will definitely keep an eye out for future titles by April J. Skelly.

I had a lot of fun reading this.
As a debut novel, it was great and shows a lot of promise!
There were twists and turns and premise was definitely different than the usual.
The romance was fine but I definitely wanted more and no epilogue thus no HEA for sure, so maybe this is going to be a series?
There is some not time period appropriate language and some random phrases that kinda make you step out of the story a bit to consider them.

My biggest issue- without giving spoilers- is the murderer wasn’t any of my guesses or anyone that made sense. And then the way it is wrapped up was again confusing.
I feel like we needed 5 more chapters.

A Lethal Engagement is a wonderful historical(ish) mystery and it's going down as one of my favorites. I loved the story and atmosphere April Skelly created. Our main character Cora was the perfect balance of a polite society woman with a bit of a rebellious streak and a penchant for asking a lot of questions. I was kept guessing throughout the book and I would love to see this as a series!

The premise sounded intriguing: gilded age, locked room mystery, transatlantic voyage — but ultimately left me feeling lukewarm. One reason I love historical fiction is because I love history, and books/movies often send me down a rabbit hole of historical research. I was confused at the beginning of this book because of the descriptions of a large airship, in 1890, with multiple decks and passengers and luxurious settings, including a hothouse. Even the Hindenburg many decades later at the actual height of transatlantic airship travel was considerably more spartan. So artistic license was taken, which certainly isn’t a deal breaker for most fiction, but fizzles for me with historical fiction. Almost like steampunk without the steam, and I’m just not a fan.

I digress. It happens often.

The mystery itself was a puzzling whodunnit with a mostly unsatisfying ending. Without giving spoilers, I felt like the choices made by the murderer didn’t add up, either with victims, methods, etc. The addition of a burgeoning romance between Cora and Nicholas, despite her engagement to his milksop of a brother, was ok but not stellar. The dialogue was a bit too ‘breathless’ for my taste, and it was irritating that despite how strong minded Cora was, she never spoke up to Terrance about his crummy treatment of her. I don’t mind alternating POV writing, but with this book the chapters are very short and the narration flips between Nicholas and Cora all the time and made it hard for me to keep track of whose perspective I was currently reading.

Last gripe: modern phrases like ‘that’s a wad of cash’ or ‘I pushed the thoughts away to unpack later’ were irritatingly out of place, especially the latter one. I’m tired of hearing people ‘unpack’ thoughts and emotions — it’s overused enough on social media, let alone cropping up in novels.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest, but in this case not very complimentary, thoughts.