When a string of burglaries ends in a murder, Hannah finds herself involved again. Aiden is investigating to see if they are related or separate, and Hannah can’t help but investigate too. Aunt Violet is preoccupied with a male friend in town and so Hannah has Archie and Penny assist.

This book dragged more than the others and I didn’t really like the Darius issues or Aunt Violet not committing to Aiden. It just bothered me and I don’t think it brought anything to the story.

Hannah Merrill runs a bookshop with her Aunt Violet as well as helping out at a local military hospital as often as she can. Concerningly there have been a number of robberies in the Covent Garden area and when one of them is revealed to have resulted in the death of a jeweller, Hannah resolves to help the police solve the case as quickly as possible. With Violet distracted by the arrival in town of an old flame and Hannah's fiancé continuing his top secret war, she finds herself dealing with the worrying clues with only her work colleagues Archie and Penny's assistance. Can she sort everything before the villains catch up to her and the Covent Garden Killer claims another victim?

Book four in this series is the second one I've read, and I'm glad I gave this series another chance as this is a really good cosy read. I enjoyed Hannah and her aunt much more this time. They seemed more feisty, and the case itself had a great many twists and turns before the big reveal.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Boldwood Books, but the opinions expressed are my own. This is a good read from a great storyteller.

An excellent read for any and all readers! Author comes at you with both barrels and knocks you out of your shoes! Great job fleshing out all the characters. I give this book FIVE stars! Definitely recommend!

The latest instalment in the Miss Merrill and Aunt Violet series brings murder almost to Hannah’s doorstep. When another shop owner is murdered, Hannah almost accidentally ends up investigating his death. However, her involvement is complicated by issues in her own life.

Aunt Violet, usually her stalwart companion in investigating, is somewhat distracted by the reappearance of the mysterious Mr Alfara- someone who she stoutly refuses to discuss with Hannah. Aiden is keeping his own secrets as well and Darius seemingly disapproves of Hannah involving herself in the case.

The advantage of this, is that it enables Hannah to co-opt Archie and Penny, her employees, to help her and thus, their characters are fleshed out more in this book.

The case itself keeps Hannah, and the reader, guessing right to the end and I still hadn’t worked it out by the time all was revealed.

I've said before that one of the reasons I like this series is because the war adds a different dimension to it. However, it’s also because it doesn’t shy away from social realities of the time and Hannah, like many of her real life counterparts, fears that marriage will involve curtailing her activities. She wants to be with the man she loves, but not at the expense of her independence and for a time it seems as though that is in real jeopardy. It will be interesting to see as the series progresses, how that balance is sought. I look forward to the next instalment!

I really liked this book! it’s an easy read, but super enjoyable and engaging. the first 1/3 moves a little slowly for my liking, but does enough to keep you hooked! the second half moves much quicker, i finished it in one sitting bc i couldn’t put it down! i also didn’t know this was in a series of sorts, but not having read prior books was NO problem!
super cute, proper amount of mystery, and overall i liked the plot a lot!

Hannah is walking to her bookshop one day when she’s sees two men arguing on the street. The next day she learns that one of them had been murdered the night before. He was the owner of the jewelry store on her street. With a spate of burglaries in the area over the past months, they think it was another one that had gone wrong. Aidan is investigating and Hannah is up to her amateur sleuthing. Aunt Violet is busy with an old beau that she’s being secretive about. Another solid mystery.

3.75 stars. This has favourite characters return, in the form of Hannah, Aunt Violet, Darius, Aidan, and Archie, while there is a spate of robberies and a body is found in a nearby jewellers. There’s intrigue in the form of a Spanish gentleman from Aunt Vi’s past, a policeman who might not be all he seems, and of course Darius’ continuing super sekrit war work…

I enjoyed this as I have the previous in the series, but ultimately rounded the star rating down on Goodreads as it just seemed to split the mystery focus a little. It starts out with the robbery/murder, then there’s a bit about fencing stolen goods and the gentlemen’s club, then something else, and it felt quite gently paced and at times as though the original murder had been forgotten until right at the end when it was suddenly resolved.

However, as I said, I love the characters and this is a very enjoyable series that I look forward to continuing soon hopefully.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

I love a good mystery murder! Such an entertaining book to read, thank you! A brilliant plot with some clever twists! I think I've found a new favourite series.

Thank you Boldwood Books for the ARC!

I enjoyed this book very much. Even though its famous opera house has shuttered its doors for the war, Covent Garden remains one of the most exciting, bustling areas of London.

I loved the thrills this book gave me. It was a perfect blend of cosy and mystery (thriller).

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC copy in exchange for my review.
Even though its famous opera house has shuttered its doors for the war, Covent Garden remains one of the most exciting, bustling areas of London. It’s where Hannah Merrill and Aunt Violet have their bookshop and, in spite of the recent spate of burglaries in the area, it’s generally thought to be a good neighbourhood.

So Hannah is surprised when she sees a fellow shopkeeper – a jeweller named Jacob Cornelis – having a heated argument with a stranger. Especially when the next day Cornelis is found dead in his shop, apparently the victim of another burglary.

But what shocks Hannah more is when she meets the policeman supposedly there to investigate the crime. Because he is none other than the man who Hannah saw arguing with Cornelis the day before.

Hannah knows it’s up to her and Violet to investigate. But they don’t know they’re about to uncover a secret underworld of theft, murder and blackmail. And they must act fast, before the Covent Garden Killer strikes again…