Wow another well written murder mystery that kept me guessing till then. I found this one to be a real page turner. The characters were well written, with a lovely blooming romance. I am looking forward to where this relationship goes. The mystery was well written with lots of twist and turns to keep you guessing. There was murder, mystery, suspense and a touch of romance. All you would want in a good read. I received this as an ARC from Netgalley and freely give my review.

The Penford Manor Murders by Fiona Veitch Smith is a Miss Clara Vale Mystery. Lady Justina Penford had a secret and someone was threatening to unveil it. They were attempting blackmail. Clara had been flattered when Lady Penford had come to her, but it turns out she was just located far enough away and was close enough to being of the right social status. It had nothing to do with her skills. Ah, well! Clara arrived for the house party only to discover her parents were expected in a few days. Another surprise she could have done without. The family had seen sadness. The two eldest sons, both set to inherit, had been killed in the war. That left the youngest, the one who had never been quite right. Part of the purpose of this house party was to find him a wife. That may solve the problem, they hoped. His father had been German, which had caused trouble during the war, and some German cousins were there for their annual visit. Bella, her assistant, had come along as her lady’s maid, thereby able to investigate below stairs as she did above stairs. Then there was a murder.

Clara Vale is on the cusp of a changing world and it is difficult to navigate. Her parents just wan’t the best for her: a husband and a life like theirs. Not what she wanted at all. Bella had met on another investigation and they rubbed along together well in her fledgling business. They are both interesting characters. Smith has done well with them. The mystery was a good one, but complicated. It always get complicated when death occurs. The entire situation was a little sad for the people involved, even without the murders. Smith painted an amazing portrait of a time slipping away and the lengths to which people would go to save it.

I was invited to read The Penford Manor Murders by Embla Books. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #EmblaBooks #FionaVeitchSmith #ThePenfordManorMurders

This is the fourth book in this exciting murder mystery series. I was engaged from the outset when we were introduced to the blackmail and country house murder mystery whodunnit.

As for the suspects – there were plenty, and the plot went around the houses and kept you guessing. I would have liked to get a bit more under the skin of some of the suspects to make them stand out even more, but I was swept along from scene to scene anyway.

The forensic detail and historical knowledge were well researched and painted a solid picture of the time period and how an investigation might have been conducted at this time (1930). I could also see the long shadow that The First World War cast.

I was very pleased about the beauty of the Northumberland area. Both factual and fictional details brought an area I know well to life.

Although Clara is a fantastic sleuth and the novel provided a good continuation of her own story, I especially enjoyed hearing Bella’s part in the novel. She is a tough, no-nonsense, northern woman with a natural sleuthing ablity. A spin-off series for Bella, maybe? I’ll let you make up your own mind.4.5 stars.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Fiona Veitch Smith for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for The Penford Manor Murders coming out April 15, 2025. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I really love this series! The Pyramid mystery was definitely my favorite. This one felt different because of the setting, but I really enjoyed it. I love English manors. It felt very much like Agatha Christie. Clara is a fun character and I loved the mystery. I would definitely read more books in this series!

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys cozy mysteries!

I enjoy the historical setting. I like they've once again moved to a different location in this book. I like the characters. The mystery kept me guessing.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The setting for this mystery is Penford Manor in the 1930s and shows off the glamour of a wealthy high society family desperate to keep their secrets by any means possible even when death comes calling to their very garden. Full of twist turns and secrets galore to keep it interesting and the reader guessing. It's a very enjoyable and entertaining read. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This book has everything you'd want from your golden age cosy crime: a country house full of guests, lies, secrets, romance and, of course, murder!

Clara is called to a country estate to go on the hunt for a blackmailer but not long into her investigation, a body is found and she must work with the police to establish it the two cases are connected and track down the murderer before more lives are lost.

I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to see where Fiona Veitch Smith takes these characters next.

Miss Clara Vale has been invited to Penford Manor by Lady Penford on the pretense of attending the opening of the grouse-hunting season. In reality, she and her assistant Bella are secretly investigating an anonymous blackmail letter sent to Lady Penford, threatening to divulge a secret. With Lady Penford refusing to tell Clara what the secret involves, she and Bella have little to go on except the knowledge that someone within the household must have slipped the blackmail letter under Lady Penford's door. The case becomes more complicated and dangerous when a dead body turns up on the grounds and Clara suspects her blackmail case is linked to the murder, especially when someone tries unsuccessfully to push her off a cliff top when she starts asking too many questions.

Set at Penford Manor in the 1930s amongst the glamour of high society, this is murder mystery about a young socialite making her mark on the world as an independent woman (despite her parents' protestations) is a fabulous read. It has a well-written storyline filled with the glamour of that era, and enough twists to keep you interested and guessing. A great read - I will definitely be reading the other Miss Clara Vale mysteries and highly recommend you read this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Embla Books for the opportunity to read and review this book

The evocation of events in an aristocratic ancestral home in 1930 is so perfectly done that one could easily believe this is a novel from the Golden Age of Crime Fiction. And it's easy to imagine Agatha Christie would have been proud to see her name on the cover of such a stylishly written mystery. It has all her best tropes but is enhanced by the genuine talent of Fiona Veitch Smith.
Clara and Bella are characters as enticingly modern as they are of the period. The mystery is clever, compelling and complex and had me hooked from first page to last.
The accuracy of the historical backdrop - Northumberland's coal mining industry in the grip of the early months of the Great Depression - adds a layer of fascinating realism.
A superb series which I intend to follow.

The latest Clara Vale mystery was jam packed full of mysteries, characters and dastardly schemes!

Miss Clara was as canny as ever and having a female heroine work alongside the police instead of the police being a stupid lot of buffoons was a nice contrast. Bella was as usual, witty and full of sass. The two ladies are a fantastic set of crime busters.

This novel was set at a different location, away from her office and residence and at a country manor estate. She was thrust into high society and even worse, her family's company. Managing to not disgrace them too badly, Clara found a lot more than she initially bargained for.

Another hit for Fiona Veitch Smith and although it was quite slow in some places, the mysteries certainly kept me guessing to the end. The only downside to this book was the sheer amount of characters that had me a tad confused at times. The author does try and describe them as well as name them when they come up, which is admirable, but in the end I think a few less would have been easier to keep track of.

My sincere thanks to Netgalley and Embla Books for an ARC. All opinions stated are my own.

Part of a series ,another mystery and murder for Miss Clara Vale to solve. Good characters and an entertaining read.

4.5 Stars
Miss Clara Vale, an old friend of the family at Penford Manor, is tasked by Lady Justina Penford to investigate a blackmail plot against her but Clara has to do it secretly so the rest of the house party thinks she’s just a guest, even Clara’s parents & brother are invited to give credibility to the rouse. However when the body of a local trade unionist is found in the grounds, Clara's case gets even more complicated because a clue left by the body links it to the blackmail note.
The fourth outing for Clara & another well written engrossing cosy mystery, this time she & Bella her intrepid assistant are “guests” at the Glorious Twelfth house party in the Northumberland countryside. There are a select number of suspects who all seem to have secrets. Clara gradually routes out the secrets & when D I Alexander Hawkes arrives he actually lets her continue to investigate. There were twists, turns & red herrings as well as lots of secrets & I was kept guessing. I love Clara’s relationship with Bella, they work well together & a mutual respect has developed, I also like the chemistry between Sandy & Clara & I hope their relationship develops further in future books
I voluntarily read and reviewed a special copy of this book; all thoughts and opinions are my own

When Lady Penford turned up at private detective Clara Vale's office, requesting she investigate a plot of blackmail on her, they decided Clara and her assistant, Bella, could join the guests at Penford Manor the following weekend. There would be many guests because of the annual grouse hunting tradition, and as long as Clara and Bella were discreet, Lady Penford was sure her secret would not have to be divulged. But what followed was murder and several attempted murders, including of Clara herself. Was the murder and the blackmail attempt connected? Who was the culprit, and what was the motive? Inspector Hawkes and some of his men arrived at the Manor, locking it down until he was able to find the killer, with Clara and Bella working alongside him...

The Penford Manor Murders is the 4th in the Miss Clara Vale Mysteries by Fiona Veitch Smith, set in 1930s England. I've enjoyed the previous in the series and this one is no different. Clara and Bella are independent young women with a strong penchant for detecting, which they do well. The guilty ones had no chance!! Recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley & Embla Books for my digital ARC to read and review.

The Clara Vale mysteries are perfect for cosy crime lovers. This one has an especially clever plot and is perfect reading for a sunny afternoon. There’s a budding romance here too. A lovely gentle read.

Clara Vale Mysteries are always an excellent read. In the Penford Manor Murders, Clara encounters blackmail, murder, peril, romance among other challenges set in the splendour of a manor house decorated in the modern style of the day (Art Deco). The period details are intricately researched but don’t take away from the storyline and eclectic cast of characters. I thoroughly enjoyed trying to work out “who done it” alongside Clara as she and her trusty assistant Bella uncover more evidence that alter the obvious path that initially create more danger to all involved than answers. I was pleased to see reoccurring characters including some of her much maligned family members and a certain enigmatic Inspector. I was delighted to be given an opportunity to read an eARC of this book and look forward to read more adventures with Clara in the future.

this is a good series, but this book for me read too convoluted. We still have strife between Clara and her parents (mean mum...) and I felt exhausted reading it with all the conflict and lies between all the characters.

Just too much.

This 4th in the Miss Clara Vale mysteries is more traditionally set than its predecessors, being a murder-at-the-manor mystery. Previous outings have included a vanished fairy godmother from the pantomime and a jaunt to Egypt like Poirot. It's easy to read, excellent on the Art Deco settings beloved of the end of the mad decade, the 1920s, and with nice touches of fashion that show the shifting lines between flapper frivolities and the businesslike austerity of impending WW2 fashions.

Manor mysteries traditionally come with a closed collection of suspects. This one might be said to come with multiples of those: the set of manor residents first listed by Lady Penford in a handy cheat-sheet at Miss Vale's office, then those in residence when she arrives at the manor (some overlap with #1 but includes servants), and then a pre-dinner review of the guests that includes some not earlier listed, and then the next day when more guests arrive. All this before we get to the police personages! As I was reading an e-ARC, I didn't have access to a cast list but if there's one in the finished book I urge you to bookmark it immediately.. It will be of more use to you than the rather crowded map of Northumberland.

That minor quibble aside, the book delves into the tricky business of coal mining in an England tangled in production caps and export regulations, as well as the delicate matter of whether Germany is sneakily using English coal in its even more surreptitious attempt to rebuild its war machine that was outlawed by the Treaty of Versailles in 1919. There's even a historical personage, Sir Charles Trevelyan, who provides invaluable assistance to Miss Vale via his standing as an MP. His wife is a mere walk-on although in real life her claim to fame was as sister to the famous - some say notorious - explorer/adventurer Gertrude Bell.

So, lots of historical meat to sink your fingers into and it never overpowers the narrative. In fact it helps drive the plot. A worthy weekend read for the mystery lover in your life.

This was probably my favorite in the series so far. I love the fierce independence of both Clara and Bella in the times they live in where they are not given the same respect due to being women. I know I got a little confused by the twists and turns and multiple potential murderers. I always enjoy colorful side characters with strong personalities, which this had. It was interesting to see the interactions between Clara and her parents and realize how much she had to work to succeed on her own. I would have liked to see a bit more of their interactions. I can’t wait to see what Clara & Bella get up to next.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of the book.

Thanks to Embla and Net Galley for this ARC. This is the fourth in the series and is still great. I love the characters, its well written and the plot is suitably twisty.

"It's open season at Penford Manor! But someone has murder in their sights...

At Penford Manor, the guests are arriving to celebrate the start of the grouse-hunting season: lords and ladies, barons and baronesses, a Member of Parliament - and chemistry graduate turned detective, Miss Clara Vale, an old friend of the family. But Clara is no ordinary guest: she's secretly investigating a blackmail plot against Lady Penford herself.

Someone in the house is already up to no good, but when the body of a local trade unionist is found in the grounds, Clara's case gets even more complicated because a clue left by the body links it to the blackmail note.

Who has discovered Lady Penford's secret? Can Clara and her trusted assistant Bella work together to find the murderer? And what do the cornflowers which keep popping up everywhere mean?

Amidst the glittering dresses and sparkling conversation of society, Clara must find the truth - before the killer acts again!

The perfect Golden Age cosy mystery for fans of Helena Dixon, Agatha Christie and Verity Bright won't want to miss this!"

Is it weird that I know none of my local hunting season dates but know when grouse seasons starts in England?