A Murder Most Unladylike Mystery, Book 8 - Top Marks for Murder

Ah, it feels so good to take another trip back into the world of Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong.  I can't believe it has been nearly a year since I read the last mystery - it does not seem like that long has passed since Daisy and Hazel were solving a murder in the theater!  But, here we are, joining the teenage girls of the Detective Society as they return to Deepdean school for not only a new semester, but a new murder.  This series has been so much fun, and quite honestly, now that I've started re-reading the Dana Girls series, I realize that this series (set at an all-girls' school) is more or less a modern updating of the Dana Girls (although Daisy and Hazel are not biological sisters, they do act much like Louise and Jean do in the Dana Girls' series!).  Maybe that is part of the reason I have enjoyed it so much.

 

Top Marks for Murder is the eighth full-length novel in the series (not counting the short-story, The Case of the Missing Treasure), and it returns the girls to their roots at Deepdean.  In this particular mystery, the school is gearing up for its 50th anniversary celebration, with a number of special events planned and all of the girls' parents traveling in to help celebrate.  Daisy and Hazel, however, find themselves parent-less -Daisy's parents are working and Hazel's parents are not willing to make the long trip from Hong Kong.  However, the events in the story do end up bringing a "guardian" of sorts for the girls in the form of Inspector Priestly.  And, quite honestly, the Inspector's interactions with Daisy and Hazel is so perfectly written, and the Inspector finally does something that I've been waiting decades for people in these murder mystery series to do - he admits to the girls that "against all probability, when you've told me that something terrible has happened, it always has.  You have been right again and again, and I would be no sort of policeman at all if I did not believe in your detective powers by now" (p. 83).  FINALLY!  It seems in every mystery series, whether in prose form or on television, no matter how many murders the amateur sleuths solve, when the next murder comes along, the sleuths' theories and observations are dismissed, and they are told to stay out of it.  Here, at least, we have a police inspector who recognizes the fact that these two teenage girls have solved eight murders (to date), so why would you not give credence to what they have to say?  It is only logical!

 

Author Robin Stevens really plays up the misdirect with this mystery.  When Beanie witnesses what she believes to be a murder - a man choking a woman - in the woods outside of Deepdean, the Detective Society is on the case  The only problem is, there is no body and no proof of any murder.  The only clues they have are a French matchbook and a ladies' hat.  Oh, and there's that invitation to the 50th anniversary celebration - meaning that either the murderer or the victim (or both!) was to be a guest at the weekend's ceremonies.  The girls sketch out a plan to figure out the identity of the victim by watching what woman, who is supposed to be there, fails to appear.  But that plan goes awry when Miss Barnard's sister, Mrs. Rivers, is murdered at the opening dinner.  It is clear she is poisoned (the girls recognize the affects of arsenic right away), and it is also clear that only someone at the table where she sat could have done it. But who was it?  As the girls keep watch on their suspects, and as they re-enact the actions of those at the table that night, they think they are getting closer to the truth.  But then another murder attempt takes place during a garden party (I say attempt, because this victim manages to survive!), and the girls are forced to re-think everything.  Finally, Daisy comes up with a plan to smoke out the culprit; but will her plan succeed or simply put her in unwarranted danger?

 

It truly is a mind-boggling mystery, as Stevens is constantly changing the direction.  Just when you think you have an idea of what's going on, she pulls the rug out from underneath you and turns it around.  And without giving anything away, even after the girls figure out who the culprit is (or who they believe it is), it turns out everything - and everyone! - is not quite what it seems.  There are some great surprises in the story, some unexpected plot twists, and one very sad revelation regarding the mother of one of the girls in the Detective Society (not Daisy or Hazel, so breathe easy).  The final revelation of the truth at the end is definitely worthy of Agatha Christie or Arthur Conan Doyle.

 

One interesting tidbit I noticed while reading was a passing reference to the possibility that one of the new girls' father might be "the rightful owner of the Koh-i-Noor diamond" (p. 11).  I had to read that twice, because something in the back of my mind was nagging at me, telling me I had read about that diamond before, and not necessarily all that long ago.  Well, looking back, it seems that the Koh-i-Noor diamond was discussed on page 40 of The Clue in the Jewel Box, the Nancy Drew mystery originally published back in 1943.  That particular diamond (which is real, by the way) originated in India, who still makes claims of ownership to the diamond, and it allegedly has a curse connected with it (supposedly only a woman or God can wear it).  It is currently on display at the Jewel House in the Tower of London as a part of the Crown Jewels.

 

One other aspect of the story I should mention is the use of A.E. Houseman's poem, "Terence, This is Stupid Stuff."  It is actually a rather ingenuous idea, and Steven's incorporation of the last stanza of that poem into the story and the importance to unraveling the truth of what really happened at that dinner table is just one of the many reasons why this book is so thoroughly enjoyable.

 

There is some hints at the end of this book about a trip to Egypt for Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong, so I'm hoping that the next book will have a mystery filled with pyramids, mummies, and all kinds of great Egyptian hieroglyphic-clues! 

RATING:  10 salt shakes and champagne glasses out of 10 for a cleverly plotted mystery full of twists and turns that will make your head spin!

A Wells & Wong Mystery, Book 2 - Poison is Not Polite

Due to DragonCon and the tech week for the play I am currently in, I regretfully fell behind in updating my blog - I didn't stop reading, I just didn't have time to post my random thoughts on the books I've read - so I'll be playing catch up over the next week or so...

After the disappointment of the first book, I can say that the second mystery in this series did head in the right direction.  Poison is Not Polite takes Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong on another adventure to solve a murder - only this time it's a bit more personal ( and written in a bit more appropriate manner for the audience at which it is aimed).

The author, Robin Stevens, returns Daisy home for the holidays, with Hazel tagging along to share in Daisy's birthday celebration. The Wells' sprawling countryside estate is well-worn, and with its countless rooms, unkept grounds, and Shining-like garden maze, it quickly becomes clear that not only is the Wells family not quite financially well-off, but things are not all what they seem to be.  The girls are introduced to Daisy's new governess, Miss Alston, who has come to tutor Daisy and Hazel over the holidays.  While she comes with the highest recommendations, little is known about her.  Then arrives Mr. Curtis, a supposed friend of Daisy's mother, who seems a bit too interested in Daisy's mother, as well as all of the antiques throughout the estate. Then, there's the arrival of Daisy's Uncle Felix and her Aunt Saskia, both of whom have their own eccentricities.  And lest we forget, Daisy and Hazel's classmates, Kitty and Beanie, show up to join the celebration, as well as Daisy's brother, Bertie, and his best friend, Stephen.

Stevens provides a rather large, well-rounded cast of characters, each with their own quirks and many of whom clearly have secrets they are doing their best to keep hidden.  As with any good murder mystery, one of the participants dies under peculiar circumstances right in the middle of Daisy's 14th birthday party, and it once again falls upon Daisy and Hazel to solve the crime.  Only the Wells and Wong Detective Agency grows a bit with this book, as their friends, Kitty and Beanie, join in (albeit rather reluctantly on the part of Beanie).  Mr. Curtis, who was pretty much despised by everyone in the house except Daisy's mother, is murdered.  Poisoned, to be exact.  Poisoned in a room full of people, with everyone watching.  Stevens provides the age old questions - who did it, why did they do it, and quite frankly, how did they do it in full view of everyone in the room?

Thankfully, the author avoid using the swear words that were so prominent in the first mystery, and other than the hinted affair of Daisy's mother with Mr. Curtis, there is no sexual subtext within the story.  Instead, Stevens provides a well-plotted murder mystery with a revolving number of suspects.  The interaction she creates between Daisy and Hazel throughout the story is like a roller coaster - particularly when Hazel forces Daisy to confront the fact that her own father may be the murderer, and later when Hazel must face the fact that she is going to have to doubt one of the people in the house that she has placed her trust in.

As with the previous book, the police inspector arrives near the end to make an arrest, and Daisy puts on a show to reveal who the true murderer is, thus once again earning the respect and thanks of the inspector that Hazel finds to be so attractive and engaging.  And as Daisy walks through the steps of the murder and all of the events that occurred thereafter, the reader is left to realize that it was all right there all along.  While it is still a bit off-kilter to have such young teenagers solving actual murders, this second book in the series definitely handled it a lot better than the first.  Hopefully, further books in this series will maintain this level of storytelling and writing, which is about the only way it's going to keep my interest.

RATING:  7 shiny silver police badges out of 10 for removing those elements that don't belong in a children's mystery series and building upon the friendship between Daisy and Hazel, taking them in the right direction.