After all the plans Kat Stanford has made--from quitting her
job on the TV series Fakes and Treasures, to deciding on the
type of antique toys she and her mother would sell in their
new shop--her mother was babbling on the phone about having
moved to Devonshire of all places. While Kit could not quite
get the why of the move part, she definitely caught the part
about her mother breaking her arm. Knowing her mother would
not admit to struggling with that situation, Kit loads up
her car and drives the long journey from London to the Devon
countryside.
Arriving in Devon, Kit is shocked to find that the lovely
carriage house, previously part of Honeychurch Hall that
Iris, her mother, had been raving about for its beauty, is
in a far worse state of repair than expected. Not quite
getting her mother's motivations, so different from the Mom
she has known as a child, Kit directs her energies to try
and get Iris to move from the dilapidated carriage house to
a modern building and then Kit could head back to London.
After a series of unfortunate events like sorting out her
feelings and relationship concerns about her fiancé,
especially after realizing his ex-wife is still quite in
the picture and in his car, and learning more about her
mother and her secret interests, Kit is not so sure about
leaving Devonshire. After stumbling across a murder and
hearing the nanny has also gone missing, Kit decides she
needs to stay with Iris. As they become the target for
strange attacks, she has to wonder are their lives in
danger?
MURDER AT HONEYCHURCH HALL is the first of a new mystery
series by Hannah Dennison and it is off to a winning
start. With a cluster of quirky characters, including TV
celebrities, antique specialists, ex-travelling performers,
a secret romance writer, and an isolated but very
intelligent young boy, this story could easily have gone
over the top, but with Dennison's deft hand at character
development, their various stories and backgrounds come
together in a very natural and authentic manner. While the
story may be considered by some as a cozy mystery, I was
appreciative of Dennison bringing to light a number of
underlying themes, such as dealing with the death of a
loved one, family and relationship dynamics and tax and
other financial considerations.
Another strength is Dennison's knowledge and research
on the Devonshire area and as a result she easily brings
each scene very much alive, including Kit's surprise at
opening a door and seeing cows. MURDER AT HONEYCHURCH
HALL has lots of idiosyncratic characters with intriguing
backstories, so the stage is set for many new adventures
and mysteries for this crime-solving mother and daughter
duo. MURDER AT HONEYCHURCH HALL is a treat to enjoy!
Kat Stanford is just days away from starting her dream
antique business with her newly widowed mother Iris when she
gets a huge shock. Iris has recklessly purchased a
dilapidated carriage house at Honeychurch Hall, an isolated
country estate located several hundred miles from London.
Yet it seems that Iris isn’t the only one with surprises at
Honeychurch Hall. Behind the crumbling façade, the
inhabitants of the stately mansion are a lively group of
eccentrics to be sure—both upstairs and downstairs —and they
all have more than their fair share of skeletons in the closet.
When the nanny goes missing, and Vera, the loyal housekeeper
ends up dead in the grotto, suspicions abound. Throw in a
feisty, octogenarian countess, a precocious seven year old
who is obsessed with the famous fighter pilot called
Biggles, and a treasure trove of antiques, and there is more
than one motive for murder.
As Iris’s past comes back to haunt her, Kat realizes she
hardly knows her mother at all. A when the bodies start
piling up, it is up to Kat to unravel the tangled truth
behind the murders at Honeychurch Hall.
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