Review: A Brazen Curiosity

Title: A Brazen Curiosity: A Regency Cozy (Beatrice Hyde-Clare Mysteries Book 1)

Author: Lynn Messina

Publisher: 15 September 2018 by Potatoworks Press

Pages: 176 pages

How I Read It: ARC book

Genre: historical fiction, mystery, romance

My Rating: 5 cups

Synopsis:

Twenty-six-year-old Beatrice Hyde-Clare is far too shy to investigate the suspicious death of a fellow guest in the Lake District. A spinster who lives on the sufferance of her relatives, she would certainly not presume to search the rooms of her host's son and his friend looking for evidence. Reared in the twin virtues of deference and docility, she would absolutely never think to question the imperious Duke of Kesgrave about anything, let alone how he chose to represent the incident to the local constable.

And yet when she stumbles upon the bludgeoned corpse of poor Mr. Otley in the deserted library of the Skeffingtons' country house, that's exactly what she does.

My Thoughts

Lynn Messina! Sign me up! You are becoming my ‘go to’ for a fun getaway. Light and easy reads is what you deliver time and again. I adored this book! Lynn has proven herself to be a truly witty and very clever author of Regency genre. I mean a ‘posthaste’ nap sounds inviting to me!

“Aunt Vera, having decided it was her niece who had ruined the mood, rather than Mr. Otley’s corpse, reiterated her demand that Bea take a nap posthaste.”

This book is indeed a lot of fun and ticks so many boxes - historic details, an escape to the country, a murder to be solved, a little romance and all tied together with humour. You will love Beatrice, our main heroine and an old maid at 26! The way she does a character analysis on those gathered at this country retreat is wonderful, with her desire to throw food at them in abomination truly hysterical. However, there is also that touch of sadness about her situation and she recognises that which makes the reader truly feel for her.

“The difference between who she perceived herself to be and who she actually was was vast, and if she had any fight left in her, she would resent how easily she’d succumbed to everyone’s low expectations, including her own.”

Bea found herself wanting to hurl a dinner roll at him just to elicit a lecture on the throwing arch of flour-based projectiles.”

So when a murder occurs in the library late one night, Bea sees this as her opportunity. This has a good ol’ game of ‘Cluedo’ written all over it - Mr So and So, in the library with the .... what is there not to appreciate? As Beatrice and the Duke put their heads together in an attempt to reveal the murderer, the complexity of the clues is such, that you will not see the culprit until the final reveal.

“Beatrice couldn’t believe they were debating decorum while the dead body of Mr. Otley cooled before their eyes.”

I cannot recommend this book highly enough (and I am off to search up the remaining two in the series) for an all round entertaining read. It is a fun mystery, filled with an array of stereotypical, yet enticing, characters from that era with many a laugh out loud moment.

“I had quite a lot of tea.”

“Bea!” her aunt exclaimed, appalled at this display of outrageous behavior. “We just talked about this. Ladies do not admit to any biological functions.”

“Yes, Bea,” Flora said, smirking. “Weren’t you listening? It was in the section on hygiene.”

“Of course, I remember,” Bea lied smoothly. “The hygiene section was a favorite. I do particularly love disavowing my own physiological processes.”

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.