Read in 2026 - 17: Murder at the Hedgerow

Thistlewood Manor: Murder at the Hedgerow 

(An Eliza Montagu Cozy Mystery, Book 1)

Fiona Grace

 

Once more, on my trips to and from work and O.K.’s, I’ve been reading a free ebook on my Kindle, the first in a series to get readers interested so that they’ll buy more.

This was a bit different to most of my “first for free” reads,in that it was set in the 1920s, not in our time.

 

Eliza Montagu is one of four grown-up children of a wealthy English family, but unlike her siblings she has left Thistlewood Manor, the opulent family home, in order to escape the restrictions and expectations put on her by society in general and her mother in particular.

Living in a flat in London and financed by her father, she spends her time painting and supporting the Sufragette movement, happily believing she can make a real difference.

Then a letter from her mother arrives, summoning her urgently back to the manor, and she returns home for the first time in three years.

 

The reason for the urgent summons was not the emergency Eliza imagined and worried about. Instead, she finds herself at the centre of her family’s attention more than ever before and is on the brink of returning to London in a huff when an important house guest is found dead – and she appears to be the main suspect.

 

Of course this would not be the first in a series if Eliza really was convicted for the murder, and of course she solves the mystery while at the same time uncovering more secrets.

The author prepares the ground for new mysteries, because not everything that is hinted at in this book is entirely explained, and not all threads end.

 

I did enjoy this but not enough to buy the next books in the series. The writing style was pleasant enough, but thoughts and observations were sometimes repeated unnecessarily, as if readers are prone to forget things from one chapter to the next.

Still, it was easy entertainment with little challenge except for my patience when another repetitive paragraph came up and I sighed inwardly, thinking along the lines of “Yes, I know – you already said that”.

 

The 1920s setting made for some interesting elements such as how different life was for men and women, members of wealthy families as opposed to servants and workers.

We certainly have our share of current day problems, but honestly – I believe that most of us are much better off nowadays. Or can you imagine your parents choosing your spouse for you, you not being able to vote, have a decent job and your own place to live in just the way you like?

 

Fiona Grace is a very prolific writer; unknown to me until now. Her website is here.