Lucy is sad over her grandson Patrick moving with his family to Alaska and can’t seem to lift her spirits. When best friend Sue suggests a trip to England, she decides to go. I always wind up enjoying the books in this series that take us on destination settings because it’s an interesting change of pace and the author does a lovely job immersing us in the surroundings. Admittedly though, my favorites in the series are the ones set in Tinkers Cove because you get so much more time with the town and the side characters.

Here we spend lots of time with Lucy and Sue. They’ve gone to stay at a large manor in England, but all isn’t well. There are financial problems, bickering family members, a cool garden maze, and naturally… murder. With an interesting cast of side characters and lots of tourist hot spots to hit in England, this was a fun treat.

Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.
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**I was provided a copy of this upcoming book by Kensington via NetGalley in exchange for a fair, honest review.**

Lucy Stone is back in Leslie Meier's newest book, British Manor Murder! Revisiting a favorite character is always a joy! This is the 23rd Lucy Stone cozy mystery, and it is just as enjoyable a read as all the others!

The Basics: Lucy is upset because her grandson has moved to Alaska with his parents. Her friends decide she needs a vacation to help her relax. What better place to get some R&R than a British Manor House? She jets off to England for a vintage hat exhibition with her friend, Sue, to stay at Moreton Manor. The Earl of Wickham and his wife, who prefer to be called Perry and Poppy, are surprisingly down to earth and gracious hosts. The household gets a bit riled up when a portrait falls from the wall, damaging the painting and frame. The portrait is supposedly cursed and bad things will befall the Manor and its residents if it is ever removed from the wall. It fell once before, and a member of the family died. Immediately things start going wrong. A dead body is discovered in the maze, dry rot threatens the Manor House itself, and a horrible stench invades a portion of the house. When the stench is traced to another corpse in a sealed-off room in the Manor, Lucy knows the killer is in the house, lurking and perhaps waiting to do more harm. She knows she has to ferret out the culprit, while following the traditions and rules of the vast British estate, before anyone else dies.

As usual, Leslie Meier delivers a delightful, well-written mystery! Plenty of suspense, lots of suspects, great supporting characters, twists and turns -- just a fun, cozy mystery!

It started out a bit slow for me, as Lucy was depressed and whiny for the first chapter or so. But, as soon as she was in England and mystery was afoot, she perked up and forgot about her depression. She wasn't whiny for long!

It isn't necessary to read the Lucy Stone books in order. I haven't read them all -- and was still able to jump right in and enjoy this book! Don't worry if you haven't read any of the series, or only some of the books -- give this one a read!! Definitely an enjoyable, suspenseful mystery!

British Manor Murder releases September 27th!

Check out the author's website for more information on the Lucy Stone series: www.lesliemeierbooks.com

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As usual, the mystery wasn't great (the sub-plot with Bill is especially weak), but I loved the setting--an English manor house that has its problems, but isn't completely decrepit. It wouldn't surprise me if Meier was thinking of the house and the family who owns it as descendants of the Crawley family of Downton Abbey. There was actually humor in this book! Lucy wasn't quite as put-about as she usually is, maybe because she was away from her family and boss. Sue Finch was a good companion for Lucy. ( )

Lucy's grandson moved to Alaska with her son and his wife. She mopes because she missed seeing the lad. Her friend Sue asks Lucy to accompany her to England for a hat show at Moreton Manor. They expected more grandeur, but find the manor itself serves as a tourist attraction while the family lives in a secondary house. As they wander in the maze, they find a corpse. They discover things are not quite they seem at the manor with cheap reproductions replacing valuable art pieces. Some inconsistency exists between the earlier installment with a British setting and this one. In English Tea Murder Pam, faced with a maze, states the key is to turn to the left since designers know most people will turn right. In this one, Pam can't figure out which way to go and turns right, getting them lost in the maze. It seems either Pam or Lucy would remember this and automatically go left. ( )

Pretty sure I have read this book before, but it was not on my list. Got verrry tired of all the complaining about "not seeing her grandson in Alaska" by Lucy. Get a life!!! ( )