Elizabeth Dunne

Real Rating: 3.25* of five

The Publisher Says: In Concord, Louisa May Alcott farms pigs after success with Little Women, but as New England’s freezing winter approaches, death isn’t far away.

Concord’s Misses, armed with wit and elegance, money, and secrets, are present when Miss Emily Collier dies at her forty-seconnd birthday party. Louisa is embroiled in the intrigue. They will lie to her, set traps and blackmail to avoid justice. And Louisa is now an outsider in what was once her home.

To test her mettle, local Justice of the Peace Captain Briers, a man compromised by lust for one of the Misses, enlists her to bring order to the twisted loyalties, land feuds and secrets fuelling a seditious desire for revenge not seen in Middlesex County since the witch trials.

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.

My Review: I have a mystery-loving sister who dislikes the use of historical figures as amateur sleuths. "That's not accurate, doesn't help suspend disbelief" is her reasoning. I think she's correct about this, but don't share her conclusion because it, to me, does add to my apprecieation of the book's historical background. Alcott, in this use, does increase my ability to immerse my imagination into the Concord of the era.

The story is fine...nothing new...but cozy mysteries, particularly hostorical cozy mysteries, don't need to be. I like the genre, I like this execution of the basic plot, it's a good and entertaining read.There's a Kindle edition though it's not available on Kindle unlimited.… (mehr)