The Girl in the Yellow Dress by Jane A. Adams impressed me with its reality. By this, I mean that the setting, people and their motivations, their actions and the way the police conducted the inquest had a very strong sense of reality.
In particular, I like the way the mystery unfolded. First, it looked one way, then, as facts emerged, things slowly changed until one discovery uncovered a new situation nobody had imagined.
It felt authentic to me and showed how things really might happen in the real world.
I also liked that some side secrets muddled the central mystery. It wasn't cleanly cut, and this added to the sensation of authenticity. Also, the central mystery originated in an event that nobody had a clue about.
I really really liked all of this because it gave me a sense of the messiness of how life truly unfolds.

I also liked the setting very, very much.
In the forward, the author tells how she visited those places and fell in love with them. It comes through in the narration. Descriptions are very real and very grounded. Truly, I got the sense that the author had in mind a very clear image of a place.
But the best was the depiction of the small community where the crime happened. I loved all the characters, even the unlikable ones. All of them were so well-rounded, and they, too, felt grounded in the place where they lived.
I loved all of this.

And last but not least, I enjoyed Henry and Micky's friendship a lot and the ominous feeling of the end of it. Though that's not the right word, I suppose.
Henry and Micky were in the Great War together. They have worked side by side for many years after the war - Henry, the detective, and Micky, his assistant - and have gone through a lot together. Yet, now Micky has an opportunity for promotion, and Henry knows it's a good thing for him. He knows Micky deserves it, though he also feels a sense of loss and even contemplates leaving the police when Micky won't be at his side anymore.
This also is handled with a very strong sense of reality rather than drama. Henry and Micky's situations are very relatable, and still, as a reade, despite really wanting that they could go on together - like, to a certain point, they too wished - you also know that it is logical and understandable that one of them will want to move on.

These are the main elements that, in my opinion, created that stark sense of reality that I seldom find in fiction, and I appreciated so very much in this story.

Although this is the 8th book in this series, it was the first one that I had read. Was easy to follow with likeable characters so I will be going to read the first 7 in this series.
Was a page turner with twists and turns and kept me interested from start to finish.

This is the first book that I have read by this author and I enjoyed it. It was well-written and a quick read.. This book was it was twisty and unpredictable. I will definitely be reading more by this author

I voluntarily read an advanced copy of The Girl in the Yellow Dress by Jane A Adams. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and Severn House for providing an ARC to review.

There were several things I liked about this novel. The idea of punishing the wrong suspect because of circumstantial evidence and prejudice. Also, the time period was an intersting spot to put the mystery. Right when so much is changing with society and police procedures. My biggest complaint was that Henry and Mickey were hard to separate. They both felt interchangeable to me, and I would have been happier with them having more distinct personalities. This book wasn't a favorite, but I recommend everyone give it a chance to see if it is better for them. I rate this book 2.5/5 stars.

The Girl in the Yellow Dress by Jane A. Adams is the 8th book in the Henry Johnstone Mystery series This latest book is set in the early 1930s, When, DCI Henry Johnstone and DS Mickey Hitchens are called to rural Leicestershire a young girl has been found strangled in a ditch, Another young girl was killed in the same way
which was near the same location. However, a man has been convicted and hanged for the crime.

Is this murder a copycat murder?

Or did they convict and hang a wrong man for the previous murder of a young woman.

This book had great twists and turns and will have you guessing till the end. I love Jane's book but I have not read any from this series so I am so glad I had the chance to read and review this book. I will be going back to read the other seven books. I really enjoyed it

Another excellent addition to Johnstone&Hitchens mystery series. There's plenty of twists, there's a man who was sentenced but he could be innocent, there're young girls who are being killed.
I was hooked since the first pages and the solid mystery kept me reading and guessing.
Great character development and plotting.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Many thanks to NetGalley and Severn House for this opportunity to review “The Girl in the Yellow Dress.” All opinions and comments are my own.

Brady Brewer, a condemned man who says he didn’t do it, smashes the jaw of the policeman who he says fitted him up for the crime, right before he’s hanged for it. Thus begins “The Girl in the Yellow Dress,” the eighth in the series of historical police procedurals featuring British copper Henry Johnstone and his sidekick sergeant (and good friend) Mickey Hitchens.

Brewer’s sister wrote to the Yard earlier and requested they look into what she insists is a miscarriage of justice, which they ignored. Brewer was a bad ‘un and deserves to die for a whole lot of crimes (Johnstone knows him from the war). But there might be a problem; another young girl has been found dead, in the same fashion and near to where the first body was found. The local policeman, Inspector Walker - he with the injured jaw -- must confront the fact that someone else did the killing. And maybe he made a mistake. So, our two London policeman get the nod. It won’t be a good beginning for a partnership with Johnstone and Hitchens.

Our author points out the difficulties that Henry and Mickey deal with mentally, as they confront the history with Brewer. Henry knows personally of the crimes he should have been hanged for, but perhaps not this one. On one hand he finds the sentence justified; on the other, not so much. Mickey serves as his conscience, because Mickey is concerned about the lapse in justice, too.

Throughout the book Henry is also wrestling with his doubts about continuing his police work. He’s not sure he can continue. Mickey is up for a promotion, and he is sure to get it. Which will mean they won’t be working together for much longer.

It begins to be evident that more than a couple of women have been attacked. And most amazing of all, the local young women have been conducting their own investigation. And this investigation was negated, because “we don’t want to alarm the public.” And unfortunately, as Henry says, “…opportunities for solving these crimes, before they ended in murder, have likely been missed.” But his own search for a killer continues, thorough and complete, as Jane A. Adams knows that it must be for readers to accept that verdict of whether Brady Brewer was truly guilty or not. As is common in many such stories their prodding reveal secrets, some designed to project the good and others to protect the evil. And there is one who knows the most of all, and goes to tell someone else. Never a good idea, in mystery novels!

They are closing in. Confessions are obtained. Unfortunately, lives and reputations are destroyed, too. Because, as Mickey relates, “If any of them had spoken to any other, lives would have been saved and this mess solved long since.” There is one bright spot, though; a reputation helped, by a young village copper. And was Brady Brewer guilty, you ask? You’ll have to read the book to find that out.

At the end, we learn that Mickey is getting his promotion. And Henry Johnstone decides he wants to move on. But does he, though? Mickey isn’t sure about that. He thinks that Henry will not be content with an easy life, that he has more to give. Let’s hope he’s right, because I would miss Inspector Johnstone.

1930 Brady Brewer has been hanged for the murder of young Sarah Downham, though he constantly proclaimed his innocence. Now another murder has occurred in the same area and with similar conditions, of seventeen year old Penelope Soper. So was he innocent. DCI Henry Johnstone and DS Mickey Hitchens are sent to Market Harborough to investigate.
An enjoyable, well-written and well-plotted historical mystery. Another good addition to this series with its interesting and likeable main characters.
An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

DCI Henry Johnstone and DS Mickey Hitchens are back in this gripping murder mystery set in rural in Leicestershire at the beginning of the 30's.

The brutal murders of two young women are at the center of this very difficult police procedural full of clues and potential suspects.
Tautly written and full of twists and turns, this new addition to Ms. Adams terrific series is a compelling read from start to finish. Blessed with a large cast of exquisitely drawn characters, this fictional treat offers the reader an unflinching and compelling look at class differences in rural England prior to WWII.

A captivating whodunit that deserves to be enjoyed without any
moderation whatsoever

Many thanks to Severn and Netgalley for this terrific ARC

Early 1930s, and a re-fashioned SE Leicestershire. A young girl has been found strangled in a ditch, which is rather worrying for the local police, as they've just hanged a nasty bit of rough for just that with another girl. Getting some London investigators in to work over and above them, before the trail goes cold, brings two more men who remain unapologetic about the hanging – they saw his nastiness while serving at the front in the War. But they all certainly see the chance they convicted the wrong man, and try to investigate afresh both murders, with the dread thought they were both by the same hands.

I did only look at this really for the local connection, Leics being my home county for almost three decades now. I don't rush to look at historical crimes, and here I did find reasons why the genre and I are not a match – the whole has a stilted feel, even when needing to be charged and racy; both in and out of exposition mode the dialogues all feel a little plummy, which must be in keeping with the time but doesn't make for such a fresh read. And where freshness is concerned, this eighth book in this series has the chief investigator feeling stale, with his sergeant getting the promotion that will boost his career yet possibly end the older man's. The ennui here is only of use to those liking the men of old.

But it's the format of this story here that rankles more than lack of familiarity or approval of the genre. You're a third of the way through this and the two main guys are still getting character witnesses for the first victim, and have hardly touched on the new case. The frustration that we start with a murder that gets ignored is met by at least one character, who moans when they drag the first death back into the light – despite the very fact the bloke had invited them to make a house call in the first bleedin' place. Even when the first surprise detail comes crunching into view, regarding the titular clothing, things still go ahead at what could only be thought too leisurely a pace. Not one question to the second suspect is raised until practically the 60% mark.

By the finish, I was long past caring if they'd come to the same solution that they would have had if they'd actually stuck to the case in hand, and not worked as if they were some duo of "New Tricks" rejects looking over cold cases whose punishment had been meted. It certainly struck me as very much lacking in realism that they would worry so much about the first victim and practically let the second one fester. And the unsavoury feel of the message being "coo, ain't them local yokel types all insular and class-obsessed weirdos" didn't help anything else, whatsoever.

Jane A. Adams, The Girl in the Yellow Dress, Severn House 2022

Thank you, NetGalley, for providing me with this uncorrected proof in exchange for an honest review.

The Girl in the Yellow Dress is the second book I have read in Adams’ Henry Johnstone mysteries. The first was Bright Young Things and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to read another of Jane A. Adams’ excellent mysteries. There are six previous novels, and I intend reading them. I shall enjoy catching up with the background to the fascinating relationship between Chief Inspector Henry Johnstone and Sergeant Mickey Hitchens, partners in this novel, but with the possibility of the latter’s promotion providing another layer to their friendship and partnership.

Adams is adept at ensuring that the reader new to the partnership has all the necessary information to understand the complexities and benefits arising from their past interactions. However, the reader is never overburdened. This skilful writing also enhances the way in which background information, tips about the environment, social and geographical, and the relationships between the classes are fashioned in the novel. Every point made by Jane A. Adams is slipped into the text with a lightness of touch that ensures that the information is imparted but does not become a litany of her knowledge. Adams leads the reader into thinking about the moral values that impede the investigation, the class and money driven society in which a community hides important information, and the differing expectations of women. She deals with the enormity of some of the utterances based on questionable moral values with wonderful subtlety.

Henry and Mickey are drawn into a murder in a small community after Brady Brewer has been hanged for a murder with such similar features that it brings into question his guilt. They must deal with Inspector Wallace who headed the case that found the local miscreant guilty. Brewer’s sister, a reputable woman, has always argued her brother’s innocence. She has previously made this claim to Henry in a letter which he ignored. Like Wallace, who knows Brewer through experience and reputation, Johnstone and Hitchens also have a past with Brewer that encourages them to believe in his guilt.

The prologue is instructive – Brady Brewer’s personality and his relationship with Wallace is brought to life. Wallace is head butted by Brewer immediately before his hanging, together with the claim of his innocence. Brewer is dead, but his personality is strongly drawn by this action, and the way in which he is depicted by the people left behind.

Both Johnstone and Wallace need to deal with their guilt about possibly having made a mistake. In addition, the relationship is awkward because Johnstone and Hitchens have been brought to investigate not only the new murder, but whether Wallace was wrong about the first: they are outsiders arriving to retrieve a possible disaster. In addition, the possibility of Mickey’s promotion and the change that will make to their working relationship hangs over them both.

Set in the 1930s, the period is well observed. The feature I found engrossing is that, although the frenetic pace of modern setting is absent, the story remains thoroughly gripping. The pace is constant, although investigation of the crime takes place alongside examination of individuals’ principles and questions about the impact of class. The characters are flawed, and, in most cases, humanly so. Young women are given agency, in a society in which they had to surmount sexist expectations. Male police officers are amalgams of despondency, enthusiasm for the investigation, almost seen as a chase, insights into others’ behaviour and their own, and decision making that is clear and fair.

Once again, Jane A. Adams has written a novel that is engaging and thoughtful. She provides a rational explanation of the crimes, leaving no holes in the plot. Meeting these challenges seems easy for this writer, and when put together with characters whose inner thoughts are as engrossing as their investigations, The Girl in a Yellow Dress is a definite success.

Thanks to Severn House publishing and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book in exchange for a review. It is set in England about 1930, DCI Henry Johnstone and DS Mickey Hitchens are summoned to rural Leichestershire to investigate a young woman's murder. Another young woman was killed in very similar circumstances near the same location and a man was convicted and hanged for the crime. All the evidence points to his guilt, but this second crime raises doubt. Was the second murder a copycat, or was the wrong man hanged. This is a very engaging mystery with interesting characters and plot twists. This was my second book by this author and with this detective pair. It was very well plotted and written. I highly recommend it to those who enjoy period mysteries such as Agatha Christie or Sherlock Holmes.

The first book I have read by this author and I enjoyed it. well written with good pacing and a good atmosphere, it was twisty and unpredictable. I will definitely be reading more by this author

Lively, Engaging…
The eighth in the Henry Johnstone series of mysteries finds the DCI and his DS amidst a complex case. Was the wrong man convicted and subsequently hanged for the murder of a young woman on their patch? When another murder occurs with startling similarities it gives the detectives pause for thought - is the same killer on the loose and they were mistaken or is it a case of a copycat killer. Everyone’s reputations are on the line. Well crafted characters populate a lively and engaging plot with a compelling narrative. A worthy addition to this enjoyable series.

Thank you NetGalley and Severn House for the eARC.
DCI Henry Johnstone and DS Mickey Hitchens are involved in the case of 2 young girls, strangled to death. A man was hanged for the killing of the first girl, but not everyone believes he did it, especially his sister. Henry and Mickey, at first, also believe the man was wrongly hanged, but since he was so wicked, they don't really care, However, justice must be done and after the second murder they delve deeply into this puzzler of a case. Not everyone in this close community is happy about their 'interference'. But they continue assiduously till the shocking conclusion. It's a good police procedural and we're left with a question: will he or won't he? This was an enjoyable historical mystery and I'm curious as to the future of Henry and Mickey!