Member Reviews

Another Mystery To Unravel!

I love this series from Ms Ridley, it’s not one of her normal romance books but about a group of ladies who call themselves the Heist Club, they double up with the Wild Wynchesters to solve mysteries. The series is genius and gives another aspect to how good Ms Ridley’s writing is!

This time, it’s Miss Sybil Stamper’s turn to get involved in a mystery. The mystery of the missing gowns! A short, fun, fast paced novella which doesn’t fail to please!

The series is a cross over from different series but gives different characters a chance to shine and have their own adventure. If you love Ms Ridley’s romantic stories, you’ll love the fun aspects of these short novellas.

A great way to chill out and spend a few hours of fun getting into the latest mishap.

I voluntarily read and reviewed with ARC copy and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

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I enjoyed the story with its many facets, the swindle, the chase, the interactions between the main characters and it held my interest throughout.

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When the Heist Club and the Wild Wynchesters get together, there is not telling what might happen!

Stolen gowns for the season's debutante's and an organized bluestocking set up a mystery with adventure and humor and this author is famous for!!

Simply delightful and although short, well worth the read!

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Miss Sybil Stamper wants one shining moment where she's the belle of the ball. It's such a wonderful wish. I wanted her to achieve it. I loved her spunk, and especially her love of books. She's special. I liked how she works to keep the lending library organized. Who knew that this work would lead her and The Heist Club to help Madame Blanchet recover her clients' gowns? Sybil is such a caring person. She uses her lists to find who took them. Along with her friends in the Heist Club she wants to find them. When the Wild Wynchesters get involved the situation takes a wild turn. I enjoyed this wild romp by Erica Ridley. Her characters are fun. The Modiste Mishap is a humorous story.
I received a copy of this book which I voluntarily read and reviewed. My car are my honest opinion.

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Given my love of the Wild Wynchesters series, and Erica Ridley, my adoration of this novella comes as no surprise. Much like its previous novella in the Heist Club series, this adds lots of world building flavor with a focus on the crime solving capers. Here the focus is on Sybil, who has yet to be featured in any full-length books, with the gang of bluestockings playing support. When confronted with a missing season’s worth of dresses from the ton’s most favored seamstress, Sybil sets out to find the culprit and save the day. Against a background of the aristocracy’s worst possible traits Sybil learns to be herself and appreciate how helpful it can be to be invisible while also being able to hold her own. Readers also get a taste of the characters that will make up the third book in the larger series. Much like “The Rake Mistake” this might make more sense if you have been immersed in the other books, but as a mystery caper novella, it shines.

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Part of the Wild Winchester’s and the 2nd book in the Heist Club series, The Modiste Mishap is light and fun, The women of the Heist Club are all considered “bluestockings” by early nineteenth century British society…and that’s not considered a good thing. They are learned, inquisitive, intrepid and quirky. Sybil Stamper is from a “shabby genteel” family and doesn’t have the money or social standing as mot of the other ladies in the Heist Club. She’s not often invited to balls and is thrilled when she has an opportunity to attend one at Vauxhaul which is open to the public. Of course she must have a suitable gown and visits a Modiste who isn’t too expensive and doesn’t cater to the highest level of society so she’s not as fashionable. While at a book store, she meets the most sought after Modiste in London….adventures ensue.

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Think cozy mystery set during the regency period. It’s a novella that is a fast read. Sybil Stamper is just on the outside of the fashionable Ton. She has been saving for years to have a ball gown make for the upcoming Vauxhall ball. Not the exclusive modiste, but a good one she could afford. A chance meeting with the Ton favorite modiste leads to the discovery that all her preorders have been stolen, Sybil with the help of the Heist Club and aided by the Wynchester solve the mystery.
It helps if you have read the previous books, it’s a crossover between two series. A fun read, but the characters are a bit unrealistic. Thank you NetGalley for this eARC. I am voluntarily posting an honest review after reading an Advance Reader Copy of this story. #NetGalley #TheModisteMishap

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Sybil, a member a the reading group, is quite shy around members of the ton. When she runs into the woman (modiste) that makes the ladies dresses, the only reason she can make a conversation is because books are involved. When Sybli takes her back to her shop, they realize that the shop has been broken into and the dresses for the upcoming season have been stolen. At once, Sybil and the reading club jump into action to find the thief.
Opinion
If you love the Wild Wynchesters, you will love this short story. The mystery makes this a fun and captivating story. While the Wynchesters are not the main characters, they do make an appearance. Sybil, though, does not need their help. Her character has enough personality (shy, tenacious) to carry the book. The mystery itself, of who stole the dresses, is resolved with an unusual outcome.
Many thanks to Net Galley and Erica Ridley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

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Another delightful adventure with the Heist Club and the Wynchesters! This time ball gowns have been stolen from the most sought after modiste in London and Miss Sybil Stamper (bluestocking who loves lists and has very little income) is on the case. Together the women of the Heist Club will try to track down the thief and return the dresses to their rightful owner. It's short and a whole lot of fun! This one falls in between books 2 & 3 of the Wild Wynchesters series. I received an advance copy of this book for review via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

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FUN, EASY AND LOVABLE

those three words are often applicable to Erica Ridley books, but this novella really encapsulated them to perfection!

👍 What I Liked 👍

Characters: If you've encountered the Wynchesters, you're already familiar with all of the lovable characters! Ridley does a great job of making each of them unique (sometimes toeing the line of caricature) and likable. They each have their quirks and their own, distinct personalities. I really enjoyed them all, though Elizabeth remains a personal favourite of mine.

Plot: Though short, the plot was fun and engaging. I love the Heist Club - a book club that also solves mysteries and helps people in need - and the mystery of the stolen dresses was interesting and entertaining. There were few twists, but that didn't make me enjoy it any less. Sometimes it's nice to just have an uncomplicated story to read.

Sybil: Our main character, Sybil, was a particular favourite of mine. I love her orderliness, her love of lists and books. But I also loved how she showed that even brainy girls can dream of being a princess for an evening. Too often I feel like - especially in HR - brainy, bookish heroines are portrayed as anti-social, unromantic creatures that have no interest in parties or anything considered 'feminine'. It was nice seeing Sybil break that mold.

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This was super cute. It was a light, quick read, and it kept my interest fairly well. I was not nearly as invested in the story as in the Wynchester novels, though I found my interest increased when the Wynchesters made an appearance. I wouldn't say that this really stands on its own, but as an addition to the Wynchester series I think it works well. I especially enjoyed the moments where Elizabeth Wynchester came on the scene, and would recommend it for that alone.

*Thanks to NetGalley, WebMotion, and Erica Ridley for providing an e-arc for review.

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This was fun. I love the world of the Wynchesters and these side capers are so fun. Full of fun characters and twists and turns this was a great short story. Honestly, I love Erica Ridley and will read anything she writes.

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tl;dr
A quick, easy read with low stakes and a likable lead.

About
Sybil Stamper usually prefers to keep to herself with her books and her lists. But she dreams of being the belle of the ball, just once in her life, and a chance meeting with a designer might make that happen. That is, until a robbery steals away both dresses and her shot at a happy ending. Can she and the other members of her book club retrieve the dresses in time?

Thoughts
The Wild Wynchesters series is on my to-read list, but this spinoff book is the first I've managed to read of it. There are several references to the previous books in the main line and a couple hints about the next one, but I was still able to follow this story well enough. It's a quick read - good for a lazy afternoon when you want something low stakes. Sybil is a sympathetic lead, and I found myself deeply invested in her happiness by the end of it. The mystery was a fun one, with just enough twists to keep me guessing. I was a little disappointed that everything got a "back to the status quo" reset at the end, especially after how Sybil was treated, but overall a great one-off adventure.

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It is an entertaining book , still with the quirky and spunky characters. But this book did not make me lol like the first book did thank you to netgalley for letting me read this e arc in exchange for an honest opinion

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A short fun humorous read unusually this isn't a romance but a short cozy type mystery. Hopefully Sybil will get her romance in another story. I haven't read the other books and while this can be read on it's own it would be better read as part of the series as there are so many character's I know nothing about. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

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I received a copy from Netgalley; this is my honest review
-Over-the-top funny interactions and club naming discussions - again, but so, so funny. There are no words for Elizabeth's love for decapitation.
-Unputdownable mystery with the help of the Heist Club and the Wynchesters.
-Too bad Sybil didn't get a romance with the nice solicitor, who's also a book reader.

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A humorous story with engaging characters. Queen of Lists, Sybil Stamper is keen to solve the mysterious theft of twenty five dresses from London’s top modiste before the woman can be ruined by being unable to deliver them to her clients. To do so she needs the help of her fellow blue-stockings and the Wynchesters. The shenanigans involved in searching for the dresses is delightful. Such a shame though that there is not a romance for Sybil.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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Another fun, quick romp. Like the first Heist Club novella, this one is fast-paced and charming. It's got all of the Wynchester-style antics, more of the bluestockings, and some little teasers for Nobody's Princess. If you need something to make you smile that you can read in a short period of time, I'd recommend both books in this series.

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Funny and delightful, I was captivated by Sybil and her friends. A heist and a mystery like no other set in the regency era delivers a charming story.

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With the help of the Wild Wynchesters—a uniquely talented family of caper-committing siblings who don’t let “laws” stop them from righting wrongs—Sybil and her club of delightfully bookish spinsters take on the heist of the Season.[summary via Amazon]

Prepare yourself for a "squee" alert, because I absolutely LOVED The Modiste Mishap, the second book in the Heist Club series!

Over the winter I read all the Bridgerton books by Julia Quinn, and fell in love with regency romances all over again. Fast forward to the summer when I spied The Modiste Mishap, and I knew I had to give it a try. This book combines my love of romance and mystery, and was a unputdownable read. I literally finished it in a day!

Miss Sybil is a devoted reader and part of a reading circle called The Heist Club. When she is re-stocking one of their lending libraries, she falls right in the middle of a mystery, involving miss ball gowns! With the help of The Heist Club, she must recover the gowns before it's too last.

Love, love, LOVE! This was such a fun mystery! While there were no dead bodies, although Elizabeth Wynchester might have wanted one, it was an interesting mystery, and kept me glued until the end!

Up until now, Penelope Featherington has been my favourite regency heroine, but I think Miss Sybil might have beaten her to the number one spot. She is plucky, loves to read and loved to organize with lists! What's not to love?

I cannot recommend this mystery enough. If you like romance with your mysteries, then this series is for you! If you love Bridgerton and Pride and Prejudice, then you need to read this series! This one is a great introduction to the Wynchesters, and I'm planning to pick up the other series next.

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