"Hokey Pokey" by Kate Mascarenhas is an enthralling journey into the glamorous yet deceptive world of the Regent Hotel in Birmingham, February 1929. The novel weaves a captivating tale of murder, madness, and the intricacies of the human mind.

Mascarenhas skillfully paints the Regent Hotel as a luxurious backdrop where guests indulge in absinthe cocktails on plush banquettes, and the red-jacketed staff ensure impeccable service in its lavish corridors. The atmosphere of deception and glamour is set against the tumultuous backdrop of a snowstorm that isolates the hotel and its guests from the outside world.

The protagonist, Nora Dickinson, a psychoanalyst checking in under a pseudonym, brings a layer of mystery to the narrative. Young, diligent, and ambitious, Nora's hidden agenda adds depth to the storyline. Her pursuit of the famous opera singer, Berenice Oxbow, unfolds against the backdrop of the snowstorm, blurring the lines between nightmare and reality.

Mascarenhas's writing effortlessly transports readers to a bygone era, immersing them in the opulence of the Regent Hotel and the intrigue surrounding its guests. The novel's exploration of the darkest recesses of the mind adds a psychological dimension that keeps readers on the edge of their seats.

In "Hokey Pokey," Kate Mascarenhas delivers a thrilling and glamorous ride, expertly blending elements of mystery, deception, and psychological suspense. The result is a compelling narrative that captures the imagination and leaves readers eagerly turning the pages to uncover the secrets hidden within the Regent Hotel's six-storeyed façade.

As many others have noted, this book’s cover and blurb present it as a Golden Age mystery, with Christie-esque characters gathered in an isolated hotel setting, and the opening chapters of the book seem to bear that out, but it is actually a far more surprising and unusual read than it first appears.

The reader quickly finds themselves facing legendary monsters, childhood trauma and possible mental illness, obsession and identity issues. It is a lot to process, especially through the narrative perspective of the traumatised and disturbed main character, who quickly loses herself in the darkness of her past and the claustrophobic confusion of current events.

I found the hyring mythology absolutely fascinating and utterly convincing – gory and haunting, like all of the best old-fashioned fairytales – and the book made for a good fantasy read on the strength of that world-building and Nora’s personal history with it. The mystery aspect of the plot is slightly less important and soon lost among the dark exploration of mental illness, individual identity issues and the dangers of basing how we think of ourselves on others’ perceptions.

A disturbing, enjoyable read, that took completely unexpected turns and left lingering traces in my psyche long afterwards.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

I liked the first half of Hokey Pokey where psychoanalyst Nora was stalking the opera singer Berenice in a 1920's Regent hotel. Hokey Pokey was a cocktail named after the local word for stinging nettle. The story line was coming together with a convincing and expected murder victim. Unfortunately the story went off in a different direction with hyrings and tales of the supernatural which I found to be unbelievable. This is my first read of the supernatural and perhaps my expectations were greater than I thought. I may give this book another go later. I am sure there are readers out there who will read this book with greater enthusiasm than me.

When I heard the pitch '1920s murder mystery' this book was not at all what I expected. But it ended up being an interesting experience. It's got an interesting lore, that's very different than what I've experienced before. I enjoyed the time period, although I think more could've been done to properly situate it in the 1920s. It turned out to be a compelling character study of obsession, sense of self and toxic relationships. I would recommend to the fans of These Violent Delights by Micah Nemerever.

3.5 rounded up to 4.

This was a strange little read and I am not entirely sure how I feel about it still. I loved the mystery and the fantasy vibes within the book and I thought the setting in the roaring 20s was a good choice but I also felt a little confused at times. The two time lines felt a little disjointed (almost like from two different stories) and I found it hard to like many of the characters. Great concept but would have liked it executed a little better.

Very sadly I DNF'd this book. The premise made me think this would be more of a cosy mystery, but instead found more of a horror mystery. If you like that sort of thing, this might be a great book for you.

Loved it!!!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my review.

A full review was published on my blog in May.

I heard so much about HOKEY POKEY and was instantly intrigued. 1920s? Birmingham? Mystery vibes? Please, I am begging anyone who has a story like this to just send it my way. I did also hear how this book was just not what folks were expecting… some were disappointed, others were excited. Now, I love a good divisive story, and I just had to read it for myself. And listen… this is such a clever book. It’s unpleasant. None of the characters are likeable (in fact, I love-hate all of them). It’s gory. It’s so so strange and I caught myself being like “… what?” and needing to re-read a few pages to make sure I had read what I read. But it’s so readable.

I fell in love with the cover of this book the moment I saw it, and was delighted that it fitted the story inside absolutely perfectly. The 1920s setting, the grand hotel with the upstairs/ downstairs feel, the supernatural element- all came together in an absolute triumph. Loved it, have been recommending it to everyone ever since.

This one starts as a slow burner and then picks up speed. Part murder mystery and part supernatural, it’s one I would definitely recommend if you want something a little unsettling.

I love books set in the 20s - and this apparently cosy setting for a murder suddenly becomes much less comfortable for the reader than books set in a similar period. The protagonist, psychoanalyst Nora Dickinson checks in to a hotel under a false name.
Like many great detective stories this offers a 'locked room' scenario. In this case a terrible snow storm isolates the hotel – and its guests – from the outside world - and that's when everything changes,

Well worth a read.

I wanted read this book because I had the idea it was a golden age story’s. The plot is simple, the story is simple and the characters where interesting and I enjoy the mystery in the book. I expected it be a Agatha type of mystery but end up being a very rare thriller.

I found the blurb to be a little misleading in terms of the story. I was expecting more of a historical mystery whereas it's a bit more supernatural or horror genre than I would generally go for. So this is why it's not one I'd recommend or that I enjoyed. I liked the characters, and it was well written just not my kind of story.

Nora arrives at the Regent Hotel ready to keep an eye on a young opera singer there. Could she be having an affair. Nora has her own reasons for her actions and then a snow storm traps everyone there. A much more frightening situation seems upon them.

Wow this wasn't what I was expecting when I started reading but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was very dark and twisted. The plot is a slow one broken into sections as we learn how everything came to be. There are a few twists along the way that add to the mystery. The characters are all fascinating but not particularly likeable. Nora did grow on me by the end and you want her to be okay. The ending was interesting and tied the story off well. A dark twisted story.

This is a fun book which takes a couple of days to digest what you have just read. The premise is simple. Asked by ex-colleague Leo to follow his wife Berenice Oxbow, Nora Dickinson, a psychologist by profession with an almost supernatural ability to mimic any voice she hears ends up snowed in at a Birmingham hotel during the winter of 1929 amid a murder mystery.

The book slowly peals back Nora's life from childhood, meeting Leo and right up to the present day, albeit in 1929.

Then the book takes the reader off a cliff edge and becomes something completely different. More supernatural, more horror.

Well recommended and one to go back to after a while and see what the author was trying to do before the jump in genre.

A really enjoyable read that had me captivated from the start all the way through until the end. I would highly recommend

This was weird. It started out fairly straight forward, and seemed more historical thriller than horror, and then when the creepy elements started to show up it felt very much like it was all going to be imagined rather than real, and it seemed to stay on the fence about this for a long time, rocking back and forth. There were some time jumps that felt more like a separate story than part of a whole, and by the time we then got back to the hotel I’d forgotten where we had left off. The twist felt really out of left field, as well as how it all wrapped up.

Hokey Pokey starts as a classic jazz age mystery with an Agatha Christie vibe and quickly deteriorates into a deeply disturbing thriller. Dr. Nora Dickinson is on a mission to expose her friend’s wife’s infidelity at a fancy hotel when she overhears what she assumes to be fraudulent prophecy about herself.

We delve deeper into Nora’s past and discover horrors there, as well as in the main timeline. She is a not-quite-human supernatural being, able to repeat anything she hears as a perfect copy. She uses this in dogging the steps of her friend’s errant wife now, but she has used it in far shadier avenues in her murky past. That shady past is starting to catch up to Nora on her current assignment.

Kate Mascarenhas’ writing style and storytelling pacing was excellent and I was extremely annoyed when real life intruded on my reading time and I had to stop. Who needs sleep anyway? You certainly won’t be able to after reading some of the scenes in this book.

Even when scenes in this book contained more mundane events, the vibe of a tense thriller was still palpable, which is to me a real skill. I was constantly on edge. The parts of the book that took a turn into horror and thriller territory fully pushed me into a small panic response. This is exaclty what I want in a thriller book, but if you are avoiding some triggers, perhaps tread lightly.

Relevant triggers: murder, dismemberment, child abuse

I quite liked the first half of Hokey Pokey where I was enjoying the psychoanalyst Nora stalking the beautiful opera singer Berenice in a 1920's Birmingham hotel. It seemed to be shaping up to be a bit of a glamorous thriller, perhaps with an unreliable narrator. Hokey Pokey was a cocktail named after the local word for stinging nettle.

But then it all went off the rails into silliness. I found all the supernatural hyring stuff to be unconvincing and unnecessarily gory. I've definitely enjoyed the author's other books more, so maybe it was just me!

Three stars for the first half.