Sorry, I'm afraid I really did not enjoy this book. I can see the Wodehousian style and the madcap plot having some strengths but I found it confusing and too tangled to engage with and gave up halfway through

A funny, murder mystery, that was most enjoyable to escape to after a day at work.

The book had a split timeline, with different locations to help build up the story. It was a little bit odd, with ghosts that only some of the characters could see and the plot was a little bonkers in places, but I enjoyed it because of this as it was very different to other books I have read recently.

There were a lot of different characters, which was confusing to start with and none of whom I particularly liked, but that didn’t take away from the plot and added some intrigue as the story developed with trying to work out who might’ve been the culprit or was it an accident?

Would recommend if you want something not too serious to escape to. Easy to read and liked the writing style.

I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy from NetGalley and Little Brown Book. But these are all my own views.

My review has been posted to mygoodreads on 14th September 2013

I was sent a 3rd proof copy of Old School Ties by Daisy Waugh to read and review by NetGalley. It took me a while to get into this novel, I hadn’t read any other books in the series and wasn’t used to the style of writing. There were also a lot of names, some very similar and more than one name for some characters. Anyway, I carried on reading and in the end enjoyed the story. I’m not sure how beneficial it was to have the timeline split in the middle rather than have it chronological but that is obviously the author’s style. I can’t say that I thought this book was ‘hilarious’ or ‘gloriously witty’ but I did find it amusing, with my favourite characters being the ghosts! Almost a 4 star read for me, just not quite.

I’m sorry to say that this was not a good choice for me. I could not relate to any of the many weird and wonderful characters, with even weirder names, and their antics. This was not the first in the series, which made it even harder to get to grips with. This was a DNF for me.
My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this book.

I found this book really hard to get into, so many characters and such strange names. This is not the first book, as I belatedly realised, so previous readers will be able to plough straight into this crazy, madcap, bonkers tale about an unsolved murder in Italy, where all the main suspects belong to the extended Tode family and their many hanger ons.
I like Wodehouse stories and I was hoping for something in the same vein, a lighthearted romp with idiotic characters all lacking cerebral intelligence, but due to all the many family members having such detailed introductions, these really interrupted the flow of the narrative. The action took place at break neck speed, which at times made no sense, and the book tries too hard to be a spiffing yarn.
I can only rate this as a two star read, for the above reasons.
My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers, Little, Brown Book Group UK for my advance digital copy, freely given in exchange for my honest opinion. I will leave reviews to Goodreads and Amazon UK.

Apologies to the author whom I’m sure gas lots of fans for this series of books, unfortunately for me this was a DNF. I think one of the main issues was that this wasn’t the first in the series so I was unfamiliar with the characters. And what a lot of characters there were! This caused me major confusion, add to that the chaotic environment in which these characters live and the similarity in some names and for me it was a little too much. If you live PG Wodehouse and in particular Jeeves and Wooster I think this will be just your cup of tea. I read to relax and found this book to be anything but relaxing.

A fun mystery full of humour with eccentric and unusual character's. The whole thing is a laugh out loud story that is a little bit crazy but highly entertaining and my first introduction to these character's can't wait for more. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The Todes are not at Tode Hall.

The Villa Rospo in Italy was a forgotten part of the Tode empire. Until, that is, Sir Ecgbert and Alice decided to honeymoon there. Now everyone is interested.

Ecgbert's brother Esme wants to turn it into an eco wellness hub. His business partner Charlie wants to hide from his wife there. Ecgbert has thoughts of a yoga retreat. India wants it as a holiday home. Everyone's dodgy school chum Piers think it's his ideal love nest.

But a dead body at least makes everyone stop bickering and agree - to keep the police out of it.

Oh, and for good measure, the ghost of Geraldine, Lady Tode is out and about again...

Cluedo meets made in Chelsea utterly barmy and delightful, prepare to be enthralled and entertained from the onset and throughout. A little bit crazy.

Old School Ties is an eccentric, fun and exciting story full of mad plans and interesting characters. I loved that this was just a fun book and you never really know where peoples loyalties lie but that makes it even better as the plot just gets crazier and crazier. So if you want to read a really fun book with an interesting plot, this is the book for you.

Rollicking, Riotous…
The rollicking and riotous Todes return for their next adventure and this time they’re heading, en masse, to the glorious Villa Rospo - their delightful little place in Italy. Plans are afoot and, it seems, that everyone has an agenda. As is usual for the Todes, nothing will actually go to plan and when a body is discovered in the spring that nestles in the gardens surrounding Villa Rospo, chaos will inevitably ensue. Another rather delicious farcical whodunit with a cast of suitably eccentric and eclectic characters and a madcap plot peppered with amusing witticisms.

The Tode family is leaving Tode Hall (yes, really) for an Italian adventure. For one couple, it’s their honeymoon destination, for another it’s a chance to leave the pressures of estate life behind… until they discover an old school friend’s wife floating in a spring. It’s not exactly fun in the sun when there’s a murderer about. A charmingly witty series.