I seem to be reading so many books set in the 1920s. The subjects are murder and mystery and deviousness nothing of what is supposed to be genteel and respectable so that ultimately it seems a facade, especially the more aristocratic the family is.

Abigail is a journalist working in Paris. Her heart is set on “meaty” topics but her editor has kept her firmly on the women’s pages. Now sent to Somerset to cover a society wedding - impoverished, county bride and brash millionaire from America, she and her friend Vivian masquerading as her maid faces many surprises as soon as they land at the estate.

Firstly the headlines are about the ex maid Gladys found strangled in London and the attempted murder of the bridegroom when a brand new car is found with the brake liners cut. This is followed by the murder of a protege of the American family who was almost a second son in the family.

Abigail knows the three incidents are connected but no one including the detectives on the case are taking any clues she offers seriously. Abigail uses her ideas skillfully coming out with the suspect who was far removed from the original list.

Descriptive in both the detective genre, the description of social life in the 1920s and the divide that existed amongst the classes added depth to the story.

This book was quite disappointing. Usually I enjoy Nancy Warren's work, but this was an exception. The characters were not likable. The writing dragged so much I wanted it to be over with.

Love historical mysteries and this one was very entertaining!!

Tired of doing "fluff" pieces, Abigail, girl reporter goes from Paris to England to cover an English wedding. What she did not expect to find was a murder!

A man is found dead and she gets immersed into discovering the killer, but also steps into a web of secrets and mystery.

As the first book in this series, this one does not disappoint!

I love the setting. Author’s writing is so beautiful. I love the suspenseful vibe in the story. While Abigail has become my favourite character. Set in 1925, Abigail was invited at Darrington Manor to cover the high society wedding. While unthinkable things happens in the Manor and it makes Abigail suspicious. Something terrible that happened before and now a man is found dead. Unveiling secrets, mystery and suspense leads to the truth while the author has added good amount of suspense and twists. I love the clues leading to the mystery. The characters were pretty interesting. The ending gave the answers of all the unanswered questions.

Thanks to the Publisher and Author

Extremely enjoyable. Abigail Dixon is a force to be reckoned with. Her tenacity makes her so likable.
I enjoyed the story so much that I was surprised when I I figured out the villain!
So entertaining!

Nancy Warren’s "Death at Darrington Manor" is a captivating blend of historical fiction and cozy mystery that transports readers to the glamorous yet perilous world of 1925 England. With its intriguing plot and charming protagonist, this novel is a delightful read for fans of classic whodunits.

The story kicks off with intrepid reporter Abigail Dixon swapping the bustling streets of Paris for the serene yet secretive Darrington Manor in Somerset. Tasked with covering the high-society wedding of the year, Abigail anticipates nothing more than afternoon teas and elegant soirées. However, her expectations are quickly shattered when a man is found dead during a trout-fishing expedition, followed by the discovery of a local woman strangled by her own silk stockings in London.

Warren excels in setting the scene, vividly portraying the opulent yet tension-filled atmosphere of Darrington Manor. The contrast between the tranquil English countryside and the sinister undercurrents of murder and scandal adds depth to the narrative. The quaint village, buzzing with gossip and speculation, serves as the perfect backdrop for this murder mystery.

Abigail Dixon is a standout character—resourceful, determined, and unafraid to delve into the murky waters of high-society secrets. Her investigation reveals dark secrets lurking within the manor, with a colorful cast of suspects, including the lovelorn estate manager, a tight-lipped butler, and a local mechanic with a grudge. Each character is well-drawn, adding layers of complexity to the mystery.

The pacing of the novel is well-handled, with twists and turns that keep readers engaged from start to finish. The interplay between Abigail’s journalistic instincts and her personal entanglements adds an interesting dynamic, making her quest for the truth all the more compelling. Warren’s writing style is engaging, balancing suspense with moments of levity and romance.

However, while the plot is engrossing, some readers might find certain aspects of the resolution a bit predictable. A few secondary characters could have been developed further to add more depth to the story. Despite these minor shortcomings, "Death at Darrington Manor" remains a thoroughly enjoyable read.

In conclusion, Nancy Warren delivers a delightful mystery that will keep readers guessing until the very end. "Death at Darrington Manor" is a perfect pick for those who love historical mysteries with a touch of elegance and intrigue. Abigail Dixon’s adventure in uncovering the truth amidst the glamour and danger of 1925 England earns a well-deserved four stars.

Readers, let's just declare June as "Nancy Warren Month" as I have a second release from Nancy Warren up today and this is series is coming close to be as wonderful as the Vampire knitters!

In the second book in the Abigail Dixon Mysteries, the reader is taken to Darrington Manor in England, where a dynasty-style wedding is about to take place. Abigail's next assignment is at the wedding of Cressida Wimborne and Reginald Mitchell. However, Abigail's investigative journalist's senses pick up that there is more in play at Darrington, when a local girl is found strangled and accidents seem to start happening indicating that someone wants one of the wedding party dead.

I'm a bit of a Nancy Warren fangirl. Her Vampire Knitting Mysteries got me out of a major reading slump last year, and I then proceeded to read her backlist of mysteries. However, I'm not one to say a mystery is great when it isn't. So when I say this mystery is wonderful you have to believe me!!

Death at Darrington Manor builds on the events that happen in the first book, Death of a Flapper. Abigail, our "plucky" young heroine is off to England, with her friend and roommate, Vivian, and is set to uncover a new mystery. However, in true cozy mystery fashion this book doesn't spoil the events of the first book, so you could definitely read this one before the first book.

I adore Abigail. She's trying to be taken as a serious investigative journalist, but is stuck reporting on "women's pages", but that doesn't stop her from using all her integrity and skills and uncover the real story. This time she has her friend, Vivian, who is looking for a new adventure, and Inspector Henri, who is a friend of the Wimbornes, by her side. I'm really loving the slow build of friendship between Abby and Henri. Do I hope there is something more? Of course. However, with Abby being a "plucky" heroine and a serious reporter, it's anyone's guess what her romantic future holds.

The mystery itself was quite thrilling. High speed cars, a fishing accident and a strangled girl made for an edge-of-the-seat mystery. Nancy Warren threw a couple of literal red herrings my way, but I did manage to solve it before Abby did!

If you love Agatha Christie mysteries, I strongly recommend this series. It's got historical appeal, especially with real life characters making an entrance, a thrilling mystery and memorable characters that you are going to want to visit with again.

Intrepid reporter Abigail Dixon heads to a grand English manor to cover a high-society wedding. But instead of champagne and socialites, she finds herself amidst murder and scandal. With a cast of suspicious characters, Abigail uncovers dark secrets within the manor and races to expose the killer before the wedding becomes a tragedy.

This is a fun mystery with strong character development. Abby is a likable and engaging sleuth and reporter. I look forward to the next book in the series.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Death at Darrington Manor has Abigail Dixon leaving Paris for England. This second historical cozy mystery by Nancy Warren has unusual murders, a wedding of the year and Abigail in the thick of it trying to catch the killer. Abigail is young, resourceful and determined to help solve the case. She is a woman of her time yet also one changing the role of women in the world especially in the reporting of the news. I like her though she can be reckless at times with her own safety. However, she is a woman to be admired.

The cases in this story seem separate but as Abigail investigates dark secrets are revealed that show a connection. There are multiple suspects to consider. I grew up enjoying Agatha Christie mysteries so now it is wonderful to find an author whose books are as good as those. Be sure to read today.

Abigail is probably what they would call plucky in the 1920s though she would hate the word. She is determined to be a hard news reporter but her editor just wants to confine her to the woman's page filled with gossip and fashion. Luckily for her murder seems to follow her. On her latest assignment at a high society wedding between an American millionaire and a titled British family but very cash poor, the best man is found murdered. Well, Abigail, with the help of her roommate and pretend maid, is determined to report the real facts and uncover a murderer before the wrong person goes to the gallows!

I like Abigail's ambition and work ethic. She might not like being confined to the woman's page but she will do her best job anyway and if another opportunity comes along she will grab it. There are some funny moments and I really liked her partnership with her roommate, even if that woman falls in love way too easily.

There are lots of suspects, secrets and twists to make this a satisfying mystery. I would read more about Abigail and her adventures. I especially would like to read more about her life in Paris.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

Abby in spite of her past success in still relegated to covering social news. Her latest assignment is to go to Darrington Manor to cover a wedding between a young woman from Darrington Manor to the son of a US automobile tycoon. Fortunately, her designer is thrilled to design her gowns for the trip and her best friend is going as her lady’s maid. This will be an adventure, just not the one Abby wanted. When arriving in London, she sees a story about a young woman from the Darrington Manor area who was found dead in London. Maybe she’ll make a real story besides the social fluff.

Abby is surprised to find that Coco Chanel will also be staying as a guest for the wedding, as well as Inspector Henri Deschamps. Inspector Deschamps was on the previous case where Abby was charged with the murder of her step-mother. Henri is a war buddy of the Lord. Join Abby as she tries to solve the young woman’s murder as well as one more close to home.

This is a great second in the series. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Death at Darrington Manor is book 2 of the Abigail Dixon series. In this story, reporter Ms. Dixon covers a marriage between a British aristocrat and the son of a very rich American industrialist. It seems like a fairy tale; is it true? You must read the book to find all the intricate truth behind these personages. It will take you through the food, lifestyle, and everyday life of the aristocracy, as well as the new money coming from the USA.

Abby, an American reporter living in Paris is invited to report on a high profile wedding in the English countryside. Unfortunately, there’s already been a murder and another one is on the itinerary. It is up to Abby to solve it with a little help from some familiar faces, including flatmate Vivian acting as her maid and Inspector Deschamps conveniently invited to the wedding. Did I mention that legendary fashion designer Coco Chanel is there to design the wedding dress? Yes, really, she makes another appearance, although she only has a small part to play in this entertaining sequel.

The plot uses a country house trope, with some of the other characters portraying the personalities of stock characters you’d expect. This was combined with a Downtown Abbey style view of aristocratic England during the nineteen twenties. A highlight of the book was seeing the tensions between old and new money, between English aristocrats with a fading family fortune and American new wealth.
It is best to read the first book in the series to get to know the journey Abby has already been on. However, even if you haven’t read the first one, she is a very likeable character with a Marple style ability to talk to others and find out information. We could have got deeper into her mindset and reasoning for coming up with the killer. Abby didn’t really put herself in any real danger and so suspense was lacking for me. I was glad to see that the story maintained a more realistic approach to her career development. This brought in some historical and social context for the time of what was considered a woman’s role and place.

The murder and incidents during the narrative were guessable and the killer was someone I had suspected all along. I also thought that the killer’s motives for murder came across as rather shallow and I wanted more of an insight into his state of mind.
The first murder and the plot behind it had an element of The Body in The Library (by Agatha Christie). This murder could had been covered in more depth. A background about the victim, a working class young woman would have added another layer and an extra emotive element to the novel.
Overall, the novel held my interest and it was a light, enjoyable read. I am awaiting the next adventure and am looking forward to reading more of Abby’s journey. I think there is a lot more to her character and story than we have discovered so far.

I'm a huge fan of Nancy Warren's paranormal cozy mysteries and always appreciated the well rounded characters and the humour.
This is a new series and I was to read the two novels one after the other as there's an evolution in the characters and the plot/mystery gets better in the second one.
I appreciated the description of Paris in the 20s and Abigail, clever and witty. I found the mystery than solid than usual but I enjoyed it.
The second one is a classic country house mystery and was well developed and solid. Abigail is not happy to be there but she discovers a lot of secrets and is able to solve a complex mystery.
This was more compelling and solid, a well plotted mystery that kept me guessing.
Can't wait to read the next one.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This is the second in the Abigail Dixon Mystery series. It works as a standalone but there are a lot of recurring characters and themes, so would recommend reading book 1 before this.

Reporter Abigail is sent to Somerset from Paris to cover the society wedding if an English aristocrats daughter and an American tycoon's son. When a murder occurs on a fishing trip, Abigail is caught up in the mystery. Can she expose the culprit and persuade her editor that she has a story?

I loved revisiting Abigail and flatmate Vivian, and the longer appearance of Coco Chanel in this book was wonderful. This is shaping up into a great cosy mystery series, a new must read for me.

This second book in the Abigail Dixon series is set in an English manor, as Abigail Dixon is assigned to report on a society wedding in Somerset. It's one of those lavish week-long house parties that the English do so well, and it is filled with a murder, a bombastic American car manufacturer, an enormous royal blue car, an appearance by Coco Chanel and loads of suspects. Abigail despairs of ever being assigned to something other than the women's pages of the Chicago International News, but once again finds herself in the midst of an intriguing cozy murder mystery.

There's a large cast of characters here and the author does a good job of fleshing them out and giving us tantalizing details and red herrings along the way to the resolution. We get another appearance by the fascinating Inspector Henri Deschamps and a few more steps into what could become a romantic relationship? I felt the book dragged a bit in the middle as Abigail hashed and rehashed the situation, but the ending brought about a satisfying conclusion and I look forward to the next book in the series. 4 stars.

This was a fun sequel to the first book in this series involving Abigail Dixon, an American young woman, full of ambitions to become a serious journalist in 1920s Paris. Unfortunately, despite her best-selling stories based on the mystery she helped solve in the first book, her grumpy editor refuses to assign her anything beyond typical women’s stories. So she glumly heads off to Britain to cover the marriage of a daughter of an almost bankrupt noble to the son of an American car tycoon.

The setting at an aristocratic mansion with a limited cast of characters will bring up memories of Downton Abbey and Agatha Christie mysteries. Throw in a bit of romance between Abigail and the enigmatic Paris detective who was suspicious of her in the first novel, and this is the perfect book historical mystery lovers.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.

It felt a bit slow and not too exciting in parts, but honestly, it was really fun trying to figure out who the murderer is. Even though I don't read much of such mysteries, I actually really enjoyed this one! Looking forward to reading more of Abigail Dixon's adventurers, and would definitely recommend this!!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher; all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. Death at Darrington Manor is the second title to feature Abby Dixon, an American reporter working in Paris during the 1920s. Despite breaking a big story several months prior when she found herself falsely accused of murdering her stepmother, Abby's boss insists that she work on women's interest pieces and society events. She is sent to England to cover the wedding of the Honorable Cressida Wimborne and Reginald Mitchell, the son of a wealthy American family that makes cars. Although Abby isn't thrilled at the assignment, she agrees to go and make the best of it hoping she can find a harder hitting story she could cover. A local girl was found strangled in London and the mystery catches Abby's attention so she decides to see if there is a story worth writing about it in addition to providing the wedding details that she knows readers will want to hear. Unfortunately, there is a murder of one of the guests and Abby finds herself in the middle of a big story while racing to discover who the killer is. I did find the mystery to be well done and engaging. I'm enjoying this new series and find Abby to be a fun character; I'm looking forward to seeing if something develops between her and French Inspector Deschamps.

I thank NetGalley and Storm Publishing for an advance reader copy of “Death at Darrington Manor.” All opinions and comments are my own.

Viscount Winborne’s daughter is getting married at Darrington Manor, and as much as she would like to be covering “real” stories, reporter Abigail Dixon is sent by her editor at the “Chicago International Post” to cover this high society wedding. She hates it, but since the groom’s father is a big advertiser and has requested her attendance (she’s “famous” since she was involved in a murder investigation – see book #1, “Murder at the Paris Fashion Show”), off she goes to the ancestral pile.

Abby might get her wish, though. While everyone’s getting ready for the big event (including Coco Chanel doing fittings for the wedding gown – our time frame is 1920s England), the best man is shot to death. And because she has a nose for news -- and a propensity for solving crimes -- Abby realizes the “complicated emotions” that are at play form the basis for a backdrop of hate and jealousy and calculation that can only lead to one thing -- murder.

Abby is a “good” character, not overly in your face or flighty, which can happen in many a cozy mystery heroine. Author Nancy Warren has given us someone very real and down to earth, a definite plus. And for mystery-lovers, there’s plenty of suspects to decide about, and since this is a historical mystery, a history lesson or two -- ask farmer George Smith what he thinks about Americans, for instance.

Our girl Abby may have been “in the know” with what’s happened at Darrington Manor, including the solving of two killings, but Editor Walter Strutt reminds her that the society pages are still her beat. So, it’s back to Paris and more “what’s new on the hemline front,” presumably. But that’s a tale for the next book, no doubt.