Hannah is walking to her bookshop one day when she’s sees two men arguing on the street. The next day she learns that one of them had been murdered the night before. He was the owner of the jewelry store on her street. With a spate of burglaries in the area over the past months, they think it was another one that had gone wrong. Aidan is investigating and Hannah is up to her amateur sleuthing. Aunt Violet is busy with an old beau that she’s being secretive about. Another solid mystery.

3.75 stars. This has favourite characters return, in the form of Hannah, Aunt Violet, Darius, Aidan, and Archie, while there is a spate of robberies and a body is found in a nearby jewellers. There’s intrigue in the form of a Spanish gentleman from Aunt Vi’s past, a policeman who might not be all he seems, and of course Darius’ continuing super sekrit war work…

I enjoyed this as I have the previous in the series, but ultimately rounded the star rating down on Goodreads as it just seemed to split the mystery focus a little. It starts out with the robbery/murder, then there’s a bit about fencing stolen goods and the gentlemen’s club, then something else, and it felt quite gently paced and at times as though the original murder had been forgotten until right at the end when it was suddenly resolved.

However, as I said, I love the characters and this is a very enjoyable series that I look forward to continuing soon hopefully.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

I love a good mystery murder! Such an entertaining book to read, thank you! A brilliant plot with some clever twists! I think I've found a new favourite series.

Thank you Boldwood Books for the ARC!

I enjoyed this book very much. Even though its famous opera house has shuttered its doors for the war, Covent Garden remains one of the most exciting, bustling areas of London.

I loved the thrills this book gave me. It was a perfect blend of cosy and mystery (thriller).

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC copy in exchange for my review.
Even though its famous opera house has shuttered its doors for the war, Covent Garden remains one of the most exciting, bustling areas of London. It’s where Hannah Merrill and Aunt Violet have their bookshop and, in spite of the recent spate of burglaries in the area, it’s generally thought to be a good neighbourhood.

So Hannah is surprised when she sees a fellow shopkeeper – a jeweller named Jacob Cornelis – having a heated argument with a stranger. Especially when the next day Cornelis is found dead in his shop, apparently the victim of another burglary.

But what shocks Hannah more is when she meets the policeman supposedly there to investigate the crime. Because he is none other than the man who Hannah saw arguing with Cornelis the day before.

Hannah knows it’s up to her and Violet to investigate. But they don’t know they’re about to uncover a secret underworld of theft, murder and blackmail. And they must act fast, before the Covent Garden Killer strikes again…