Farewell Blues

Lady Adelaide Compton learns that her very proper mother, Lady Broughton, has been arrested for the murder of her lover, the Duke of Rufford, in their hotel suite at the Ritz; the evidence looks very damning, especially as she was found in her nightclothes holding her own pistol standing over his lifeless body. With the police happy to have such a strong suspect and the press enjoying the fall of a member of the aristocracy it falls on Lady Adelaide to prove her mother's innocence and what better suspects than the late Duke's family, all of whom had reason to wish him ill? Lady Adelaide can call upon her friendship with Detective Inspector Devenand Hunter, an Anglo-Indian police officer she has become close to over the course of investigating/being involved in several other mysteries, and the ghost of her philandering husband Rupert who is atoning for his wicked life by performing good deeds in order to get into heaven. This is obviously the fourth book in a series, none of which I have read previously. I found it easy to read this as a stand-alone book as the past history was explained quite early on. However, there was no hint of a Randall and Hopkirk, deceased storyline in the blurb, much less that Rupert had some celestial mission to perform. I thought this was a bizarre plot choice as it meant that Rupert could go anywhere and eavesdrop on conversations, even stealing items to further the investigation, a bit like a deus ex machina. I could probably have got over Rupert's involvement, indeed he didn't uncover the killer, had it not been for the relentless politically correct agenda. Don't get me wrong, I strongly believe in diversity and inclusion and I am a proud ally of the LGBTQ+ community but having characters from the 1920s using twenty-first century terminologies and expressing modern sensibilities (eg treating her maid more like a friend, even going out together and cleaning up in her stead) is just jarring in what was supposed to be an historical novel. I also felt that the story took too long to move forward, we seemed to be about half way through the book and nothing much had happened, then four (count them, four) epilogues to give all the characters a HEA - it felt as though Maggie Robinson was heartily tired of the series and wanted to ensure that there were absolutely no loose ends to drag her back in. Having moaned a lot, this was pleasant enough and an easy read. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

paranormal, ghost, England, class-consciousness, law-enforcement, murder, murder-investigation, family-dynamics, framed, friction, friendship, detective, historical-novel, historical-research, infidelity, situational-humor, cosy-mystery**** Addie has a dead philanderer of a husband (Rupert) who must continue on as a ghost until he has accumulated enough good deeds to move on, a mother who was doing a bit of philandering herself when she was caught with said paramour shot dead in her rooms. With her own gun. Addie also has a partner in detecting (DI Hunter of The Yard) who is on a short medical leave because of an injury and is present to do what detecting he can amongst the aristocracy. Add in a maid who feels that she is so very put upon, a bratty younger sister, and a raft of real characters in this lighthearted cozy mystery. I haven't read the earlier books and never felt lost. Good fun! I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from Poisoned Pen Press via Netgalley. Thank you!