| Title | : | Mistletoe and Murder (The Clara Fitzgerald Mysteries #5) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 207 |
| Publication | : | First published March 31, 2015 |
Clara sets off to investigate, but soon finds she has been beaten to it by Mr Andrews, a self-professed ghost hunter who has been employed by Miss Sampford's nephew, Elijah. To top it all off, Miss Sampford's family descend on her for Christmas, including William Henry Sampford who has every reason to wish his aunt dead. Is the ghost a means for murder?
Clara is soon convinced that Miss Sampford's life is very much in danger and when one of the Christmas guests dies under mysterious circumstances she is even more certain the Berkeley Square ghost has murderous intentions. But can she unmask the killer before real harm comes to Miss Sampford? And what secrets are there in the old woman's past that make her a target for a killer? Clara is faced with unraveling the past to save her client, while stopping the ghost from killing again.
Mistletoe and Murder (The Clara Fitzgerald Mysteries #5) Reviews
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Clara Fitzgerald receives an unexpected invitation to spend Christmas with the elderly Miss Sampford at her house in London. The invitation is extended to Clara's brother Tommy and Annie who is their maid and housekeeper. Miss Sampford wants Clara to investigate the ghostly happenings which are scaring away her staff and which she fears may have an all to human origin. Not to put too fine a point on it, she fears for her life.
An eccentric collection of relatives, ghost hunters and Clara and her associates is assembled just before Christmas in snowy London and everything is set for some spooky and not so spooky happenings. Can Clara discover what is going on before her client is the victim of the mysterious goings on?
I enjoyed this fifth volume of Clara's cases. It is well plotted with some dubious and not so dubious characters. I thought Mr Andrews, the ghost hunter was particularly obnoxious though of course his attitude to woman was all too typical of the period.
If you are looking for a new historical crime series then I can thoroughly recommend this one. The books can be read as standalone novels or as part of a series. -
A very good mystery !!!
This is my first book in the series of Clara Fitzgerald and I certainly will read all the others starting from the first one ( this is book N. 5).
I usually read Christmas themed novels and mysteries on Season's Greeting and this is the reason why I give only 4 stars and not 5 : there's no Christmas atmosphere in the book and as the ending was a little bit bitter.
Apart from what I just said, the book is very well written, easy to read even for non-native English speakers like me ( I'm from Italy, so sorry for my bad English ).
The plot is engaging from the very first pages, full of twists and turns and only in the last chapters is it possible to understand who could be the culprit or the culprits.
I said the ending is a little bitter, but only because just like in life there aren't always clear lines between guilty and innocent and if some bad actions are punished others go unpunished... but I won't say anything else and I suggest you to read it! -
Just as Clara Fitzgerald’s household is getting ready for Christmas Clara gets a call for help from an elderly lady in London. Someone or something is trying to scare her out of leaving her Belgravia home.
Is she really being haunted or does the property developer, keen to get his hands on her home, have anything to do with scary goings on? Or is it her grasping nephew and his flaky wife, desperately in need of money? Is it one of the servants with a grudge, her live-in nephew Elijah or some complete outsider?
Clara’s household, and photographer friend Oliver, decamp to Belgravia. Clara immediately warms to the elderly Miss Sampford and promises to get to the bottom of the problem, especially as she begins to worry about the old woman’s safety. She is hindered, not helped, by the inclusion of some Ghost Hunters Elijah has invited to stay to rid the house of the ghost. Clara does not believe in ghosts.
The story is not too taxing but enjoyable nonetheless. Like most of the books it is not just a crime to investigate but so many deeply hidden family secrets to uncover and therein lies the sadness in nearly all the Clara Fitzgerald stories. I like them. -
Clara Fitzgerald is invited to spend Christmas by a woman who believes her house is haunted. Clara doesn't believe in ghosts, but she does believe that the woman is frightened and that someone is trying to kill her. Off she goes and it's the worst Christmas ever. She's surrounded by some really horrible characters and it's not the least bit festive. There's also a very sad ending. It's definitely not my cuppa for a holiday read.
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Ohhhhh Evelyn James you have done it again!!
This is so far my favourite but every book I read of this series seems to just get better and better!
This one involves an 80 year old lady who quite tugs at the heart strings and you just want to give her a big hug!
Being targeted by a “ghost” who threatens her mental health but then targets her life. Clara, convinced it’s a human “ghost”, takes her brother, Annie, Oliver with her to prove the threat is human.
So many twists and turns but the author manages to keep it real and take you along the bumpy ride until the culprit is discovered.
The only negative is there are occasional “slips” where a random Americanism gets into the text which is quite annoying to us English folk! Things like “drapes” instead of Curtains. A small issue but it gives me a tic when I read those little blips.
Agatha Christie lovers would really like this series of books.
I devour them and can’t put them down! Deserves the five stars and keep the books coming. Evelyn James! -
This is a cosy murder mystery set in the years after World War I. Clara Fitzgerald is Brighton's first female detective, and this Christmas, she is invited to London to work for a former suffragette who is being "haunted" by a ghost in her house (neither Clara nor the suffragette believes it's a real ghost). What follows is the worst Christmas ever, with the suffragette's bickering family joined by Clara, her brother, her friend and their maid, as well a party of ghost hunters, all staying together for Christmas, despite two murders (one on Christmas Eve) and several attempted murders.
The story is okay, but the book needed a good edit for grammar, characterisation and modern concepts. -
An excellent read for the Festive Season!
A really well written murder/mystery with some nice distractors, and some clues, here and there to keep the story interesting without the murderer being obvious. -
Christmas Murder and England
Three of my favorite things. How can I go wrong?A new,to me, mystery that grabbed me at once and would not let go. I eagerly await reading more in this series
