As the Oxford Detective Society tackle their first case, someone is determined that a long-buried mystery should stay hidden…
Oxford biographer Lyssa Moore is delighted to be commissioned to write about Amelia ‘Monty’ Montrose, the 1960s music icon who died mysteriously at her birthday party in 1966. But as Lyssa delves into Monty’s past, she discovers the wild child portrayed by the press was hiding far more than anyone knew.
And someone is taking a very keen interest in Lyssa’s research. Her flat has been broken into, her phone is acting strangely, and she has a feeling she is being followed. Is Lyssa getting too close to a dangerous truth—was there more to Monty’s death than a tragic accident?
With the help of her cat Bibbie and her Oxford friends, who form the Oxford Detective Society, Lyssa must uncover what really happened sixty years ago. Because in Oxfordshire’s country houses and picture-perfect gardens, the past refuses to stay buried…
The Oxford Detective Society starts a brand-new, incredibly gripping murder mystery series.
Faith Martin is a pen name of English author Jacquie Walton, who is best known for her popular detective series, starring Detective Inspector Hillary Greene.
An interesting story and mystery. Loved the characters. So glad to see this is book #1. Looking forward to more of Lyssa’s story and the Oxford Detective Society.
A cozy mystery that turned out to be much better than expected! A talented ghost writer is hired to write a biography of a person who had died decades before. The assignment turns out to be rather dangerous, with various "mysteries" to be solved. Of course there are some things that don't really makes sense; nevertheless it was a fun read - and free from Amazon First Reads!
This was an Amazon Prime First Read. Lyssa is a ghostwriter/biographer, living in Oxford. This is clearly a set up for a series, since the 'Oxford Detective Society' is only jokingly used to refer to Lyssa, her friend Frieda and neighbours Jason and Carter. Lyssa is asked by a descendant to investigate and write the biography of a woman who was the girlfriend of the lead singer of a band in the 1960s, but it seems her client has an ulterior motive.
At times this could be a bit repetitive, and there was definitely a lot for Lyssa to discover, when she wasn't being followed or surveilled or run off the road. Then there was the receipt for a storage unit belonging to her dead husband, which she knew nothing about (I wanted to hear more about this) and mysterious neighbour Neville (who at one point I thought might be a spy - spoiler, he isn't!).
Read as a First Reads July 2026 selection. This book was fine - hence the 3 star rating. Pacing is steady, the prose is professional, and the plot progresses rationally - all signs that this is an experienced author who has honed her craft.
However, as seems to be increasingly common these days, the title promises something that the book is... not quite. Lyssa Moore is a biography writer who lives in Oxford, and when she's hired to write the biography of a (possibly misunderstood) party girl lover of a rock musician from the 60s, she uncovers a lot of suspicious motivations and hidden truths wrapped up in her subject's story. Ultimately, this leads Lyssa to try to figure out who the woman really was, and whether her death was really the accident it's accepted to be.
The title makes it sound like this will be a fun buddy mystery - sort of a modern adult Nancy Drew. But it really isn't. Lyssa does discuss her work with her group of friends who live in her building, but they don't really accompany her on her fact-finding missions, and most of the book consists of Lyssa's interviews, 1 on 1, with various descendents and relatives of figures from her subject's life. Her friends do have distinct personalities, but because her interactions with them are few, they mostly just exist as caricatures of NPCs rather than critical characters in the story.
Because everyone Lyssa is writing about is actually dead, and her subject's controversial death occurred in the 60s so has long gone "cold", Lyssa has to gather information entirely through speaking to surviving relatives of the book's subjects and occasionally asking them to look for family heirlooms or records. As a result, the book reads more like a procedural than a live mystery. The so-called "Oxford Detective Society" doesn't have crime scenes to explore, or even suspects houses and offices to look through in secret. The entire book is interviews (with one brief car chase scene) - so it almost doesn't feel like a detective story at all.
That said, it wasn't a bad book, especially for a First Reads selection. It just isn't remarkable.
I have only read one book by Faith Martin previously. That was the dreadful "Murder by Candlelight". At the time, I didn't expect that I would ever be reading anything else by this author, but when "The Oxford Detective Society" appeared on Amazon's "First Reads" list, I decided to give the writer a second chance and, I have to confess, this is markedly better than my first experience of her work.
The story revolves around the central character of Lyssa Moore. Lyssa has forged a reputation as a biographer and her services are secured to write the story of Amelia "Monty" Montrose. Amelia had died under somewhat dubious circumstances in 1966 having been managing the music career of the band of which her lover was the lead singer.
The mystery is decent enough for something aimed at the cosy end of the market. Even though I much preferred this to my one previous experience of Faith Martin's work, I am still not convinced that I will be rushing back to read more. Stylistically, there are issues that grate with me. The author has quite a clichéd and old-fashioned style of writing. In itself, that need not necessarily be a problem, but it does appear quite cumbersome when she tries to incorporate more contemporary idioms into the narrative. The writer is also prone to repetition - not just of aspects of the storyline, but also of certain phrases that are painfully overused. One of Faith Martin's favourites is "At this". In the only other novel by her that I have read, she used it more than 70 times. This time around, it has been trimmed back quite dramatically, but is still used 17 times. It becomes quite tiresome and annoying. I am surprised that her editor has not picked up on this and taken action to amend the text accordingly.
If you are a fan of cosy mysteries you may well enjoy this. It is far from awful, but there are also many better examples out there too.
I'm not fond of biographies but this mystery involving a writer writing the biography of a woman on the fringe of society in the 1960s was interesting and had some tense times when she was targeted for attack. There were a few things that bothered me, but mostly I enjoyed this book.
Throughout the book, Lyssa kept referring to herself as a ghost writer, as did the woman who hired her to write the book. Ghost writers are just that, . They aren't known, and remain in the background. They may be seen as simply researchers, but the books show the author name as the one who commissioned the work (or other people), not the name of the person who actually did the writing. Other characters checked out Lyssa's credentials and commented on other works written by her as a ghost writer. If she were truly a ghost writer, her name wouldn't appear as a writer of those books, either. With her name as author of this commissioned book, she becomes a biographer, not a ghost writer.
As such a supposedly intelligent woman, Lyssa certainly comes across completely clueless about the attacks on her life, and the invasion of her privacy. She acknowledges her vulnerability and the supposed attacks, but she doesn't take them seriously. Her inability to believe that her life is in danger leads her to endangering an older woman's life. The ditzy headed woman doesn't fit the strong independent character the author was keen to portray.
Alyssa also gives away too much information about her findings. She is paid by one client, and that is to whom she should share her research. Not the other suspects/interviewees. This blabbering almost got her killed, and it was lucky that she survived.
In spite of those things, I mostly liked Alyssa and her friends, and plan to read more of this series.
This is the first book I’ve read by Faith Martin, though I see that she is a prolific producer of various series. This one is entertaining, with a well detailed mystery in a cosy setting. As the story involves references to the ancient 1960’s music scene, it was fun to revisit those days vicariously. As best as I remember, the references are correct and made sense, but, Hello! It was the sixties!
The main character is a writer of biographies for people who request her services. Of course the reasons for these “asks” can be many and varied, and, well, most people lie. (If not to others, always to themselves.). The book is populated with a panel of characters who are individuals, but not unique, and although I found the dialogue to be a bit bland or predictable, they were entertaining. I would recommend this to anyone as a decent read on the bus, or the beach. It doesn’t ask too much from you, and it still managed to entertain.
I like the premise, because it allows for quite a bit of future intrigue, and might try another by the author in this series.
This is the story of remarkable and creative women decades apart. Lyssa who is a talented ghost writer is hired to write a biography of Monty, a young woman who influenced a generation of 60's music. Monty drowns on the night of her birthday, 6 months after the death of her love, the lead singer in the band she under wrote and navigated into stardom. Lyssa is dogged in her pursuit of the truth of Monty's life and securing her deserved legacy. Her investigation arouses fear and danger from people who profitted from Monty's death. I rooted for Lyssa and the redemption of Monty's legacy. Perfect summer read. Hoping to read more about Lyssa and her charming circle of friends.
We are not Groupies. Groupies sleep with rockstars because they want to be near someone famous. We are here because of the music, we inspire the music. We are Band Aids. -Penny Lane
60 years ago 23 year old Penny was found dead at the bottom of a pond. Was her death an accident or murder?! Her great gran niece wants a ghost writer to tell Penny's story.
Ok what's this book about?
This was an Amazon first read promotion. I thought it was a police procedural/private detective story set in London. Well no. This was a cosy read.
Not bad but a bit simple for my taste. The fact that her death was in 1962 took away from the story. Interviewing people all these years later was difficult. Plus statute of limitations does apply in England. I think.
I really liked this book! It is a very well written, smart, and engaging book that has many features of a cozy: writer turned amateur detective, well described setting, bloodless death, tight knit group of friends. Lyssa, a ghost writer living in Oxford, is hired to write the biography of Monty, a young woman who died in the 1960s. Monty’s boyfriend, lead singer of a pop band, died of a drug overdose, and Monty, heartbroken, dies a few months later. I knew nothing about this book when I picked it as a free Prime book so I do not want to say more. Just read it! I can’t wait to read more from this author!
I got this book through "Amazon First Reads". I really like the program because I try out authors and books I wouldn't normally notice. This one was a really good read, a mystery with some great plot twists that kept me engaged in the story. The characters were well developed, I could picture them clearly and became quite involved. I could not put this book down, luckily, I am retired so I didn't have to. I highly recommend it if you like mysteries, but also for the characters stories as well.
Lyssa is a writer of biographies. When she is asked to produce a book about the tragic socialite ‘Monty’ she doesn’t realise what she is getting into. Memories of the 60’s - its music, culture and celebrity - are skilfully created. Lots of red herrings and multiple motives keep the mystery going until the end. It takes a while to build up the evidence and then everything is swiftly tied up. There was mention of certain things that were not resolved or mentioned again and presume they may arise in future sequels.
A free book on Amazon. I enjoyed this easy to read book set in Oxford. It was slightly annoying that so many characters names began with J. Jason, Jonas, Jack, Jennifer, Justin, Janet, and surnames Jones, Joiner and Jameson. Helpfully there is a list of characters at the beginning of the book. Lyssa is commissioned to write a book about the misunderstood Monty ‘wild child’ of the 60’s who died in mysterious circumstances. As Lyssa interviews descendants of people who knew Monty more questions are raised about Monty’s life and her of death
DNF. If I didn't have numerous other TBRs waiting in the wings, I probably would have continued. There was an interesting story in there somewhere, but the writing was so bland that I couldn't get engaged. And what's with the constant sprinkling of parenthetical thoughts and literal parentheses, which do nothing to move the story line forward. It was frustrating, because I thought I had found a new British mystery author to enjoy. :-(
I enjoyed following along as Lyssa wrote the legacy of a woman from the ‘60s. The info she learned led you on some twists and turns, as well as the subtle understory of Lyssa’s own healing - this plot line might have been a little more clear at the beginning. There are a lot of characters to follow so I did have to pause a few times to recall who the person is and how the character fit in. Overall a good read.
The "story" itself is good. The way it is told was not for me. A book about someone writing a book is a little boring. The unending number of interviews with the third generation of individuals after the important events that tell the story (and the pounding heart revelations) leave the vast majority of the book feeling very passive, which in turn makes it hard to become invested in or care about the characters. Overall, I can't recommend this book.
Slightly different from Faith Martin's usual crime novels, but an un-put-down-able story. The main characters are realistic and we'll rounded and the story has the right mix of pace and surprise. I heartily recommend reading this and look forward to more books in a similar vein.
Solid mystery set in Oxford, UK. Well-written, understandably motivated protagonist. Quirky yet believable side characters. Good clues and twists while solving mysteries set both in the 1960s and present day.
It's a fun read on the lighter/cozier end of the mystery book spectrum.
Reviewed in advance of publication date through Amazon Prime first reads for July 2026
I’m always delighted when I choose a First Reads book and love it. That’s the case with this book. It’s so not the run of the mill murder mystery. The characters are interesting and the current time setting with a look back at the 60’s add to the experience. Such a great read. Looking forward to the next book!
I got this book from Kindle First Reads. I really enjoyed this book. It is the best First Read book that I have read. It was well thought out and had no major dropped plot lines. The mood of the 60s rang true. The characters were well written. I will definitely look for more books by this author, especially the next book in this series.
The beginning of a new series by Faith Martin, this is a mystery with just enough twists and turns to make it interesting. A ghost writer and biographer finds herself in the midst of uncovering the real story behind a 60s working class pop band and the upper class woman who supported them. Totally enjoyable read.
This was an Amazon First Reads and was surprisingly engaging. The main character Lyssa is hired to write a biography about a women who died 5 decades ago. She was from a well off family and associated herself with an up and coming rock band, including all the pitfalls and glory of the 60s. Martin created an intriguing story and i enjoyed the read.
This book was good, a nice little mystery. It was a bit slow for me, and I think I would’ve enjoyed it more as an audiobook playing in the background of my day, rather than my nighttime reading. Maybe with her next book in the series I’ll try the audiobook. It was enjoyable, truly, but a bit slow for my reading taste.
A 60’s fragrance with a current setting, this delightful cozy will keep the twists and churns coming until the surprising end. Kudos to Faith Martin. I wanna shake your hand.
Faith Martin has done it again, she draws you in, gets you hooked, leaves clues for the next story. You can’t put it down, and the end is ALWAYS a surprise!!
The story was an unusual read for me. As I started reading, the story wasn't what I thought. As I read, it began to take a hold of me, as the story built. A surprise to the end. Enjoy this delightful tale.
⭐⭐⭐ A clever and enjoyable mystery. The Oxford setting adds plenty of charm, the characters are engaging, and the investigation kept me guessing. A solid read that makes me want to continue the series.
Way better than expected! This is actually a pretty fun book to read- lighthearted and a bit cozy, but with enough depth it feels worth reading and the mystery is compelling enough. I definitely will be reading the second one when it comes out. It’s not earth shattering but I really enjoyed it.
What starts out as a request to a young author to write a biography, turns into a labarynth of a mystery that will keep you interested and intrigued until the end
This books took awhile to finish because it wasn't a compelling read. I liked the plot but it plodded along and never found this as a must ready. Ending was satisfactory however and I was left wanting more from the characters.