Deadly By Design

Model Under Cover #3

by Carina Axelsson

When a new case lands on Axelle Anderson's London doorstep, the stylish sleuth can't resist strapping on the heels and snapping on the shades to track down whoever attacked fashion photographer Gavin. But what's the deal with the memory stick full of mysterious photos? Can Axelle discover the secret they contain and stop a killer in his tracks?

Genres: Young Adult, Mystery, Middle Grade

297 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 5, 2016

About the author

Hi everyone,

I'm Carina Axelsson, author of the MODEL UNDER COVER and ROYAL REBEL book series.

Model Under Cover stars sixteen-year-old fashion detective, Axelle Anderson, and combines three of my favourite things: mystery, fashion and, of course, romance!

My love of detective fiction inspired me to write the series, and my experience as a former fashion model has inspired many of the scenes in the book. So if you're looking for a pacey read with adventure, romance and a young, sassy detective, then give MODEL UNDER COVER a go - no magnifying glass or high heels required!

My new series, Royal Rebel, is for slightly younger readers. Follow the adventures of Her Royal Highness Lilian Athena Isabella Marie the Crown Princess of Waldenburg ( the world's only QUEENDOM!) and find out all about Lily's HUGE secret - something the palace would definitely NOT approve of...if you like girl-power, palaces and ponies, queendoms and comedy, dogs, secret turrets - plus a big sparkly dollop of DIY fashion - then get your tiara on and crack open Royal Rebel!

To find out more about me, my books, and what I'm up to, please visit my website:
http://www.carinaaxelsson.com

You can also find me on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarinaAxelss...

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/carinaaxelsson/

Instagram: http://instagram.com/carinaaxelssonwr...

PS: Although you can leave me a comment here, please feel free to head over to the Contact page of my website and send me an email from there: http://www.carinaaxelsson.com/contact You can also DM me via Instagram and Facebook. I love hearing from my readers so thanks in advance!
Carina x

Reviews

[Clare O'Beara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not having read the earlier books I was surprised that our model is so young. Axelle is a teen model still at school, and she does modelling with the support of her efficient mother, from their home in London. Being a smart and sensible young lady, Axelle wants to go to college, and she doesn't spend hours preening and primping. Instead she devotes time to helping others as a serious crime is brought to her to investigate by a fashion blogger.

A photographer was mugged on Westminster Bridge and he is in a coma. His work camera was stolen which contained images from his shoot with an upcoming male designer. This sparks a long involved hunt for details and backgrounds, reopening recent historical tragedy and unearthing family tensions. Some readers will perhaps find the exploration too involved, or not care about a previous generation, but it's a good reminder that fashion of today does not exist in a vacuum but builds on the fashions of yesterday. I found the mystery quite suitable for more mature teens and for adult mystery fans.

We get great information about the work of modelling and the people involved; the jargon, the accessories such as a zed card, the time consuming casting sessions with no guarantee of work. A shoot with a young rock star is made all the better because Axelle is unimpressed by the guy, who normally has girls falling at his feet. I think the author, a former top model, has done young women a service by depicting her bright and talented heroine as a normal interesting girl who likes nice food, wears glasses at home and has good friends. Long may Axelle grace the pages of Teen Chic magazine. I'll be looking out for her next mystery.

[Cheryl · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had not heard of this series but when I got the chance to read this book I jumped on it. It sounded fun. Yet, I quickly found myself wondering when the story was going to start. What I mean is that four to six chapters in and there was a lot of conversation but I was left waiting for Axelle to start investigating the case. A lot of conversation about nothing of importance. I than started to skim the book until I got to this part. Ok, I am not impressed by Axelle's skills as a crime solver. She did not pick up instantly on clues and would state the obvious. This is one book that I did not personally for myself think it translated too well for adults like other young adult books. However the younger readers will probably like Axelle and this world that the author built.

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Picked up this book because I wanted to read books set in London before going on a trip there. And a look at the world of fashion sounded interesting also.

The writing trips along lightly and entertainingly, but every time I put it down I felt like I had wasted my time. Lack of realism in how the world works is a bad flaw in a book. Fantasy elements are fine, because they distinguish between totally unreal elements and plausible scenes.

I was interested in the fashion industry elements, but I could tell that the people interactions were so unlikely depicted that I did not trust that the fashion world stuff would be reliably presented.

[michelle ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

☆4.25

The case for this book was honestly so interesting, starting out from a photographer being attacked and leaving behind some photos which lead to this rabbit hole of a famous family in London and things aren't as they're seen!

The case was more intense then the others definitely and I know for sure the next one is even more intense tehe

Spoliers!!

I knew that old lady Jane was suspicious bro, she was literally giving the vibes of "oh I RAN the whole damn house with or without Clarrisa" spolier alert - Jane pushed Clarrisa down the stairs and Clarrisa died...also Caro (Clarrisa's sister) helped Jane with the murder because Clarrisa stole her fiance and them dumped him, it was an understatement when I said that this case was going to be insane!

Jane felt attached to one of the twins (there was Julian & Johnny), more specifically Julian and when she took them to the thames and Johnny died due to negliance (Clarrisa's favourite child), she was like oh yes I'll force Julien to pretend to be Johnny for the rest of his life! And forced him to wear gloves since Johnny had a birthmark on his hands but Julian didn't yeah she was insane, plus she also ransacked the photographers house and pretended to be blind! how lovely.

Poor Georgie ♡

Anyways, the whole thing was insane but it was so so good, like I was so interested in how everything was linked together eventually it just felt right and satisfying!

okay, so Sebastian being lowkey jealous of the relationship between Axelle and Josh (this arrogant pop star I guess, he's fine really) is understandable. Honestly, I LOVED when they got jealous omg he acts so nonchalant about it but also not really??

He literally says to her "Oh does it bother you that I can't write songs and sing?" AHAHA insane I love him what a diva ♡

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good book for teenagers. Although I'm slightly older than the demographic this book is aimed at I really enjoyed it. The mystery itself is really interesting with a great storyline and final discovery. A good range of characters although I found myself getting a little confused with the lack of detail/description about some. I'm not sure how I feel about the model side of things. Axelle career seems to be quite brushed over as if its just normal she gets all these bookings without much effort- especially with her not really giving much regard to being a model. However overall the book was an enjoyable read and I loved the mystery within the storyline and its outcome.

[Olivia Hopins · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far my favourite book in the series. It was very enjoyable and I would definitely recommend it if you like mystery books.

[Kristina Anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Model Undercover: London by Carina Axelsson felt like a very contrived novel. Axelle Anderson is a fashion model, but she prefers mysteries (solving them). It has been three months since her last case in New York and Axelle is itching for a new mystery. Axelle is hired by the Tallulah Tempest. Her brother, Gavin, is a fashion photographer and he was recently attacked. The police believe it was a random mugging, but Tallulah believes it was a deliberate attack. Her theory is proven when Gavin’s flat is also searched. Someone is searching for something! Gavin had given Tallulah a flash drive which she gives to Axelle. It contains photos from a shoot on fashion designer, Johnny Vane. There is one pic of an old photograph on the flash drive. Why does someone want to hide this old photo? Axelle sets out to find out what is so important about the photo and who is behind Gavin’s attack.

Model Undercover: London is a young adult novel. Unlike a lot of young adult novels, this novel is definitely not for adults (too immature). We get pages of Axelle thinking (about herself, her looks, boys, modeling, and a little bit about the mystery). The novel felt fake. I give Model Undercover: London 2 out of 5 stars. The novel lacked depth (lacking in details). I just found the book to be boring. There was not enough mystery in this mystery novel. There are other books in the Model Undercover series, but this novel can be read alone. Information from the other books are repeated a few times in this novel (especially at how well Axelle did at solving the mysteries).

I received a complimentary copy of Model Undercover: London from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review of the book.

[Liralen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Still an entertaining series, although I think this book leans a little too hard into the Sherlock Holmes thing. Axelle doesn't have co-investigators so much as she has underlings, so she does the 'ahhh I think I know what happened, but I'm not going to tell you what we're doing so that I can have a better dramatic reveal' thing (and she uses the word 'furthermore' quite a lot). The mystery she's called in to solve is something like 40 years old, and there are a lot of characters to keep track of. I think I could have done with a little more contemporary mystery (sort of hard to care whether the identity of a small child was switched with that of his dead brother decades and decades ago) and a few more clues freely given (to the reader, not to Axelle...she gets exactly what she wants out of every character). But hey. I'm still amused!

[Lucee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series has been pretty good as a whole, but this book felt too wordy, and a bit flat to me. The characters aren't as fleshed out as I'd like, and the plot while not being predictable, wasn't extremely surprising. An enjoyable series, but one I probably won't read over and over.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review to come on book tour date. :)

[scarlet · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved reading "Deadly By Design" when I was around 11 or 12 and, in a sudden burst of nostalgia, decided to reread it- but the storyline didn't quite translate to an adult audience as many YA novels tend to do. For example, reading it again made me realise how unrealistic the book was; Axelle is meant to be 16 years old, and yet is somehow entrusted with solving murder mysteries by the fashion industry, being let out by her mother until late in a city as dangerous as London. As if this wasn't improbable enough, she also packs far too many events into her day. Two castings, a whole fashion show, a party, a house-tour and a picnic with Sebastian (all the while, catching trains to different parts of London) is much more than anyone could do in a day without becoming permanently exhausted, let alone a teenager.

However, impracticality aside, I mainly enjoyed the plot of the book. Being older now, I guessed who was guilty about halfway in, but her fashion undercover trips kept the book enjoyable enough that I didn't get too bored for most of the book. There book also includes romance problems, which are very cliche (think along the lines of Axelle being "not like other girls") and at times I felt that Axelle was pretty rude towards both Sebastian and Josh, and deliberately didn't tell Josh that she had a boyfriend. She really could have just sorted out the misunderstanding within 5 seconds, but was content to let the situation ruminate, which meant that she radiated arrogance for most of the book. However, since she's supposed to be 16, and therefore pretty naive, I guess it's fairly realistic.

The book also does a pretty good job at explaining and establishing the characters, despite the book being part of a series, so it's a great book series to read without having to choose a certain order to understand the characters and events in. Despite the book clearly being aimed at younger teenagers, and feeling quite cringy or badly worded at times, it's an interesting concept to mix detective crime with fashion modelling, and it was a very intriguing and fun read. Just, maybe stick to some more complex crime novels if you're usually quick at picking up clues, since Axelle seems content to stay oblivious to the most obvious of hints until the very end of the book. Overall, the book is perfect for the 11-14 age range and was very quick and easy to to read.

[Ash · Rating 3 out of 5]

What do i even say about this book? It dragged on A LOT. I thought i'd REALLY dislike this book but the writing style kept the flow going well enough for me not to get (too) bored, (which is often the case with other books for me). But it did get a bit too side-tracked with describing things at some points. Another downside is that the chapters were too long, there were also way too many names to keep track of and i only JUST got a hang of it by the end of the book. It tends to repeat things either too much or not at all and it feels stuck between genres which makes the whiplash between chapters confusing. The jealousy/love triangle/crush thing was abandoned quickly.

None of the chapters were labeled, which was in-accessible for me. For anyone curious the amount of chapters in this book is 13.

The font used for the page numbers is also rather inaccessible and grainy.

Calling. gold bracelet accessories "almost tribal" is. odd. The ending was unsatisfying. There was multiple things kept from the reader despite the intimate pov. Also, saying a character looked 'psychotic' was acutely odd.

Generally i got bored with the long chapters, only pushing myself through so i could take it off my to read list.

[Alexandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Loved this book so much, and have read it many times over the years!

[aoife · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a reread for about a millionth time such a comfort book

[Carter Bornemann]

Really good and suspenseful!

[Grace Sargeant · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked it.

[Ruthsic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Posing as a model gets Axelle the kinds of connections that make her the fashion elite's go-to detective. Her newest case? The attack on famous fashion photographer Gavin Tempest that's left him in the hospital. The police may have ruled it a mugging, but Gavin's sister has special intel for Axelle that points to something more sinister...and when clues start pointing to people in high places, things get dicey for Axelle. Because fashion isn't the only thing that's killer in this case...

After all the jetsetting in the previous books, Axelle is back home and waiting for a new case to get cracking. Her modelling career is not going away anytime soon thanks to her zealous mother, but she can always have fun while working, right? So, when a case of an attack comes to her through her friend Ellie, she of course takes it. The case, fortunately (!) also coincides with her now-boyfriend Sebastian's visit to London, which means the dynamic duo is back in action.

The case turns out to be more complicated than previously imagined when it has ties to an event that happened 30 years ago. Naturally, Axelle was lucky enough that the original crime scene has stayed more or less the same, allowing her to reconstruct the crime. Her hunch follows through and she does determine the culprit, but once again, what's the harm in involving the police? It's like she has a death wish.

Case aside, the relationship between her and Sebastian gets a little trouble in the form of a rock star, and Sebby's consequent insecurity. Thankfully, it doesn't affect their partnership or the case, and all's well that ends well, as they say. 3.5 stars.

Received a free galley from Sourcebooks Jabberwocky via Netgalley; this does not influence my opinions or the review

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nancy Drew has nothing on Axelle. This mystery is complex and twisting like the cobblestone roads in London. Just when you think you know where it's all going, you take a left turn or hit a dead end. Axelle is a model running the cat walk. It is every girl's dream... it's just not Axelle's dream. She longs to be a detective. So she delves into mysteries that only a model could solve. No other person would be allowed among the beautiful people. Axelle strikes a pose and gets the job done.

This is the third book in the Model Undercover series. And I enjoyed this one as much as the first two. The mystery had me stumped. I wish I could have seen the photographs because Axelle had a much bigger head start than the reader did. I think this series would make a big splash on television. I hope to see it there some day.

I enjoyed the play between the rockstar, Josh and Sebastian. I seriously began to think Axelle might want to take a chance on Josh. They play cat and mouse during most of the book but Sebastian is always by her side, his Watson to her Holmes.

I loved the backdrop of London and found it cool to see how they get back and forth a city of such size. Axelle never disappoints and I look forward to her next mystery which I believe is set in Milan.

I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) from Net Galley in return for an honest review. I thank Net Galley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.

[Sage Thoughts · Rating 3 out of 5]

Content Rating and Review

http://sagethoughtsonbooks.blogspot.c...

[Bonita · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm decades older than the target range for this book, but I have to say it held even my interest in its storyline. This book was like a modern Nancy Drew novel, with a fashion twist. What I was surprised at is the way the author also shared a lot of real information on the fashion modeling business. Any girl between the age of 12 and 25 would love this book, and if they love this book they would also love the other books in the series. Although the main character was a teenager, it was not difficult for me to follow the heroine in my imagination as if I was also a teenage model in London. I would encourage parents looking for a good, clean and very interesting book for their daughters to consider this book and the series by Carina Axelsson. It really encourages young women to remember you don't have to be dumb to be beautiful or even fashionable, and that just because you are a women or a teenage girl you don't have to limit yourself to just the normal female expectation such as a career in modeling. If you are smart, and very astute you can even be a private investigator, or the CEO of a large modeling empire or an editor of a magazine.

[ೄྀ࿐ Bookgirl♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wowwwww!!! This book was freaking AWESOME💯💯

[Katarina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read 3 of books in this series, and they are fabulous. Carina's writing is spot on. Axelle is so funny and smart, and through her eyes you see the fashion world taken with a grain of salt. The cases are all unique and have their own twists and turns, which keep the stories exciting and fresh.

In Model Undercover: London, Axelle is on the heels of a killer who put one of her friends into hospital. Exciting, twists and turns to keep you guessing, lots of fabulous fashion and a bunch of laughs. This is a series that will be loved by any age group.

[Charity · Rating 4 out of 5]

For full review please go to: 5girlsbookreviews.blogspot.com, Twitter @camartinez and Facebook "5 Girls Book Reviews"

REVIEW BY: Michaela, age 11 years, 8 months

MAY CONTAIN SPOILER:

This book was pretty good if you like mystery novels. It has some romance parts in it. I think that anyone will keep reading it to the end to find out what happens!

My favorite character is Jane because every one is a little crazy, including her. She reminds me a bit of myself.

[Becca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book! It is unique and fun and leaves you guessing to the end. I can not wait to pick up the NEW YORK and PARIS books. The characters are amazing, Axelle (Holmes) and Sebastian (Watson) work so well together. This book reminds me of some of my favorite Miss Marple mysteries. Thank You Carina Axelsson, and please continue with more Model Undercover.

[T.J. Burns]

I received a copy of this book from Sourcebooks Jabberwocky via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Malli (Chapter Malliumpkin) · Rating 5 out of 5]

A whole new take on the average mystery novel. A good novel for teen girls who are interested in fashion, modeling and of course, mystery solving. Definitely a good read and an author worth checking out!

[Jana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this series so much! I'm SO excited for the fourth book which will be based in Milan! One of my favourite cities ever <3

[Arlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was really interesting and makes me want to read other books about solving mysteries.

[Joanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though I liked Model Undercover Paris better, I still really enjoyed this book

[Jaymie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great mystery, fun fashion pieces, glimpse at life in London. I really enjoy this series!