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Lord James Harrington #1
Lord James Harrington and the Winter Mystery
Meet Lord James Harrington and his delightful wife, Beth; residents of the tiny village of Cavendish, deep in the heart of West Sussex in England. They adore hosting seasonal events, running their country hotel, keeping the local folklore alive and listening to the latest murder mystery on the wireless. But mysteries don’t always remain on the airwaves.........
It’s 1957 and James and Beth are discussing the latest Cavendish Players production, The Devil Incarnate, when their cleaner voices her concern over missing farmer, Alec Grimes. When James finds Grimes dead, he is certain of foul play. But the doctor confirms natural causes and even good friend Detective Chief Inspector George Lane dismisses his suspicions. So James decides to put his own sleuthing skills to the test.
Delving into Grimes’ affairs, it soon becomes clear that not all is what it seems. What are the strange symbols discovered on the floorboards at Grimes’ farm? Who attacked the new vicar on Halloween? Why was Grimes disliked by so many villagers? What are the mysterious pieces of china? Whose body is found on Guy Fawkes Night?
With so many suspects, all with motive and opportunity – will James be able to solve the mystery? Or will his meddling put him and his wife in mortal danger.
It’s 1957 and James and Beth are discussing the latest Cavendish Players production, The Devil Incarnate, when their cleaner voices her concern over missing farmer, Alec Grimes. When James finds Grimes dead, he is certain of foul play. But the doctor confirms natural causes and even good friend Detective Chief Inspector George Lane dismisses his suspicions. So James decides to put his own sleuthing skills to the test.
Delving into Grimes’ affairs, it soon becomes clear that not all is what it seems. What are the strange symbols discovered on the floorboards at Grimes’ farm? Who attacked the new vicar on Halloween? Why was Grimes disliked by so many villagers? What are the mysterious pieces of china? Whose body is found on Guy Fawkes Night?
With so many suspects, all with motive and opportunity – will James be able to solve the mystery? Or will his meddling put him and his wife in mortal danger.
284 pages, Paperback
First published May 12, 2012
207 people are currently reading
277 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
July 27, 2015
Oh dear - just not my cup of tea.
A cosy mystery set in winter in an English village - one of my favourite scenarios. But this story was so cozy I just kept yawning and wanted to curl up in a ball and go to sleep rather than flick the pages to see what was coming next.
Was just too slow and and ... Well ... Boring!
A cosy mystery set in winter in an English village - one of my favourite scenarios. But this story was so cozy I just kept yawning and wanted to curl up in a ball and go to sleep rather than flick the pages to see what was coming next.
Was just too slow and and ... Well ... Boring!
December 13, 2015
I really like the Lord Harrington mysteries. Face paced, interesting and being a big city girl I love the description of village life.
Can't wait to read the next two novels.
Can't wait to read the next two novels.
November 19, 2016
An extra cozy mystery where as much detail is given to every meal as to the mystery. Lord & Lady Harrington are charming and easy to like and there's lots of period detail to really put the reader in the story.
Tending to sarcasm as I do, I was slightly disappointed that because the people who live in the village are always collectively described as "villagers," there was never a sentence about them being angry and arriving somewhere with pitchforks and torches.
Tending to sarcasm as I do, I was slightly disappointed that because the people who live in the village are always collectively described as "villagers," there was never a sentence about them being angry and arriving somewhere with pitchforks and torches.
July 21, 2013
When you've read a lot of these its easy to draw comparisons with others of the genre. This feels like daisy dalrymple mixed with Paul temple and neither of them have done well out of it. So slow. Was v bored.
November 29, 2020
I'd been needing some lighter fare and this fit the bill. Yes, the author really does spend way too much time on what Lord Harrington and his American wife, Beth are eating or wearing or have their table set but then, that's part of what makes a cozy a cozy - the cozy setting. Lord Harrington is a bit of a Miss Marple, a modern lord in a small town that has lots of odd characters as its residents. Set in the late 50s maintains a charming formality in terms of manners and speech patterns. So, the plot was well done and the characters fun and likable. Will this win a Pulitzer prize? Probably not but it was delightful and the fact that it was so reasonably priced made it even more so. I will be reading more of Lynn Florkiewicz's Lord James Harrington series.
September 1, 2013
The author refers to her novel as a "cosy" which I take as British for "beach read." It's a rather formulaic mystery with an obvious attempt to create a 1950s Peter Wimsey. Passes the time but not at all memorable.
November 5, 2016
illGreat read i. Love the book
I. Cannot. Spell real. Good. I. Love. The. Books i. Want. To read. More. Lena barrett lb @Gmail. Com. I. Cannot wait to get your. Books
I. Cannot. Spell real. Good. I. Love. The. Books i. Want. To read. More. Lena barrett lb @Gmail. Com. I. Cannot wait to get your. Books
July 18, 2020
This is the updated version. A fairly good story. It does get a bit long winded with descriptions at times. Mg main quibble was that I could not picture the characters. Oh and I really think it's should have been called the Fall mystery & not winter as it takes place around Halloween.
December 16, 2018
Good cozy mystery. Lots of clues that I didn’t even realize were clues until the very end! Of course that would be the definition of a mystery and this certainly lived up to that definition. Character definition was a bit thin, which is the reason why I was in a state of confusion at the end. Most of the secondary characters were defined by only a few sentences or paragraphs, thus making it difficult to come up with a suitable villain until the very end. I kept having to backtrack to refresh my memory because, as I said before, a lack of outlining the secondary characters meant they merited only a brief description and could easily get lost in the unfolding of the plot. I also felt that cliche phrases were used excessively. If Lord James used the phrase “old girl” one more time I would have given up completely. This did not add to the plot at all and, in fact, distracted me from the overall plot. I know I have stated this in other reviews, but a cast of characters in the beginning would have been an immense help. All in all, a good cozy mystery which fit well with the very real busy time of Christmas.
August 6, 2018
cozy mystery with a well-rounded cast of characters
i got this book on a whim after it was recommended to me by amazon; after snooping around to look at the series, i decided to take the plunge and i don't regret it a bit!
this book was a joy to read. set in 1957 england in a picturesque village with a cast of characters that are all incredibly endearing, lord james harrington makes for a wonderful book to curl up with on a cold day and let yourself become immersed.
the writing isn't groundbreaking and the dialogue is a little awkward in places, but the pacing is done very well and on the whole it's a book that is exactly what it seems: a charming, cozy read that invites you to lay down your worries and spend a few hours trying to solve a mystery.
i am very excited to continue the series and will be purchasing the next three books immediately!
i got this book on a whim after it was recommended to me by amazon; after snooping around to look at the series, i decided to take the plunge and i don't regret it a bit!
this book was a joy to read. set in 1957 england in a picturesque village with a cast of characters that are all incredibly endearing, lord james harrington makes for a wonderful book to curl up with on a cold day and let yourself become immersed.
the writing isn't groundbreaking and the dialogue is a little awkward in places, but the pacing is done very well and on the whole it's a book that is exactly what it seems: a charming, cozy read that invites you to lay down your worries and spend a few hours trying to solve a mystery.
i am very excited to continue the series and will be purchasing the next three books immediately!
January 23, 2021
I thought I would like this, but I didn't. Its written in the British English of 1957 and while I'm all for keeping period pieces authentic, it just got tiresome, being I'm an American English speaker of the same vintage. I was rather interested to note that we heard more about what the lord of the manor was wearing than we did about m'lady's outfits. And both of them love to cook, ad nauseum. It's amazing they had time to solve a mystery between meals, tea, and drinks. And let's not forget festivals with lots of food and drinks. Not a lot of character development. The plot may have been interesting, but it was so drawn out by all the extraneous stuff that it sort of got lost in the shuffle.
October 3, 2020
I loved this book and have downloaded the others in the series. Set in Sussex, England, as I live in this county myself it was interesting. Lord James lives in a fictitious village by the name of Cavendish, (the name used is after the Cavendish family who in real life have owned Land for 450 years, especially where I live in Eastbourne) . Back to the book, I loved the pace of story and I didn't guess the perpetrator of the crimes at all. Plenty of lovely history about Guy Fawkes and our traditions on Halloween before 'trick treat 'came from USA. First in the series am looking forward to the next book.
April 10, 2018
Underwhelming, but fine. It was fine. Fine. The characters were so bland and interchangeable I kept confusing them. The author spent too much time describing what the characters were wearing and not enough time building any sort of character development. James and his wife (can't remember her name) are unbelievable. Rich, titled, egalitarian and, ultimately, uninteresting.
The author did, however, do a good job of creating a theme park version of rural England in the fifties.
The author did, however, do a good job of creating a theme park version of rural England in the fifties.
February 13, 2021
I found this slow and a little stilted to start but enjoyed it more as it went along - set in the late 1950s Lord H is a sensitive "new age" guy cooking the family meals, drinking a lot and spending quite a bit of time working out which cashmere sweater to wear in a cosy English village - in fact reading about this author has introduced me to a hitherto unknown term - cosy crime fiction. By the end of this easy read I was quite enjoying it and might look for the next in the series.
February 28, 2023
I guess I liked this book but it didn't overwhelm me the least bit. It was just mediocre, the usual cozy mystery. I liked the characters but the story was just boring or moved at too slow a pace. I will try the next book in the series but if it's not any better than this one, then this series is a bust for me.. The narrator David Thorpe did a great job with his narration but it still wasn't enough to salvage this slow pace boring book. I truly hope the writing improves in the next book.
December 12, 2017
Delightful
Entertaining on a cold winter’s night snuggled under a warm cozy comforter.
To me reading is time/place travel. In this book I was transported to the early fifties in a small delightful English Village. The people became my acquaintances and friends. I had only a little trouble remembering names and who was who.
Entertaining on a cold winter’s night snuggled under a warm cozy comforter.
To me reading is time/place travel. In this book I was transported to the early fifties in a small delightful English Village. The people became my acquaintances and friends. I had only a little trouble remembering names and who was who.
June 29, 2019
Intriguing Mystery.
What an intriguing Mystery it makes when a recluse farmer dies suddenly. Was he killed, was it a heart attack ... and who set him up in front of an easel with the wrong brush in hand? There are a lot of villagers who had bad dealings with the man. Such an enjoyable start to the series.
What an intriguing Mystery it makes when a recluse farmer dies suddenly. Was he killed, was it a heart attack ... and who set him up in front of an easel with the wrong brush in hand? There are a lot of villagers who had bad dealings with the man. Such an enjoyable start to the series.
September 10, 2018
A winner!
Nice twisting story line, believable characters, a few "red herrings" . The story was nicely filled out with additional characters. I will definitely read !it's Lord Harrington stories!
Nice twisting story line, believable characters, a few "red herrings" . The story was nicely filled out with additional characters. I will definitely read !it's Lord Harrington stories!
April 29, 2020
Had its charm, but I do wonder about its definition of “Winter”
My Full Review
My Full Review
December 24, 2023
So much fun to read
I enjoyed reading about Lord Harrington’s first adventure as a detective. Meeting the people of Cavendish is an added bonus. I can’t wait to see what James, the vicar, and a less-than-upright member of the community get up to next.
I enjoyed reading about Lord Harrington’s first adventure as a detective. Meeting the people of Cavendish is an added bonus. I can’t wait to see what James, the vicar, and a less-than-upright member of the community get up to next.
August 26, 2017
A Peter Wimsey wanna-be. Charming enough in its own right but fails to live up to the comparison.
January 25, 2018
What can I say - wanted to like it but so convoluted, all sorts of red herrings, needless details and so many characters.... It was dull.
May 7, 2020
An excellent cosy mystery
Great characterisation and a romping storyline. Much enjoyed, and I’m off to buy the next in the series. Keep up the great work, Lynn!
Great characterisation and a romping storyline. Much enjoyed, and I’m off to buy the next in the series. Keep up the great work, Lynn!
September 30, 2020
Intriguing Mystery
Exceptional book. Keeps you guessing who did it until close to the end of the book. On to book number 2.
Thank you for a great read!
Exceptional book. Keeps you guessing who did it until close to the end of the book. On to book number 2.
Thank you for a great read!
October 21, 2020
I quite liked the first one. Will probably continue reading.
February 6, 2021
Even a crumble recipe
Fun read, interesting characters, and a twist I didn’t anticipate, but totally enjoyed. Wish I could eat some of those fabulous meals.
Fun read, interesting characters, and a twist I didn’t anticipate, but totally enjoyed. Wish I could eat some of those fabulous meals.
March 23, 2021
Too slow for my taste
January 6, 2022
Keep reading!
Enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. Multi-dimensional people in the village, the restaurant and among Lord James friends. Bert is my favorite.
Enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. Multi-dimensional people in the village, the restaurant and among Lord James friends. Bert is my favorite.
July 3, 2022
A good ” Who Done it”
Like the friendly tone of the village and the funny characters. Lord and lady that like to cook are interesting
Like the friendly tone of the village and the funny characters. Lord and lady that like to cook are interesting
September 5, 2022
2.5 - 3 stars
Not bad, but quite slow. Good enough to check out the next book and see how it goes.
Not bad, but quite slow. Good enough to check out the next book and see how it goes.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews