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Mrs. Murphy #31
Hiss and Tell
When a series of mysterious deaths spoil the Christmas season in Crozet, Virginia, Mary Minor "Harry" Harristeen and her beloved cats and dogs lend the police a helping paw in this exciting holiday mystery from Rita Mae Brown and her feline co-author Sneaky Pie Brown.
Christmas is coming and Harry’s to-do list is a mile long. The days are filled with delivering holiday baskets to neighbors in need, chopping down the perfect tree with her best friend, Susan Tucker, and hunting for that elusive special gift for her beloved husband, Pharamond “Fair” Harristeen. Harry also decides to try her hand at dog showing, enrolling her handsome Irish Wolfhound puppy Pirate in classes to prepare for a future exhibition. Through it all, holiday cheer—and plenty of treats for Pirate—keep spirits high.
But the holidays aren’t cheerful for everyone. Harry’s friend on the police force, Cynthia Cooper, warns that the season can bring an uptick in crime. Her words prove tragically prescient when Harry and Susan discover the body of a man by the side of the road, dead, without any clues to his identity. One suspicious death is bad enough, but when Cooper reports that two more bodies have been found, also unidentified, Harry knows trouble is afoot. The autopsies for all three bodies reveal the presence of a deadly drug. Could their deaths have been accidental, or is a devious killer on the prowl?
With help from her feline sidekicks, Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, as well as Tee Tucker the corgi and Pirate, Harry vows to find the answers and stop the spate of deaths so that all of Crozet can have a very merry Christmas.
Christmas is coming and Harry’s to-do list is a mile long. The days are filled with delivering holiday baskets to neighbors in need, chopping down the perfect tree with her best friend, Susan Tucker, and hunting for that elusive special gift for her beloved husband, Pharamond “Fair” Harristeen. Harry also decides to try her hand at dog showing, enrolling her handsome Irish Wolfhound puppy Pirate in classes to prepare for a future exhibition. Through it all, holiday cheer—and plenty of treats for Pirate—keep spirits high.
But the holidays aren’t cheerful for everyone. Harry’s friend on the police force, Cynthia Cooper, warns that the season can bring an uptick in crime. Her words prove tragically prescient when Harry and Susan discover the body of a man by the side of the road, dead, without any clues to his identity. One suspicious death is bad enough, but when Cooper reports that two more bodies have been found, also unidentified, Harry knows trouble is afoot. The autopsies for all three bodies reveal the presence of a deadly drug. Could their deaths have been accidental, or is a devious killer on the prowl?
With help from her feline sidekicks, Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, as well as Tee Tucker the corgi and Pirate, Harry vows to find the answers and stop the spate of deaths so that all of Crozet can have a very merry Christmas.
293 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 28, 2023
232 people are currently reading
4137 people want to read
About the author
Rita Mae Brown
176 books2,239 followersRita Mae Brown is a prolific American writer, most known for her mysteries and other novels (Rubyfruit Jungle). She is also an Emmy-nominated screenwriter.
Brown was born illegitimate in Hanover, Pennsylvania. She was raised by her biological mother's female cousin and the cousin's husband in York, Pennsylvania and later in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
Starting in the fall of 1962, Brown attended the University of Florida at Gainesville on a scholarship. In the spring of 1964, the administrators of the racially segregated university expelled her for participating in the civil rights movement. She subsequently enrolled at Broward Community College[3] with the hope of transferring eventually to a more tolerant four-year institution.
Between fall 1964 and 1969, she lived in New York City, sometimes homeless, while attending New York University[6] where she received a degree in Classics and English. Later,[when?] she received another degree in cinematography from the New York School of Visual Arts.[citation needed] Brown received a Ph.D. in literature from Union Institute & University in 1976 and holds a doctorate in political science from the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C.
Starting in 1973, Brown lived in the Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles. In 1977, she bought a farm in Charlottesville, Virginia where she still lives.[9] In 1982, a screenplay Brown wrote while living in Los Angeles, Sleepless Nights, was retitled The Slumber Party Massacre and given a limited release theatrically.
During Brown's spring 1964 semester at the University of Florida at Gainesville, she became active in the American Civil Rights Movement. Later in the 1960s, she participated in the anti-war movement, the feminist movement and the Gay Liberation movement.
Brown took an administrative position with the fledgling National Organization for Women, but resigned in January 1970 over Betty Friedan's anti-gay remarks and NOW's attempts to distance itself from lesbian organizations. She claims she played a leading role in the "Lavender Menace" zap of the Second Congress to Unite Women on May 1, 1970, which protested Friedan's remarks and the exclusion of lesbians from the women's movement.
In the early 1970s, she became a founding member of The Furies Collective, a lesbian feminist newspaper collective in Washington, DC, which held that heterosexuality was the root of all oppression.
Brown told Time magazine in 2008, "I don't believe in straight or gay. I really don't. I think we're all degrees of bisexual. There may be a few people on the extreme if it's a bell curve who really truly are gay or really truly are straight. Because nobody had ever said these things and used their real name, I suddenly became [in the late 1970s] the only lesbian in America."
Brown was born illegitimate in Hanover, Pennsylvania. She was raised by her biological mother's female cousin and the cousin's husband in York, Pennsylvania and later in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
Starting in the fall of 1962, Brown attended the University of Florida at Gainesville on a scholarship. In the spring of 1964, the administrators of the racially segregated university expelled her for participating in the civil rights movement. She subsequently enrolled at Broward Community College[3] with the hope of transferring eventually to a more tolerant four-year institution.
Between fall 1964 and 1969, she lived in New York City, sometimes homeless, while attending New York University[6] where she received a degree in Classics and English. Later,[when?] she received another degree in cinematography from the New York School of Visual Arts.[citation needed] Brown received a Ph.D. in literature from Union Institute & University in 1976 and holds a doctorate in political science from the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C.
Starting in 1973, Brown lived in the Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles. In 1977, she bought a farm in Charlottesville, Virginia where she still lives.[9] In 1982, a screenplay Brown wrote while living in Los Angeles, Sleepless Nights, was retitled The Slumber Party Massacre and given a limited release theatrically.
During Brown's spring 1964 semester at the University of Florida at Gainesville, she became active in the American Civil Rights Movement. Later in the 1960s, she participated in the anti-war movement, the feminist movement and the Gay Liberation movement.
Brown took an administrative position with the fledgling National Organization for Women, but resigned in January 1970 over Betty Friedan's anti-gay remarks and NOW's attempts to distance itself from lesbian organizations. She claims she played a leading role in the "Lavender Menace" zap of the Second Congress to Unite Women on May 1, 1970, which protested Friedan's remarks and the exclusion of lesbians from the women's movement.
In the early 1970s, she became a founding member of The Furies Collective, a lesbian feminist newspaper collective in Washington, DC, which held that heterosexuality was the root of all oppression.
Brown told Time magazine in 2008, "I don't believe in straight or gay. I really don't. I think we're all degrees of bisexual. There may be a few people on the extreme if it's a bell curve who really truly are gay or really truly are straight. Because nobody had ever said these things and used their real name, I suddenly became [in the late 1970s] the only lesbian in America."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 159 reviews
April 18, 2023
3.5 stars
In this addition to the 'Mrs. Murphy' mysteries, amateur sleuth Harry Haristeen is concerned about drug deaths in her county. I think it's necessary to be familiar with the series to fully enjoy the book.
The 'Mrs. Murphy' cozy mystery series began over three decades ago, with the charming premise that animals could speak amongst themselves and help their owner solve crimes.
In recent years author Rita Mae Brown has used the Mrs. Murphy novels to promote her politics and to discuss American history. This bothers me, since I don't think authors should use fiction as a platform to 'teach.' That's what non-fiction is for. Still, I've been following these characters for a long time, and the stories are interesting, so I keep reading them (so far).
Rita Mae Brown's recent Mrs. Murphy novels have followed two storylines, one set in Crozet, Virginia in current times and the other set in the same region in the late 1700s, a decade or so after the Revolutionary War.
*****
During the Christmas season of 2021, Harry Haristeen, a lifelong resident of Crozet - in Albemarle County, Virginia - has a lot going on.
Harry is married to a large animal veterinarian named Fair Haristeen; she takes care of her farm and horses; she hangs out with her lifelong best friend Susan Tucker; she and Susan deliver Christmas baskets to needy families; she's arranging a surprise Christmas present for her husband Fair; and she and Fair belong to a 'dining club' composed of close friends that sample high end restaurants.
Harry is also the 'mom' of two cats called Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, and two dogs named Tucker and Pirate.
The pets converse among themselves - discussing the news of the day and other things - and talk to other animals as well. In this book Harry is taking Pirate - a 150-pound Irish Wolfhound - to dog showing classes, just for fun.
Besides everything else Harry is a compulsive amateur sleuth, and she pokes into deaths being investigated by her friend and neighbor, Deputy Sheriff Cynthia Cooper.
In this book Harry becomes concerned about a number of Christmas season fatalities: three undocumented middle-aged men who have no IDs are murdered; a Crozet orchard owner named Sy Buford is found dead; and three young people overdose at a party.
All the deceased contain traces of Fentanyl, and Deputy Cooper and Harry are concerned about drugs in Crozet. Harry even starts carrying Narcan, which can revive people who overdose on opioids if used in a timely manner. In an interview, author Rita Mae Brown acknowledges that this storyline is inspired by concerns about the country's ubiquitous drug problem.
In any case, Harry tries to determine how the drugs are being distributed in Virginia, and she endangers her own life as a result.
In the alternate storyline, set in the Crozet area in 1789, the action centers around two plantations and a high class brothel. One plantation, called Big Rawly, is owned by Mrs. Maureen Selisse Holloway, a cruel woman obsessed with profits and keeping her slaves in line.
The other plantation, named Cloverfields, is owned by a kind man named Ewing Garth, whose married daughter Catherine - a superb horsewoman and businesswoman - helps her dad run Cloverfields. The Garths are kind to their slaves, but have no thoughts of freeing them. It's clear that author Rita Mae Brown is against slavery, but her characters justify the practice as an economic necessity.
In this story, Catherine arranges for a steeplechase race on Cloverfields property, and the author (a horsewoman herself) describes the race in great detail. 🙂
The 1789 brothel, called The Tavern, is run by a money-obsessed woman called Georgina. The Tavern serves its clientele gourmet food, provides musical entertainment by a talented singer, and has beautiful prostitutes for after-dinner entertainment.
All this might be fine and good except that Georgina has young girls kidnapped to work at The Tavern. Georgina seems to think she's providing a 'better life' for these gals, but its human trafficking no matter how you slice it.
I'm intrigued by the high-end eateries frequented by Harry's dining club, which serve things like grilled young squab with seared foie gras nesting on rhubarb compote. For dessert, Harry always orders orange-glazed sweetbreads with crème brûlée, which I might try given the chance.
Glazed sweetbreads and crème brûlée
The Mrs. Murphy' novels used to be REAL cozy mysteries with Harry searching for and finding clues....often with the help of her fur babies. More recently, and especially in this book, the 'investigation' is VERY superficial and the story is about all manner of other things. So you're forewarned.
Thanks to Netgalley, Rita Mae Brown, and Random House Publishing Group for a copy of the manuscript.
You can follow my reviews at https://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot.com
December 30, 2022
Hiss and Tell is the 31st book in the Mrs. Murphy Mystery series. I have read this series from the beginning and love all of them. There are two parts of this story, Present time and Eighteenth Century. The story takes place in Crozet, Virginia during the Christmas holiday. The story opens with Pharamond (Fair) Haristeen, an equine vet who is coming home from a colic call. He notices a truck that is going very fast and goes off the road and crashes into a tree. Several people get out of the truck and run into the woods. He calls Deputy Cynthia Cooper their next door neighbor and reports the accident.
Mary Minor Haristeen, Fair's wife and her best friend, Susan Tucker are on the hilltop looking over the 1000 acres that Susan inherited from an uncle. It has black walnut trees that Susan plans to harvest down the road. Harry is there with her pets Mrs Murphy, a tiger cat; Putter, a fat gray cat; Tucker, a corgi and Pirate, a wolfhound. They are all important parts of this story, Coming back on back roads they come across a body of a man who has been shot. They call Coop. Coop checks the person and finds no ID. They give their statement and leave.
Harry is taking her dog, Pirate, a wolfhound, to classes about showing them. When leaving one of the other participants is robbed of her purse. Coop is called and she captures the two men. Again they don't have ID. The two men are later found shot to death. That makes 3 shot.
While shopping with Harry, Coop gets a phone call from her boss that the 3 men who died all had fentanyl in their system. Later in the story Harry's friend, Ballard Perez who lives in a small cottage on his mother's estate called Lone Pine was at the class training his wolfhound when he suddenly falls on the floor after taking Advil. He is rushed to the hospital and also found to have fentanyl in his system. Their friend, Sy Buford was found dead in his peach orchard. Also was found to have fentanyl in his system. There is a lot of discussion about drugs in this story. This is where I will leave the story to the reader to read and enjoy.
The second part of the story follows two families, Ewing Garth who owns the estate, Cloverfield along with his daughters Catherine Schuyler along with her husband, John and her sister, Rachel and her husband, Charles. The other family is Maureen Selisse Holloway who owns Big Rawly along with her second husband, Jeffery. She can be cruel towards anyone who crosses her. She is a very wealthy woman. A third person is Georgina Howard who owns a high class brothel. I will again leave this story to the reader as there is so much that it is impossible to tell all.
The story comes to a climax of who killed the men and why. The story ends with Christmas Day at Harry's and Fair's house with Cooper, Susan, her husband Ned, Ballard comes to visit and brings Harry a present of papers about horse breeding. They are papers of Catherine Schuyler. His family bred horses in the colonial times.
Thank you NetGalley and Bantam Books for this ARC.
Mary Minor Haristeen, Fair's wife and her best friend, Susan Tucker are on the hilltop looking over the 1000 acres that Susan inherited from an uncle. It has black walnut trees that Susan plans to harvest down the road. Harry is there with her pets Mrs Murphy, a tiger cat; Putter, a fat gray cat; Tucker, a corgi and Pirate, a wolfhound. They are all important parts of this story, Coming back on back roads they come across a body of a man who has been shot. They call Coop. Coop checks the person and finds no ID. They give their statement and leave.
Harry is taking her dog, Pirate, a wolfhound, to classes about showing them. When leaving one of the other participants is robbed of her purse. Coop is called and she captures the two men. Again they don't have ID. The two men are later found shot to death. That makes 3 shot.
While shopping with Harry, Coop gets a phone call from her boss that the 3 men who died all had fentanyl in their system. Later in the story Harry's friend, Ballard Perez who lives in a small cottage on his mother's estate called Lone Pine was at the class training his wolfhound when he suddenly falls on the floor after taking Advil. He is rushed to the hospital and also found to have fentanyl in his system. Their friend, Sy Buford was found dead in his peach orchard. Also was found to have fentanyl in his system. There is a lot of discussion about drugs in this story. This is where I will leave the story to the reader to read and enjoy.
The second part of the story follows two families, Ewing Garth who owns the estate, Cloverfield along with his daughters Catherine Schuyler along with her husband, John and her sister, Rachel and her husband, Charles. The other family is Maureen Selisse Holloway who owns Big Rawly along with her second husband, Jeffery. She can be cruel towards anyone who crosses her. She is a very wealthy woman. A third person is Georgina Howard who owns a high class brothel. I will again leave this story to the reader as there is so much that it is impossible to tell all.
The story comes to a climax of who killed the men and why. The story ends with Christmas Day at Harry's and Fair's house with Cooper, Susan, her husband Ned, Ballard comes to visit and brings Harry a present of papers about horse breeding. They are papers of Catherine Schuyler. His family bred horses in the colonial times.
Thank you NetGalley and Bantam Books for this ARC.
March 16, 2023
This is the 31st book in the Mrs. Murphy series - Rita Mae Brown is a very prolific author! I haven't read all the other books, but I've read quite a few. As in all the others, the animals play a prominent role in the story. I always enjoy that aspect of this series. Here's the blurb:
"When a series of mysterious deaths spoil the Christmas season in Crozet, Virginia, Mary Minor "Harry" Harristeen and her beloved cats and dogs lend the police a helping paw in this exciting holiday mystery from Rita Mae Brown and her feline co-author Sneaky Pie Brown.
Christmas is coming and Harry’s to-do list is a mile long. The days are filled with delivering holiday baskets to neighbors in need, chopping down the perfect tree with her best friend, Susan Tucker, and hunting for that elusive special gift for her beloved husband, Pharamond “Fair” Harristeen. Harry also decides to try her hand at dog showing, enrolling her handsome Irish Wolfhound puppy Pirate in classes to prepare for a future exhibition. Through it all, holiday cheer—and plenty of treats for Pirate—keep spirits high.
But the holidays aren’t cheerful for everyone. Harry’s friend on the police force, Cynthia Cooper, warns that the season can bring an uptick in crime. Her words prove tragically prescient when Harry and Susan discover the body of a man by the side of the road, dead, without any clues to his identity. One suspicious death is bad enough, but when Cooper reports that two more bodies have been found, also unidentified, Harry knows trouble is afoot. The autopsies for all three bodies reveal the presence of a deadly drug. Could their deaths have been accidental, or is a devious killer on the prowl?
With help from her feline sidekicks, Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, as well as Tee Tucker the corgi and Pirate, Harry vows to find the answers and stop the spate of deaths so that all of Crozet can have a very merry Christmas."
It always throws me that a girl is called 'Harry'. I know male names for females is common, but Harry just doesn't ever seem right for some reason (just my bias I guess). The two stories in the book have one in current time and one set in the 1700s. By the end of the book the stories have come together nicely. I liked the current day story in this one better - it was just more interesting to me. I enjoyed following the investigation surrounding the murders. This part reflects current events by integrating the opioid crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine through Netgalley for an advance copy. This book will be published on March 28, 2023.
"When a series of mysterious deaths spoil the Christmas season in Crozet, Virginia, Mary Minor "Harry" Harristeen and her beloved cats and dogs lend the police a helping paw in this exciting holiday mystery from Rita Mae Brown and her feline co-author Sneaky Pie Brown.
Christmas is coming and Harry’s to-do list is a mile long. The days are filled with delivering holiday baskets to neighbors in need, chopping down the perfect tree with her best friend, Susan Tucker, and hunting for that elusive special gift for her beloved husband, Pharamond “Fair” Harristeen. Harry also decides to try her hand at dog showing, enrolling her handsome Irish Wolfhound puppy Pirate in classes to prepare for a future exhibition. Through it all, holiday cheer—and plenty of treats for Pirate—keep spirits high.
But the holidays aren’t cheerful for everyone. Harry’s friend on the police force, Cynthia Cooper, warns that the season can bring an uptick in crime. Her words prove tragically prescient when Harry and Susan discover the body of a man by the side of the road, dead, without any clues to his identity. One suspicious death is bad enough, but when Cooper reports that two more bodies have been found, also unidentified, Harry knows trouble is afoot. The autopsies for all three bodies reveal the presence of a deadly drug. Could their deaths have been accidental, or is a devious killer on the prowl?
With help from her feline sidekicks, Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, as well as Tee Tucker the corgi and Pirate, Harry vows to find the answers and stop the spate of deaths so that all of Crozet can have a very merry Christmas."
It always throws me that a girl is called 'Harry'. I know male names for females is common, but Harry just doesn't ever seem right for some reason (just my bias I guess). The two stories in the book have one in current time and one set in the 1700s. By the end of the book the stories have come together nicely. I liked the current day story in this one better - it was just more interesting to me. I enjoyed following the investigation surrounding the murders. This part reflects current events by integrating the opioid crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine through Netgalley for an advance copy. This book will be published on March 28, 2023.
April 4, 2023
I was super excited for a new Mrs Murphy novel, but this one fell flat. Susan and Harry living in VA and having no clue about narcan and fentanyl was absurd and sooooo painful to read. In previous novels the characters always read the newspaper…yet are clueless, made zero sense to me.
Skip this one if you can.
Skip this one if you can.
June 11, 2023
Taking place during COVID and a rise in fentanyl overdoses in Virginia, the Xmas season is not very happy.
Harry is trying to figure out what is going on. A new animal is added to her crime sleuthing team. There's even more excitement going on, more animals, more food, more intrigue.
Harry is trying to figure out what is going on. A new animal is added to her crime sleuthing team. There's even more excitement going on, more animals, more food, more intrigue.
April 25, 2023
HISS AND TELL: A MRS> MURPHY MYSTERY
Rita Mae Brown
I don't know why, but I could not get into this book. I was sort of under a bit of a time crunch, but usually, that doesn't bother me. I just could not see a connection between the two storylines and didn't really engage with either. SO, at just over half, I called it.
DNF at over 50%
Happy Reading!
Rita Mae Brown
I don't know why, but I could not get into this book. I was sort of under a bit of a time crunch, but usually, that doesn't bother me. I just could not see a connection between the two storylines and didn't really engage with either. SO, at just over half, I called it.
DNF at over 50%
Happy Reading!
November 25, 2024
I read this book as part of a reading challenge, for the highly-specific genre “A Cat Mystery.” I typically dread reading books from such specific categories for these challenges, as they are often quite obscure and/or poorly written books that don’t interest me much. I have multiple years worth of unfinished PopSugar reading challenges with only 1-2 books left to read for this exact reason. This book really reinforced my reasons for avoiding these weird genres. I always kind of hope that it will force me to discover something new and interesting that I wouldn’t have read otherwise (as I think they intend to do), and that does happen occasionally, but mostly I end up not enjoying them.
Anyway.
This book was pretty bad, and thank goodness I was listening to the audiobook so I was able to speed it up and end the misery much faster. The “mystery” plot and investigation of the crime were almost non-existent. The 18th century portions of the book were so pointless—I cannot for the life of me understand why that was half of the book. The modern portion of the story seemed to be aimed at more of a Boomer-aged audience (which I definitely am not), full of boring exposition explaining things like the opioid crisis and how Naloxone works, and plenty of lame jokes mixed in. I really couldn’t tell you what mystery they actually solved, as most of the main characters’ time was spent futzing around to restaurants, talking to people at length about social justice issues that we all know about already (migrant workers, Fentanyl, etc.), and…lengthy descriptions of a steeplechase, of all things. 🙄
Apparently some of the other books in the series are better, but I doubt I will ever read any of them to find out.
Anyway.
This book was pretty bad, and thank goodness I was listening to the audiobook so I was able to speed it up and end the misery much faster. The “mystery” plot and investigation of the crime were almost non-existent. The 18th century portions of the book were so pointless—I cannot for the life of me understand why that was half of the book. The modern portion of the story seemed to be aimed at more of a Boomer-aged audience (which I definitely am not), full of boring exposition explaining things like the opioid crisis and how Naloxone works, and plenty of lame jokes mixed in. I really couldn’t tell you what mystery they actually solved, as most of the main characters’ time was spent futzing around to restaurants, talking to people at length about social justice issues that we all know about already (migrant workers, Fentanyl, etc.), and…lengthy descriptions of a steeplechase, of all things. 🙄
Apparently some of the other books in the series are better, but I doubt I will ever read any of them to find out.
March 24, 2023
I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bantam books in exchange for my honest opinion.
Genre: Mystery
Format: Dual Timelines, Sentient pets with dialogue
After getting into this one a bit, I realized you must read these in order to fully understand the nuance of the characters and place. I enjoyed Harry and her outlook on life as she's working through problems.
As this was my first book in the series, I was a bit confused. I didn't quite understand the flipping between the two timelines in this book. And I really wanted it to center more on the mystery! My understanding is that usually the pets are simultaneously investigating, and that didn't come through here. This one wasn't my favorite cozy mystery—I think in part because of the secondary timeline in the past, which threw off my interest in the main plot of solving the murder(s).
With that said, I think fans of the series are going to eat it up.
Happy reading!
Genre: Mystery
Format: Dual Timelines, Sentient pets with dialogue
After getting into this one a bit, I realized you must read these in order to fully understand the nuance of the characters and place. I enjoyed Harry and her outlook on life as she's working through problems.
As this was my first book in the series, I was a bit confused. I didn't quite understand the flipping between the two timelines in this book. And I really wanted it to center more on the mystery! My understanding is that usually the pets are simultaneously investigating, and that didn't come through here. This one wasn't my favorite cozy mystery—I think in part because of the secondary timeline in the past, which threw off my interest in the main plot of solving the murder(s).
With that said, I think fans of the series are going to eat it up.
Happy reading!
February 19, 2023
The latest Mrs. Murphy book finds Crozet experiencing a series of deaths from people with no ids, all with fentanyl in their system.
Unfortunately, this book doesn’t have a lot of modern investigation (it has the 1789 storyline concurrent which has not been my favorite since that started). I missed the days when Harry openly investigated and her animals had their own investigation into the death at the same time. That just isn’t present here.
Unfortunately, this book doesn’t have a lot of modern investigation (it has the 1789 storyline concurrent which has not been my favorite since that started). I missed the days when Harry openly investigated and her animals had their own investigation into the death at the same time. That just isn’t present here.
May 21, 2024
I like this series, but this book seems to try to tackle and comment on too many of the current situations in politics, culture, Covid, and more. That seems to detract from the mystery that is occurring, to th point that it seems like the mystery is secondary to the commentaries on various topics.
April 24, 2023
I found it a tad boring. Too much political preaching & no investigating work.
June 12, 2023
This one was a bit too “preachy”.
April 30, 2023
I used to love Rita Mae brown and sneaky pie brown books. I couldn’t wait for the next one. The animals talking helping Harry to solve murder. It was hilarious. Especially pewter. I hung out at Barnes and noble and would tell people to read the Rita Mae brown and sneaky pie brown books they’re awesome. Unfortunately the book quality has gone way down. Especially reading this current book. The animals were only in a couple of spots except Tucker and Pirate and there wasn’t any humor. Rita Mae brown has ruined her books. In this book alone she had three separate storylines going. She spent most of her time on the 1700 storyline and started a new storyline from that time period. She’s lost her focus. The books were about Harry and the gang solving murders. The animals talking and teasing each other. I’ll never recommend to another person a Mrs. Murphy Mystery book. I’m so disappointed of the change because I’ll never read another Mrs. Murphy Mystery but then they’re not a Mrs Murphy mystery anymore
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 31, 2022
It's been a while since I met up with the Harry and her animals in this series by Rita Mae Brown.
Hiss and Tell is the 31st book in this series and no matter how long it is between books, the animals never fail to make me laugh.
This book goes between the current time period and the 1700's, which really intrigued me.
The story was well written and I enjoyed following along until things were resolved.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of the book.
#HissTell #NetGalley
Hiss and Tell is the 31st book in this series and no matter how long it is between books, the animals never fail to make me laugh.
This book goes between the current time period and the 1700's, which really intrigued me.
The story was well written and I enjoyed following along until things were resolved.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of the book.
#HissTell #NetGalley
December 26, 2024
This was a very odd read for me
Read
February 2, 2024Another DNF for me...I just couldn't get into this story. There were so many random storylines/conversations. I assume everything ties together at the end. I wasn't invested enough in the characters to find out - not even the talking animals!!!
January 7, 2023
Every time I say I won’t read another book in this series, I do…and I find it enjoyable and yet fave a few things that annoy me. That said, I do keep coming back for more…so I must like it and need to accept the things I have a bit of a problem with, mostly around the animals. But it’s the setting in VIrginia that always draws me back in and home again.
Being book 31 in the series, it’s obviously a well loved and well read series…and I think you will find the mystery well thought out and written in each and every book!
Being book 31 in the series, it’s obviously a well loved and well read series…and I think you will find the mystery well thought out and written in each and every book!
February 17, 2023
With Christmas coming, Mary Minor “Harry” Harristeen’s main focus should be on decorating, buying Christmas gifts without spending too much money, and delivering holiday baskets to neighbors in need. She has also enrolled her Irish Wolfhound puppy Pirate in classes with thoughts of preparing for a future exhibition. She has plenty of things to keep her busy but when Harry and Susan discover the body of a man by the side of the road and two more bodies are later found, Harry can’t help but start digging into what is going on. What she discovers will not only sadden her but put her in real danger.
“Hiss and Tell” is the thirty-first book in Rita Mae Brown’s Mrs. Murphy mystery series. This series has changed a lot since it first started but, while I miss some of the earlier characters, I have become used to and even fond of some of the characters in the Revolutionary war time period flashbacks. Their ongoing story has unfolded over several books (it is best to read this series in order) and was quite interesting in this book – even if there was no real mystery (this time) in that storyline. There is enough mystery in the current day plotline to make up for the no mystery in the past storyline (although the past storyline manages to be bloodier than the current day one) – by the end of the book both storylines tie in nicely together. The current day mystery is very timely – touching not only on COVID but the ever growing drug crisis. One thing to be aware of – Brown can be a bit preach and there’s no doubting how she feels about things like the COVID vaccine by the end of the book!
“Hiss and Tell” is another good mystery by Rita Mae Brown.
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley.
“Hiss and Tell” is the thirty-first book in Rita Mae Brown’s Mrs. Murphy mystery series. This series has changed a lot since it first started but, while I miss some of the earlier characters, I have become used to and even fond of some of the characters in the Revolutionary war time period flashbacks. Their ongoing story has unfolded over several books (it is best to read this series in order) and was quite interesting in this book – even if there was no real mystery (this time) in that storyline. There is enough mystery in the current day plotline to make up for the no mystery in the past storyline (although the past storyline manages to be bloodier than the current day one) – by the end of the book both storylines tie in nicely together. The current day mystery is very timely – touching not only on COVID but the ever growing drug crisis. One thing to be aware of – Brown can be a bit preach and there’s no doubting how she feels about things like the COVID vaccine by the end of the book!
“Hiss and Tell” is another good mystery by Rita Mae Brown.
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley.
August 13, 2023
I enjoy this series very much. I’m not very fond of two stories being told at the same time, one from the past, and one in the present. I started reading these books with the contemporary characters as the main characters. Readers may find the history storyline interesting and appealing. The author does tie the past and the present together.
I enjoy the animals in these books and feel very fond of the main characters!! They’ve been through so much over the different books and years. This book is set around Christmas time and of course there are a few murders to solve!!
Mrs. Murphy is tart as always. Pewter thinks about food. And there is a new dog besides Tucker, the corgi, an Irish wolfhound named Pirate. Pirate is growing on me!!! All the animals are entertaining and fun to hear their dialogues!
The farm routines with the horses, chores, financial worries & just daily life, makes this a pleasant, cozy mystery in the present. I also like how the author brings up pertinent topics that are contemporary for today. This book dealt with drug use, especially fentanyl. And the use of Narcan in case of an overdose. Being a retired nurse, I appreciated how the author educated through her murder mystery!
I enjoy the animals in these books and feel very fond of the main characters!! They’ve been through so much over the different books and years. This book is set around Christmas time and of course there are a few murders to solve!!
Mrs. Murphy is tart as always. Pewter thinks about food. And there is a new dog besides Tucker, the corgi, an Irish wolfhound named Pirate. Pirate is growing on me!!! All the animals are entertaining and fun to hear their dialogues!
The farm routines with the horses, chores, financial worries & just daily life, makes this a pleasant, cozy mystery in the present. I also like how the author brings up pertinent topics that are contemporary for today. This book dealt with drug use, especially fentanyl. And the use of Narcan in case of an overdose. Being a retired nurse, I appreciated how the author educated through her murder mystery!
Read
July 19, 2023Too much political commentary.
May 14, 2023
The author keeps getting further away from adorable pet characters and more into some weird version of political "why can't we all get along" + what feels like trying to make slavery more palatable ... not really sure what is she trying to do but the mystery part is getting weaker mixing covid, fentanyl and migrant workers ... I keep hoping for the charm of the early books in this series where cats and dogs chatted and helped solve crimes and I keep getting disappointed. I guess the author is just not going back there.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 11, 2023
I can’t believe this can be published - just throwing in endless conversations (not even meaningful) to fill in the pages. I was thinking when I picked up the book from the shelf - With such a cute cover, how can this book be boring? Guess I was completely wrong.
Also, everyone has to mention Covid in their books now?
Also, everyone has to mention Covid in their books now?
March 17, 2023
"Harry" Harristeen is a farmer who loves living off the land. Her husband "Fair" is a veterinarian, and they've managed to make a good life for themselves. They live in Virginia near Richmond, but far enough away that they have a quiet life. That is, at least until Harry and her best friend Susan Tucker are out driving one day and come across a dead body. Harry wonders if it's related to the earlier accident that Fair had seen on the road -- one with a white van and people running away as fast as they could. But the answers will have to wait; her friend Officer Cynthia Cooper, is working on the other case. Still, she's willing to listen to Harry's theories and see if they make sense.
When it's discovered that the man died from a deadly drug, Harry is worried. Especially when there are more deaths. Could they be connected? But Harry also has other things on her mind: finding the right gift for her husband, which could be tricky; and training her Irish Wolfhound puppy (all 150 pounds of him) Pirate. There are other friends who are training theirs as well, but Pirate is holding his own.
Meanwhile back in the eighteenth century, we revisit the neighboring estates of the Ewings and Holloways, watching as they forge a new country on their own terms. Catherine Ewing Schuyler has decided to create a steeplechase, open to all who pay the small fee, and to anyone who wishes to watch the spectacle -- for only a penny. She wants it to be a success, and hopes that it will. But not all is pleasant: in the town of Richmond there is an infamous place called the Tavern, which houses ladies of the night as well as the best food in town. We are given another look into the past, and while some are very pleasant, others show us the harshness of the time.
What those must understand is that people are a product of their times; and the past cannot be changed. Nothing you do can erase it; we must learn not to repeat the sorrows that were. Ms. Brown shows us the courage of these women, the courage of the ex-soldiers, and the courage of all to survive any way they can. It is a lesson, and fascinating reading, to boot. I am always in awe of these books, for I love a story within a story, and this one is especially intriguing.
In the present, Harry has her opinions (as always) on the drugs that are coming into our country and any attempts to stop them. She worries for people, her kind heart showing through. She worries for the future, and what drugs are doing to people who don't care. It's dark reading, but I have never been disappointed in any of her books. She knows how to weave a story skillfully, bringing the characters together through simple statements, and allowing the reader to try and find a murderer.
And of course, we have Mrs. Murphy and the ever-loveable Pewter offering their own opinions on the goings-on around them, along with the corgi Tucker and Pirate. Their antics are worth watching, and even more so in this book, as you will learn.
In this one, it was not that easy. That's a very good thing, as I am usually able to put the murderer in the picture early on. Not in this tale. Which isn't to say that there are not clues, because there are, if you look for them. The ending is surprising, which is how it should be. The book was finished far too soon as I love these so, and I not only highly recommend this, I eagerly await the next in the series.
I was given an advance copy of this book from Bantam and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.
When it's discovered that the man died from a deadly drug, Harry is worried. Especially when there are more deaths. Could they be connected? But Harry also has other things on her mind: finding the right gift for her husband, which could be tricky; and training her Irish Wolfhound puppy (all 150 pounds of him) Pirate. There are other friends who are training theirs as well, but Pirate is holding his own.
Meanwhile back in the eighteenth century, we revisit the neighboring estates of the Ewings and Holloways, watching as they forge a new country on their own terms. Catherine Ewing Schuyler has decided to create a steeplechase, open to all who pay the small fee, and to anyone who wishes to watch the spectacle -- for only a penny. She wants it to be a success, and hopes that it will. But not all is pleasant: in the town of Richmond there is an infamous place called the Tavern, which houses ladies of the night as well as the best food in town. We are given another look into the past, and while some are very pleasant, others show us the harshness of the time.
What those must understand is that people are a product of their times; and the past cannot be changed. Nothing you do can erase it; we must learn not to repeat the sorrows that were. Ms. Brown shows us the courage of these women, the courage of the ex-soldiers, and the courage of all to survive any way they can. It is a lesson, and fascinating reading, to boot. I am always in awe of these books, for I love a story within a story, and this one is especially intriguing.
In the present, Harry has her opinions (as always) on the drugs that are coming into our country and any attempts to stop them. She worries for people, her kind heart showing through. She worries for the future, and what drugs are doing to people who don't care. It's dark reading, but I have never been disappointed in any of her books. She knows how to weave a story skillfully, bringing the characters together through simple statements, and allowing the reader to try and find a murderer.
And of course, we have Mrs. Murphy and the ever-loveable Pewter offering their own opinions on the goings-on around them, along with the corgi Tucker and Pirate. Their antics are worth watching, and even more so in this book, as you will learn.
In this one, it was not that easy. That's a very good thing, as I am usually able to put the murderer in the picture early on. Not in this tale. Which isn't to say that there are not clues, because there are, if you look for them. The ending is surprising, which is how it should be. The book was finished far too soon as I love these so, and I not only highly recommend this, I eagerly await the next in the series.
I was given an advance copy of this book from Bantam and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.
March 29, 2023
Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.
Hiss & Tell is the 31st (!!!) Mrs. Murphy mystery by Rita Mae Brown. Released 28th March 2023 by Penguin Random House on their Bantam book imprint, it's 304 pages and available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats.
I've long been a fan of the author, and enjoyed her cozy Mrs. Murphy series as well as her more serious writing. This anthropomorphic cozy series is a pillar of the genre (and the author a prolific and dependable source of cozy reads in several disparate series).
The dialogue and writing are pitch perfect. Typically for Ms. Brown, the writing is solidly comfortable and engaging. Reading her books is almost like visiting with an old friend you haven't seen for a while; you just pick up where you left off the last time, even if you haven't seen them for ages.
This is a series with a vast returning cast of characters. The author has provided a comprehensive dramatis personae section at the beginning of the book in case the reader needs to sort of who is who. That being said, it is the31st book in the series and would probably be best read roughly in order. The story is told in alternating flashbacks from the modern day to the 18th century. The dates are given in the chapter headings, so it's no trouble to keep the intertwined stories straight. It's a testament to the author's technical ability that she manages to write period appropriate dialogue alternated with modern times without giving the reader whiplash or managing to lose the disparate plot threads.
Readers should be aware that the author does not shy away from the admittedly accurate period depiction of slaves, racial violence, and slavery, which can be somewhat jarring for a cozy book. It's probably edifying to talk about openly, but especially in light of the recent racial upheavals, I found it especially sad that we've not managed to make much of an appreciable difference in following 230 years.
I personally love anthropomorphic mysteries, but fair warning, if talking animals bug you, this probably isn't the series for you. The book also does a superlative job of giving a glimpse into Virginia hospitality and etiquette and the 18th century culture parallel to the modern day as well as providing a glimpse of daily life in the area both in the 18th century as well as the modern period.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Hiss & Tell is the 31st (!!!) Mrs. Murphy mystery by Rita Mae Brown. Released 28th March 2023 by Penguin Random House on their Bantam book imprint, it's 304 pages and available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats.
I've long been a fan of the author, and enjoyed her cozy Mrs. Murphy series as well as her more serious writing. This anthropomorphic cozy series is a pillar of the genre (and the author a prolific and dependable source of cozy reads in several disparate series).
The dialogue and writing are pitch perfect. Typically for Ms. Brown, the writing is solidly comfortable and engaging. Reading her books is almost like visiting with an old friend you haven't seen for a while; you just pick up where you left off the last time, even if you haven't seen them for ages.
This is a series with a vast returning cast of characters. The author has provided a comprehensive dramatis personae section at the beginning of the book in case the reader needs to sort of who is who. That being said, it is the31st book in the series and would probably be best read roughly in order. The story is told in alternating flashbacks from the modern day to the 18th century. The dates are given in the chapter headings, so it's no trouble to keep the intertwined stories straight. It's a testament to the author's technical ability that she manages to write period appropriate dialogue alternated with modern times without giving the reader whiplash or managing to lose the disparate plot threads.
Readers should be aware that the author does not shy away from the admittedly accurate period depiction of slaves, racial violence, and slavery, which can be somewhat jarring for a cozy book. It's probably edifying to talk about openly, but especially in light of the recent racial upheavals, I found it especially sad that we've not managed to make much of an appreciable difference in following 230 years.
I personally love anthropomorphic mysteries, but fair warning, if talking animals bug you, this probably isn't the series for you. The book also does a superlative job of giving a glimpse into Virginia hospitality and etiquette and the 18th century culture parallel to the modern day as well as providing a glimpse of daily life in the area both in the 18th century as well as the modern period.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
March 6, 2025
This book is the Thirty-First in the series featuring Mrs. Murphy, a Grey tiger short-hair cat who, along with a Welsh corgi dog named Tee Tucker, an Irish Wolfhound dog named Pirate, and the stout grey cat Pewter, solves mysteries with the assistance of Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen, a farmer married to Fair Haristeen, an equine veterinarian, outside the small town of Crozet, Virginia, some ten miles west of Charlottesville. (It should be noted that all animals can talk to each other, and that they all understand humans, but humans, being dense imperfect beings, cannot understand the animals.) And these are fun mysteries to read.
In mid-November 2021 Harry is contemplating her bills and her to-do list, and Deputy Cynthia Cooper is at a van wreck, where all the occupants of the van fled the scene. A few days later, Harry and Susan find a man dead in a ditch; he has no identification of any kind, and has died from a Fentanyl overdose. Harry is also involved in classes towards showing her Irish Wolfhound Pirate in dog shows, with her friends Ballad Perez and Linda King. Also at the classes is Joel Paloma, who owns a large food distribution company. Harry and Fair are part of a Fine Dining group with Susan, her husband Ned, Ballard, Joel, and Joel’s wife Jodie, and they go to various fine dining places in the Richmond area. Meanwhile in 1789 in Virginia, it is high summer and hot; the situation is still volatile in France, Jeremy Holloway has a thriving business building wagons and fine coaches, the slavecatchers have switched to kidnapping likely women to take to work at The Tavern in Richmond (which uses women for what can be called immoral pursuits), and Catherine Schuyler, with the help of Jeddie (one of her “people”), is designing the first steeplechase course in Virginia. As Christmas comes closer in 2021, more unidentified men show up dead from Fentanyl, and also one of her acquaintances dies from the same kind of overdose. Harry resolves to start carrying Narcan, and is trying to figure out if people are dosing themselves, or being dosed by a killer, and her animals are trying to keep her from becoming a possible overdose victim.
I have one more book to read in the series (until the author writes more books), which I will start reading shortly.
In mid-November 2021 Harry is contemplating her bills and her to-do list, and Deputy Cynthia Cooper is at a van wreck, where all the occupants of the van fled the scene. A few days later, Harry and Susan find a man dead in a ditch; he has no identification of any kind, and has died from a Fentanyl overdose. Harry is also involved in classes towards showing her Irish Wolfhound Pirate in dog shows, with her friends Ballad Perez and Linda King. Also at the classes is Joel Paloma, who owns a large food distribution company. Harry and Fair are part of a Fine Dining group with Susan, her husband Ned, Ballard, Joel, and Joel’s wife Jodie, and they go to various fine dining places in the Richmond area. Meanwhile in 1789 in Virginia, it is high summer and hot; the situation is still volatile in France, Jeremy Holloway has a thriving business building wagons and fine coaches, the slavecatchers have switched to kidnapping likely women to take to work at The Tavern in Richmond (which uses women for what can be called immoral pursuits), and Catherine Schuyler, with the help of Jeddie (one of her “people”), is designing the first steeplechase course in Virginia. As Christmas comes closer in 2021, more unidentified men show up dead from Fentanyl, and also one of her acquaintances dies from the same kind of overdose. Harry resolves to start carrying Narcan, and is trying to figure out if people are dosing themselves, or being dosed by a killer, and her animals are trying to keep her from becoming a possible overdose victim.
I have one more book to read in the series (until the author writes more books), which I will start reading shortly.
August 16, 2023
I like each story line (historic & modern), but don’t like the switching back & forth. The animals in the modern story line are very much present, & entertaining, & 3 of them save the day, but they don’t do any sleuthing. It still doesn’t make sense to me that the animals in the historic timeline don’t talk to each other. There are still times when the conversations get a little “heavy”—in both timelines. I’m looking for light entertainment, not education or political debate, but just when I started to feel like I’d had enough, the story moved on. Not like the political ranting in some of the books several stories ago, I think she’s eased off that a bit. There was less of Tucker & Pewter fighting, which I was glad about; just some teasing, but not extreme like it got in one of the recent books that left me wishing they would remember why Pewter came to live with them to begin with (because they were all spending so much time together anyway—by CHOICE).
Re: fentanyl, both Rita & Harry feel a little “late to the party”, just now learning about & raising awareness about, something that’s been going on for years. How long ago was Louise Penny’s book about it going from the U.S. to Canada? How long ago was the “Blue Blood” episode where Danny’s partner almost dies just from touching the stuff?
I’ve been listening to this series lately, it seemed strange to be reading one again. I think the audiobooks need to read the cast of characters. (I’m assuming the character list has been there before, & just not read aloud on the audio version?) I had been feeling like the author really doesn’t write for her audio audience, because I kept being unsure of who was speaking, with not enough “Susan said”, “Harry said”, etc., thinking I needed to see the paragraph breaks. But I had the same trouble READING this one; she needs more clauses clarifying who’s speaking. Oh, I was surprised & delighted to have illustrations! (Altho I thought Pewter was a long-haired solid gray, not a tabby. Still—cute drawings!)
But I’ll still read the next one! Pirate is a great addition to the cast of characters!
Re: fentanyl, both Rita & Harry feel a little “late to the party”, just now learning about & raising awareness about, something that’s been going on for years. How long ago was Louise Penny’s book about it going from the U.S. to Canada? How long ago was the “Blue Blood” episode where Danny’s partner almost dies just from touching the stuff?
I’ve been listening to this series lately, it seemed strange to be reading one again. I think the audiobooks need to read the cast of characters. (I’m assuming the character list has been there before, & just not read aloud on the audio version?) I had been feeling like the author really doesn’t write for her audio audience, because I kept being unsure of who was speaking, with not enough “Susan said”, “Harry said”, etc., thinking I needed to see the paragraph breaks. But I had the same trouble READING this one; she needs more clauses clarifying who’s speaking. Oh, I was surprised & delighted to have illustrations! (Altho I thought Pewter was a long-haired solid gray, not a tabby. Still—cute drawings!)
But I’ll still read the next one! Pirate is a great addition to the cast of characters!
May 7, 2023
3.5 / 5.0 stars
Mary Minor “Harry” Harristeen is facing the crazy holiday season and trying to keep it meaningful and less frenetic. A series of drug-related deaths in the remote country environs has everyone wondering what is going on. In between deaths, Harry and her friends are preparing their Irish wolfhounds for a dog show exhibition. Harry is not so keen on the showing aspect but wants to get young Pirate some instruction under his paws. In alternating chapters, we learn about early steeplechase preparations, plantation life and the inner workings of an 18th century brothel, all about a decade after the Revolutionary War.
This series has certainly changed over the years. There was a time when the animals conducted their own investigations concurrently. Yet, such is not the case here. Their charming dialogue is present and still a joy to behold. This 31st installment in the Mrs. Murphy mystery series was interesting and quite instructional. There certainly was a vast amount of research which went into the book's writing. However, to this reader, the connection between the current day and the colonial world never quite tied together. There was certainly a mystery to be fleshed out in the current day story and there could have been one in the colonial story but it just didn't seem to be there.
The writing is solid. The roster of the panoply of characters is much appreciated and certainly needed. One would probably be well-served to read the entire series in order to get a fuller understanding of the dynamics among characters. Regardless, the stories were interesting and most informative.
I am grateful to #Bantam Books for having provided a complimentary copy of this book through #NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.
Publisher: Bantam Books
Publication Date: March 28, 2023
ISBN: 978-0593357552
No. of pages: 304
Mary Minor “Harry” Harristeen is facing the crazy holiday season and trying to keep it meaningful and less frenetic. A series of drug-related deaths in the remote country environs has everyone wondering what is going on. In between deaths, Harry and her friends are preparing their Irish wolfhounds for a dog show exhibition. Harry is not so keen on the showing aspect but wants to get young Pirate some instruction under his paws. In alternating chapters, we learn about early steeplechase preparations, plantation life and the inner workings of an 18th century brothel, all about a decade after the Revolutionary War.
This series has certainly changed over the years. There was a time when the animals conducted their own investigations concurrently. Yet, such is not the case here. Their charming dialogue is present and still a joy to behold. This 31st installment in the Mrs. Murphy mystery series was interesting and quite instructional. There certainly was a vast amount of research which went into the book's writing. However, to this reader, the connection between the current day and the colonial world never quite tied together. There was certainly a mystery to be fleshed out in the current day story and there could have been one in the colonial story but it just didn't seem to be there.
The writing is solid. The roster of the panoply of characters is much appreciated and certainly needed. One would probably be well-served to read the entire series in order to get a fuller understanding of the dynamics among characters. Regardless, the stories were interesting and most informative.
I am grateful to #Bantam Books for having provided a complimentary copy of this book through #NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.
Publisher: Bantam Books
Publication Date: March 28, 2023
ISBN: 978-0593357552
No. of pages: 304
March 18, 2024
This series has evolved a few quirks that have begun to bother me, but overall I liked the plot of this one, which is why I'm bummed I feel that I couldn't give this more stars. Plot, I'd give 4/5. However, there were a few other craft quirks that took me out of the story each time. For some reason, all of the characters often speak in sentence fragments (for example responding to another character by saying "Is." or with a sentence without a subject). To me as a reader, it felt very jarring and took me out of the narrative (in one chapter around chapter 25ish when Harry and Susan are discussing something it seemed oppressive, and I had to put the book down). There were sentence that also just seemed off (for example "We've saved so many people with this if we got there in time." seems like it should be "We've saved so many people with this when we get there in time." or "We would have saved so many people with this if we got there in time.").
I've also noticed there seems to be a trend in long running mystery series of adding flashbacks in between characters of present day action. When it makes a difference for the mystery, like the first mystery that had the colonial flashbacks where the corpse was actually from that time period, I don't mind it. But the flashbacks in this, which were probably about 30% of the book, didn't add anything to the mystery. They just took away the pacing and distracted from the action. I wonder if authors do it because their main characters are running out of steam and they need to add pages. I'd rather see new recurring characters in the present day. There were a lot of characters in the earlier ones of this series, but they've really tailed off (no pun intended). Harry, Fair, Susan, Ned and Cooper now all seem to remain exactly the same from book to book -- in earlier books, there was character development for all of them, which has stopped. I'd like to see more of than in future books.
I've also noticed there seems to be a trend in long running mystery series of adding flashbacks in between characters of present day action. When it makes a difference for the mystery, like the first mystery that had the colonial flashbacks where the corpse was actually from that time period, I don't mind it. But the flashbacks in this, which were probably about 30% of the book, didn't add anything to the mystery. They just took away the pacing and distracted from the action. I wonder if authors do it because their main characters are running out of steam and they need to add pages. I'd rather see new recurring characters in the present day. There were a lot of characters in the earlier ones of this series, but they've really tailed off (no pun intended). Harry, Fair, Susan, Ned and Cooper now all seem to remain exactly the same from book to book -- in earlier books, there was character development for all of them, which has stopped. I'd like to see more of than in future books.
June 7, 2024
The 32nd installment in Rita Mae Brown's "Mrs. Murphy" series, "Hiss & Tell" is perhaps one of the most unconventional novels in this series which for a while has been dealing with dual plotlines. In the present which starts in November 2021, these characters are preparing for Christmas and also are also starting to show Tucker & Pirate as potential show dogs. When what could be a migrant worker is found murdered in a ditch, a cause of death that is atypical for this series is determined along with several others - fentanyl overdose. In this segment of things, Brown takes a foray into how unpredictable these deaths can be & we also see our characters realize how important Narcan is to keeping people alive from these overdoses but also serves as a warning as to how the drug trade can work with a surprise ending.
In July 1789, the story continues of the various prostitutes and slaves around that area. We do have a pair of murders that seem out of necessity & also a bit more humor with everything to the clientele as well as the horse racing industry in its infancy. There is also a bit of reckoning for a character or 2 that we the reader have followed for a while which isn't a surprise. What is a nice surprise though are the occasional hints of how these characters & events become a part of the history of our modern-day storyline.
Overall, Brown continues to do the seemingly impossible in continuing to write believable characters in 2 completely different parts of history and while at times this could be confusing to the reader it's becoming a hallmark of this series as of late. Whether or not at some point Brown decides to end the 18th century storyline at long last remains to be seen, but either way it's part of this quirkiness of this series which this time has nothing to do "technically" with murder.
In July 1789, the story continues of the various prostitutes and slaves around that area. We do have a pair of murders that seem out of necessity & also a bit more humor with everything to the clientele as well as the horse racing industry in its infancy. There is also a bit of reckoning for a character or 2 that we the reader have followed for a while which isn't a surprise. What is a nice surprise though are the occasional hints of how these characters & events become a part of the history of our modern-day storyline.
Overall, Brown continues to do the seemingly impossible in continuing to write believable characters in 2 completely different parts of history and while at times this could be confusing to the reader it's becoming a hallmark of this series as of late. Whether or not at some point Brown decides to end the 18th century storyline at long last remains to be seen, but either way it's part of this quirkiness of this series which this time has nothing to do "technically" with murder.
April 28, 2023
Amazing! 31st book in the series and it is as original and entertaining as book one!
I have been reading Mrs Murphy Mysteries By Rita Mae Brown since the series started. "Hiss and Tell" is the 31st book in the series and I found it just as delightful as the first book in the series! With "Hiss and Tell" Rita Mae Brown once again demonstrates why she is on my Must Read shelf.
In this novel, Rita continues the historical substory of the Virginia area after the Revolutionary War. It is remarkable how Rita Mae Brown weaves in and out of the past and modern day throughout the book, tying current characters and events to their ancestors and happenings of the past. I love history though when Rita first started the substory in her earlier books in this series, I found the back and forth to be a bit convoluted and hard to follow. However, in "Hiss and Tell", I believe she has perfected the technique, making it much easier to follow how the past and present affect each other. By the end of the book she ties the past and present together, and wraps it up with a bow , literally.
Rita brings her characters alive and even the animals- from the pets to the horses and the black snake- play a pivotal role in the story. In Hiss and Tell Rita treats us to a culinary tour of loca4l restaurants as her main character's form a supper club. Her settings were so real I was ready to call my travel agent and book a culinary tour of Virginia.
If you love mysteries with many twist and turns, cronies, Irish Wolfhounds and sassy cats, as well as a no nonsense, no frills, sensible ,intelligent female protagonist; you will love Mrs Murphy Mystery and especially "Hiss and Tell".
I have been reading Mrs Murphy Mysteries By Rita Mae Brown since the series started. "Hiss and Tell" is the 31st book in the series and I found it just as delightful as the first book in the series! With "Hiss and Tell" Rita Mae Brown once again demonstrates why she is on my Must Read shelf.
In this novel, Rita continues the historical substory of the Virginia area after the Revolutionary War. It is remarkable how Rita Mae Brown weaves in and out of the past and modern day throughout the book, tying current characters and events to their ancestors and happenings of the past. I love history though when Rita first started the substory in her earlier books in this series, I found the back and forth to be a bit convoluted and hard to follow. However, in "Hiss and Tell", I believe she has perfected the technique, making it much easier to follow how the past and present affect each other. By the end of the book she ties the past and present together, and wraps it up with a bow , literally.
Rita brings her characters alive and even the animals- from the pets to the horses and the black snake- play a pivotal role in the story. In Hiss and Tell Rita treats us to a culinary tour of loca4l restaurants as her main character's form a supper club. Her settings were so real I was ready to call my travel agent and book a culinary tour of Virginia.
If you love mysteries with many twist and turns, cronies, Irish Wolfhounds and sassy cats, as well as a no nonsense, no frills, sensible ,intelligent female protagonist; you will love Mrs Murphy Mystery and especially "Hiss and Tell".
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