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The Detective's Daughter #9
The Mystery of Yew Tree House
A TIMES 2023 CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR
'Lesley Thomson at her considerable best - you'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll never guess.' ELLY GRIFFITHS
'Always a treat reading Lesley Thomson.' IAN RANKIN
EIGHTY YEARS OF SECRETS.
1940. At Yew Tree House, recently widowed Adelaide Stride is raising her two daughters alone – but it's not just the threat of German invasion that keeps her up at night. She is surrounded by enemies posing
as allies and, while war rages, she grows sure that something terrible is about to happen.
A BODY THAT REVEALS THEM ALL.
2023. Soon after Stella Darnell begins her holiday at Yew Tree House, a skeleton is found in a pillbox at
the bottom of the garden. The bullet hole in the skull tells her that the person was murdered.
This triggers the unravelling of a mystery eighty years in the making. Stella will learn that Adelaide was right to worry – the fighting might have been happening abroad, but the true enemy was always much closer to home...
A unique take on the traditional murder mystery from critically acclaimed author, Lesley Thomson, for fans of Elly Griffiths, Val McDermid and Mari Hannah.
'Fiercely unique, it's a whodunnit on an epic scale.' SUN
'Thomson has created a complex mystery full of psychological suspense, worthy of Barbara Vine. She makes you feel the presence of evil.' THE TIMES
'Elegant and spooky... A gripping demonstration that the past is never really the past.' MAIL ON SUNDAY
Praise for The Detective's Daughter
'Cunningly plotted.' Mick Herron
'One of the most original characters in British crime fiction.' Sunday Times
'Lesley Thomson at her considerable best - you'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll never guess.' ELLY GRIFFITHS
'Always a treat reading Lesley Thomson.' IAN RANKIN
EIGHTY YEARS OF SECRETS.
1940. At Yew Tree House, recently widowed Adelaide Stride is raising her two daughters alone – but it's not just the threat of German invasion that keeps her up at night. She is surrounded by enemies posing
as allies and, while war rages, she grows sure that something terrible is about to happen.
A BODY THAT REVEALS THEM ALL.
2023. Soon after Stella Darnell begins her holiday at Yew Tree House, a skeleton is found in a pillbox at
the bottom of the garden. The bullet hole in the skull tells her that the person was murdered.
This triggers the unravelling of a mystery eighty years in the making. Stella will learn that Adelaide was right to worry – the fighting might have been happening abroad, but the true enemy was always much closer to home...
A unique take on the traditional murder mystery from critically acclaimed author, Lesley Thomson, for fans of Elly Griffiths, Val McDermid and Mari Hannah.
'Fiercely unique, it's a whodunnit on an epic scale.' SUN
'Thomson has created a complex mystery full of psychological suspense, worthy of Barbara Vine. She makes you feel the presence of evil.' THE TIMES
'Elegant and spooky... A gripping demonstration that the past is never really the past.' MAIL ON SUNDAY
Praise for The Detective's Daughter
'Cunningly plotted.' Mick Herron
'One of the most original characters in British crime fiction.' Sunday Times
330 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2023
81 people are currently reading
147 people want to read
About the author
Lesley Thomson
19 books174 followersLesley Thomson was born in 1958 and grew up in London. She went to Holland Park Comprehensive and the Universities of Brighton and Sussex. Her novel A Kind of Vanishing won The People's Book Prize in 2010. Lesley combines writing with teaching creative writing. She lives in Lewes with her partner.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews
July 5, 2023
Detectives Daughter #9
Bishopstone is an idyllic village in Sussex, but like everywhere else it has its dark side. In the present day, Stella Darnell arrives at Airbnb Yew Tree House with Jack Harmon and his seven-year-old twins, Milly and Justin accompanied, of course, by Stanley the dog. As ever, Stella‘s feelings about moving in with Jack is in a state of flux, the month-long holiday is a test of sorts. The dilapidated house is still owned by the Stride family, with elderly Stevie and Rosa living in an annex. Cleaning company owner Stella, as is her wont, casts her eagle eye over the many potential areas that need a darn(ell) good clean. Exuberant and determined explorer Milly makes several unsettling discoveries and why is the aged vicar staring at them so hard from behind the gravestones??? The novel backtracks to 1940/41 and the war now rages and Rupert and Adelaide Stride are raising their two daughters at Yew Tree House. When Rupert is killed, the family must now fend for themselves as best they can. When 16-year-old Greta Fleming goes missing in Surrey this becomes a cause for concern for Adelaide as Stevie is a similar age. In this latest tale in this original series, the past and present are on a collision course as it becomes clear the history of Yew Tree House is a complex one.
First of all, a big shout out for the characters of Stella and Jack, who are fantastic and the pair are very different, standing out in this crowded genre. Both Stella and Jack have connections to this area and I enjoy the constancy of this theme throughout the nine books in the series. There is lively and often humorous storytelling, which sometimes strays into a mad caper which has become hallmark of the series, some of that is often courtesy of Stanley and his different woofs, but this time also provided by Milly, who is going to be one heck of a challenge as a teen!
I really like that the characters in this one span both timelines, one is especially odious, the flesh crawling variety, but thankfully others are very likeable though with much to hide. Although both timelines are enjoyable, the wartime one is particularly disturbing and there are some good under and overtones which sharply contrast with Milly’s effervescence. It’s apparent that the aging sisters are living in a certain amount of poverty which has its roots in the war. Their dynamics are intriguing as they are with other inhabitants of Bishopstone. There are moments of tension, suspense and fear and it’s very creepy at times particularly in the wartime sections. There are some good twists at the end which are unexpected but work well.
Although I do very much enjoy this latest instalment there are a few lulls where things go round and round especially when Jack and Stella go over what they know. However, if you want to read something that has well crafted, authentic and unusual characters with thoughtful plots with frequent injections of humour then this series may fit the bill.
With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Aria and Aries for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.
Bishopstone is an idyllic village in Sussex, but like everywhere else it has its dark side. In the present day, Stella Darnell arrives at Airbnb Yew Tree House with Jack Harmon and his seven-year-old twins, Milly and Justin accompanied, of course, by Stanley the dog. As ever, Stella‘s feelings about moving in with Jack is in a state of flux, the month-long holiday is a test of sorts. The dilapidated house is still owned by the Stride family, with elderly Stevie and Rosa living in an annex. Cleaning company owner Stella, as is her wont, casts her eagle eye over the many potential areas that need a darn(ell) good clean. Exuberant and determined explorer Milly makes several unsettling discoveries and why is the aged vicar staring at them so hard from behind the gravestones??? The novel backtracks to 1940/41 and the war now rages and Rupert and Adelaide Stride are raising their two daughters at Yew Tree House. When Rupert is killed, the family must now fend for themselves as best they can. When 16-year-old Greta Fleming goes missing in Surrey this becomes a cause for concern for Adelaide as Stevie is a similar age. In this latest tale in this original series, the past and present are on a collision course as it becomes clear the history of Yew Tree House is a complex one.
First of all, a big shout out for the characters of Stella and Jack, who are fantastic and the pair are very different, standing out in this crowded genre. Both Stella and Jack have connections to this area and I enjoy the constancy of this theme throughout the nine books in the series. There is lively and often humorous storytelling, which sometimes strays into a mad caper which has become hallmark of the series, some of that is often courtesy of Stanley and his different woofs, but this time also provided by Milly, who is going to be one heck of a challenge as a teen!
I really like that the characters in this one span both timelines, one is especially odious, the flesh crawling variety, but thankfully others are very likeable though with much to hide. Although both timelines are enjoyable, the wartime one is particularly disturbing and there are some good under and overtones which sharply contrast with Milly’s effervescence. It’s apparent that the aging sisters are living in a certain amount of poverty which has its roots in the war. Their dynamics are intriguing as they are with other inhabitants of Bishopstone. There are moments of tension, suspense and fear and it’s very creepy at times particularly in the wartime sections. There are some good twists at the end which are unexpected but work well.
Although I do very much enjoy this latest instalment there are a few lulls where things go round and round especially when Jack and Stella go over what they know. However, if you want to read something that has well crafted, authentic and unusual characters with thoughtful plots with frequent injections of humour then this series may fit the bill.
With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Aria and Aries for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.
July 10, 2024
In an attempt to repair their fractured relationship, Stella Darnell and Jack Harmon, along with Jack’s twins, Milly and Justin, are taking a holiday at Yew Tree House in Bishopstone; the village where Stella’s father Terry died and Jack’s mother Kate is buried.
Despite her valiant attempts to stick to cleaning and avoid the detective work, as before, Stella soon finds herself drawn into the mystery of two unsolved murders from the past; both occurring at either end of the Second World War. In 1940 during the Blitz, teenager Greta Fleming is raped and murdered on Esher Common in Surrey. Then Milly and Justin discover a skeleton in a pillbox in overgrown waste ground near Yew Tree House; the pillbox having been boarded up since VE day in 1945. It’s possible that the two deaths, almost 100km apart, could be connected.
Yew Tree House is owned by sisters Stephanie and Rosa Stride who live in a nearby annexe. Somehow all the events from the past centre around their late mother Adelaide, although neither sister seems willing nor able to furnish any details.
As with previous novels in the series, this one alternates between the then and now; the then, of course, being the years between 1940 and 1945. Piece by piece we gradually get a picture of what actually happened, although there is plenty of clever misdirection along the way.
This is the most recent, so far and, hopefully, won’t be the last of this highly engaging series.
Despite her valiant attempts to stick to cleaning and avoid the detective work, as before, Stella soon finds herself drawn into the mystery of two unsolved murders from the past; both occurring at either end of the Second World War. In 1940 during the Blitz, teenager Greta Fleming is raped and murdered on Esher Common in Surrey. Then Milly and Justin discover a skeleton in a pillbox in overgrown waste ground near Yew Tree House; the pillbox having been boarded up since VE day in 1945. It’s possible that the two deaths, almost 100km apart, could be connected.
Yew Tree House is owned by sisters Stephanie and Rosa Stride who live in a nearby annexe. Somehow all the events from the past centre around their late mother Adelaide, although neither sister seems willing nor able to furnish any details.
As with previous novels in the series, this one alternates between the then and now; the then, of course, being the years between 1940 and 1945. Piece by piece we gradually get a picture of what actually happened, although there is plenty of clever misdirection along the way.
This is the most recent, so far and, hopefully, won’t be the last of this highly engaging series.
September 13, 2023
The Mystery of Yew Tree House is the ninth book in Lesley Thomson’s ‘The Detective’s Daughter’ series featuring cleaner turned amateur detective, Stella Darnell and her partner, tube driver Jack Harmon. Although the book could be enjoyed as a standalone there’s a lot of background information about Stella and Jack’s personal and professional history for readers new to the series to absorb, as well as some references to past cases. I’ve only read one other book in the series, The Playground Murders back in 2019, so it took me a little time to refamiliarise myself with past events and the relationships between returning characters.
At one point, a character remarks to Stella, ‘I can’t see the attraction of holidaying in a village. They are described as idyllic, but they are places of poison. Behind the facade of a pond, a green, a war memorial, lies cruelty and violence’. Too right. In fact, Bishopstone seems a peculiar place for Stella and Jack to have chosen as a holiday destination since the area holds unpleasant memories for both of them.
Stella and Jack have reached a turning point in their relationship with Stella, in particular, concerned about the prospect of them becoming a permanent family unit. Given the resilience she has shown in other situations, I thought her worries about whether she possessed suitable parenting skills were misplaced. Having said that, perhaps Stella was right to worry because Jack’s seven-year-old daughter, Milly, proves a bit of a handful, determined single-handedly to track down the murderer. Oh Milly, if only they’d paid more attention to you!
The story moves between the present day and a timeline which starts in 1940. I particularly enjoyed the past timeline and would have been happy to have had more of this. I thought it was clever to have the start of the mystery be in wartime, a time when people were displaced, families were often separated, ordinary citizens were armed and trained in how to kill, and the blackout was the perfect cover for illicit activities. I was particularly fascinated to learn about preparations put in place in the event of Britain’s occupation by the Nazis.
The Mystery of Yew Tree House is a skilfully plotted crime novel with plenty of twists and turns, false trails and surprise reveals. If you guessed all of the latter, you’re a genius.
At one point, a character remarks to Stella, ‘I can’t see the attraction of holidaying in a village. They are described as idyllic, but they are places of poison. Behind the facade of a pond, a green, a war memorial, lies cruelty and violence’. Too right. In fact, Bishopstone seems a peculiar place for Stella and Jack to have chosen as a holiday destination since the area holds unpleasant memories for both of them.
Stella and Jack have reached a turning point in their relationship with Stella, in particular, concerned about the prospect of them becoming a permanent family unit. Given the resilience she has shown in other situations, I thought her worries about whether she possessed suitable parenting skills were misplaced. Having said that, perhaps Stella was right to worry because Jack’s seven-year-old daughter, Milly, proves a bit of a handful, determined single-handedly to track down the murderer. Oh Milly, if only they’d paid more attention to you!
The story moves between the present day and a timeline which starts in 1940. I particularly enjoyed the past timeline and would have been happy to have had more of this. I thought it was clever to have the start of the mystery be in wartime, a time when people were displaced, families were often separated, ordinary citizens were armed and trained in how to kill, and the blackout was the perfect cover for illicit activities. I was particularly fascinated to learn about preparations put in place in the event of Britain’s occupation by the Nazis.
The Mystery of Yew Tree House is a skilfully plotted crime novel with plenty of twists and turns, false trails and surprise reveals. If you guessed all of the latter, you’re a genius.
September 14, 2023
This is a series I have enjoyed, so I was very keen to read this latest one!
In 1940, Yew Tree House was home to Adelaide, her two daughters - and headquarters of the local Home Guard. The constant access to her home makes for very uncomfortable living, and Adelaide is sure that there is something going on that she's missing. Fast forward to the present day and Stella is holidaying in the very same house along with her partner and his children. This time is to see if they can all live together before the couple get committed. But the discovery of a body throws all that into the air . . .
I love Lesley Thomson's novels but there was something about this one that just didn't click with me. I'm really not sure what it was but I just couldn't accept everything I was being told. Interesting? Yes. Entertaining? Yes. And yet for me there was something missing from the others in this series. However, this author sets the bar high so even with my doubts, this is still a four star read.
In 1940, Yew Tree House was home to Adelaide, her two daughters - and headquarters of the local Home Guard. The constant access to her home makes for very uncomfortable living, and Adelaide is sure that there is something going on that she's missing. Fast forward to the present day and Stella is holidaying in the very same house along with her partner and his children. This time is to see if they can all live together before the couple get committed. But the discovery of a body throws all that into the air . . .
I love Lesley Thomson's novels but there was something about this one that just didn't click with me. I'm really not sure what it was but I just couldn't accept everything I was being told. Interesting? Yes. Entertaining? Yes. And yet for me there was something missing from the others in this series. However, this author sets the bar high so even with my doubts, this is still a four star read.
August 15, 2023
So apparently this is part of a series?! It’s one of those detective type novels where the characters are the same but each “case” is different so you can technically read them as standalones. I didn’t know that until another reviewer mentioned it 🙈 It’s not made very clear on Netgalley’s page or Storygraph.
Feels very all over the place with details, with some info dumping of character background at the beginning, jumping in and out of the main plot. I kept getting confused, and getting pulled out of the story.
I don’t like the present timeline. I find most of the characters flat and cheesy, the kids were especially annoying. I’m just not a fan of any of the characters, I don’t feel any connections to them. But this could be because I haven’t read the rest of the series. I started skimming the present day chapters because the pacing was all over the place there, with too many overly descriptive sections that I was getting bored often.
There are also so many grammar/continuity mistakes!! At one point a major player, Philip became Peter. And the way information is given is in a roundabout confusing way instead of being straightforward. Too often I ended up rereading paragraphs because I didn’t understand the clues/new info they were discussing.
The dialogue and Stella’s inner thoughts feel cheesy/unnatural at times, especially surrounding her reading an (outdated and absurd) parenting book.
I correctly guessed most of the twists early on but I was slightly surprised by one of the other twists. So the ending felt anti climatic being proven right for the majority of the mystery. Maybe cozy mysteries aren’t my thing. I need tension and suspense, hanging on the edge of my seat with fast pacing! I don’t like the meandering, minute descriptions mixed with a mystery.
Overall it was an interesting enough book that I finished it but I really only finished because I wanted to find out what happened and if I was right 😂 The first half was much better than the second half, as the second half we slowly stay more in the present and don’t look back as much at the 1940s timeline, which I think was the best timeline.
If you enjoy cozy mysteries or detective series, I’d still recommend this book (and maybe the whole series to get more character background/development)!
Feels very all over the place with details, with some info dumping of character background at the beginning, jumping in and out of the main plot. I kept getting confused, and getting pulled out of the story.
I don’t like the present timeline. I find most of the characters flat and cheesy, the kids were especially annoying. I’m just not a fan of any of the characters, I don’t feel any connections to them. But this could be because I haven’t read the rest of the series. I started skimming the present day chapters because the pacing was all over the place there, with too many overly descriptive sections that I was getting bored often.
There are also so many grammar/continuity mistakes!! At one point a major player, Philip became Peter. And the way information is given is in a roundabout confusing way instead of being straightforward. Too often I ended up rereading paragraphs because I didn’t understand the clues/new info they were discussing.
The dialogue and Stella’s inner thoughts feel cheesy/unnatural at times, especially surrounding her reading an (outdated and absurd) parenting book.
I correctly guessed most of the twists early on but I was slightly surprised by one of the other twists. So the ending felt anti climatic being proven right for the majority of the mystery. Maybe cozy mysteries aren’t my thing. I need tension and suspense, hanging on the edge of my seat with fast pacing! I don’t like the meandering, minute descriptions mixed with a mystery.
Overall it was an interesting enough book that I finished it but I really only finished because I wanted to find out what happened and if I was right 😂 The first half was much better than the second half, as the second half we slowly stay more in the present and don’t look back as much at the 1940s timeline, which I think was the best timeline.
If you enjoy cozy mysteries or detective series, I’d still recommend this book (and maybe the whole series to get more character background/development)!
January 23, 2024
Cold case murder magnets Stella and Jack are on vacation with Jack’s kids, twins Milly and Justin, and Stella’s dog Stanley. The last time I hung out with Stella and Jack, Stella’s dad Terry had died, and Stella decided to solve Kate Rokesmith’s murder. So, clearly a lot has happened between “The Detective’s Daughter” (book 1), and this novel (book 9).
This vacation has multiple purposes: it’s an opportunity for Stella to gauge whether she can spend an extended time with the twins, a chance for the adults to make a decision about their relationship, and a little pilgrimage to Jack’s mother Kate’s grave (and the place Terry died).
They’re at Yew Tree Cottage, which is next to the home of a pair of elderly sisters, Stevie and Rosa, and next to the very elderly vicarage where and the vicar Snace, who seems a little creepy. Milly and Justin and Stanley are on a walk, and stumble onto, or into, a WWII bunker. And a long dead murdered guy in there. See? Jack and Stella—murder magnets.
Much as Stella wants the vacation to be just a vacation, Jack wants to investigate, and between finding old daggers, and receiving visits by a chatty police detective, the pair begin delving into the WWII history of the town, and specifically the Home Guard, a secret group made up of townsfolk who patrolled and prepared to defend and kill, if necessary, to protect the town. The Official Secrets Act ensured members of the group could not speak of their work, but as they were not soldiers, received no pay or pension for their contribution to the war effort.
Stevie’s widowed mother Adelaide’s boarder, Henry, and local Jimmy were members of the Home Guard, with Snace in charge of the boys and men. Snace was abusive and cruel, and Henry and Jimmy hated him, and were joined in their hatred by Stevie and Adelaide. We find this out through scenes set during this time, and gradually begin to get a possible picture of who the dead man could be, and his killer. Except, author Lesley Thomson complicates things, with another murder during this period, and conflicting alibis.
I am so glad that I read book one, "The Detective's Daughter" before this, as there are little references to that book throughout. Though I've missed gobs of events between the first and now ninth books, I loved how both Stella and Jack's characters had developed from that first book. Stella still loves to clean, and finds comfort in it in moments of stress. She is now better at dealing with others, including the twins' mother Bella. Stella has made huge strides in her ability to connect with others, and I just love how much more open and caring she is.
The mysteries are complex, and it's fun trying to figure out who the killer is, as author Thomson kept me guessing. There is also plenty of humour present in this entry, between the twins' antics, Stella's desperation to keep this a nice, normal vacation, and the inclusion of Lucie May, Terry's former girlfriend. I really enjoyed this book!
Thank you to Netgalley and to Aria & Aries for this ARC in exchange for my review.
This vacation has multiple purposes: it’s an opportunity for Stella to gauge whether she can spend an extended time with the twins, a chance for the adults to make a decision about their relationship, and a little pilgrimage to Jack’s mother Kate’s grave (and the place Terry died).
They’re at Yew Tree Cottage, which is next to the home of a pair of elderly sisters, Stevie and Rosa, and next to the very elderly vicarage where and the vicar Snace, who seems a little creepy. Milly and Justin and Stanley are on a walk, and stumble onto, or into, a WWII bunker. And a long dead murdered guy in there. See? Jack and Stella—murder magnets.
Much as Stella wants the vacation to be just a vacation, Jack wants to investigate, and between finding old daggers, and receiving visits by a chatty police detective, the pair begin delving into the WWII history of the town, and specifically the Home Guard, a secret group made up of townsfolk who patrolled and prepared to defend and kill, if necessary, to protect the town. The Official Secrets Act ensured members of the group could not speak of their work, but as they were not soldiers, received no pay or pension for their contribution to the war effort.
Stevie’s widowed mother Adelaide’s boarder, Henry, and local Jimmy were members of the Home Guard, with Snace in charge of the boys and men. Snace was abusive and cruel, and Henry and Jimmy hated him, and were joined in their hatred by Stevie and Adelaide. We find this out through scenes set during this time, and gradually begin to get a possible picture of who the dead man could be, and his killer. Except, author Lesley Thomson complicates things, with another murder during this period, and conflicting alibis.
I am so glad that I read book one, "The Detective's Daughter" before this, as there are little references to that book throughout. Though I've missed gobs of events between the first and now ninth books, I loved how both Stella and Jack's characters had developed from that first book. Stella still loves to clean, and finds comfort in it in moments of stress. She is now better at dealing with others, including the twins' mother Bella. Stella has made huge strides in her ability to connect with others, and I just love how much more open and caring she is.
The mysteries are complex, and it's fun trying to figure out who the killer is, as author Thomson kept me guessing. There is also plenty of humour present in this entry, between the twins' antics, Stella's desperation to keep this a nice, normal vacation, and the inclusion of Lucie May, Terry's former girlfriend. I really enjoyed this book!
Thank you to Netgalley and to Aria & Aries for this ARC in exchange for my review.
August 21, 2023
Bishopstone is a village straight from a jigsaw box, with Yew Tree House being a recent addition to Airbnb. Like all picture book villages though, Bishopstone has its secrets. Stella Darnell arrives there with her boyfriend Jack Harmon and his twins Milly and Justin. They also have an exuberant Border Terrier, Stanley. The holiday is going to be a trial run as Stella is considering moving in with the younger Jack. Yew Tree House is old and large with the current owners Stevie and Rosa Stride living in an attached annex. History and secrets start to come to light particularly in the cemetery just up the road where a rather creepy vicar lurks.
The novel has two timelines, the present day where Stella and Jack are on holiday, and the early 1940s. The war is still continuing and Rupert and Adelaide Stride reside at Yew Tree House. Mystery surrounds the disappearance of 16 years old Greta Fleming. It soon becomes apparent that the past and present are thoroughly intertwined and something appalling has happened at Yew Tree House.
I really liked the book and all the characters, even Milly who is totally precocious does not jar too much. Stella’s inner narrative is very entertaining. There is plenty of mystery and suspense interspersed with plenty of humour. The only problem with the story was that I had not read the previous books in the series. Although each is said to work as a standalone, I really don’t think this particular one does. I had to go back and re-read certain sections to get a gist of what was going on and that interfered with the flow. The twist at the end though was done really well.
I’d certainly recommend this book, but would advise reading one or two of the previous books in the series first.
My thanks to #Netgalley, #Aries, and #LesleyThomson for an ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.
The novel has two timelines, the present day where Stella and Jack are on holiday, and the early 1940s. The war is still continuing and Rupert and Adelaide Stride reside at Yew Tree House. Mystery surrounds the disappearance of 16 years old Greta Fleming. It soon becomes apparent that the past and present are thoroughly intertwined and something appalling has happened at Yew Tree House.
I really liked the book and all the characters, even Milly who is totally precocious does not jar too much. Stella’s inner narrative is very entertaining. There is plenty of mystery and suspense interspersed with plenty of humour. The only problem with the story was that I had not read the previous books in the series. Although each is said to work as a standalone, I really don’t think this particular one does. I had to go back and re-read certain sections to get a gist of what was going on and that interfered with the flow. The twist at the end though was done really well.
I’d certainly recommend this book, but would advise reading one or two of the previous books in the series first.
My thanks to #Netgalley, #Aries, and #LesleyThomson for an ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.
September 19, 2023
This is book 9 in the ‘Detective’s Daughter’ series, but having not read any other books in the series I read this one as a stand alone. I do feel I would have benefitted from reading earlier books to understand more of Stella’s background, but it didn’t hinder my enjoyment of this one.
Cleverly plotted and interwoven over two timelines; 1940 and the present time.
When two sisters who have lived in their family home all their lives decide to rent out part of their home for income, Yew Tree House is spotted by Jack and is the perfect place for Jack, his 7 year old twins and his partner Stella to holiday. He wants to show his children where his mother is buried. As if that’s not gruesome enough for a holiday for 7 year olds, he then tells them she was murdered!
When the twins Millie and Justin find a skeleton in the disused wartime pillbox at the bottom of the garden, Millie decides they will investigate the murder. She is quite the character and knows her own mind!
The police are called and the investigation begins. By the police. Millie having been overruled.
In 1940 a girl went missing on her way home from school, miles away from Yew Tree House, but it appears the cases could be connected.
An absolute corker of a whodunnit, murders galore, plenty of twists, with some dubious characters living in and around the local village. Definitely has an air of Agatha Christie. There is so much going on I had no alternative but to completely immerse myself in both storylines. There are a lot of characters to get to know from both timelines, some are alive in both and some are relatives of characters who have died.
I enjoyed learning more about the home guard, and the use of pillboxes to look out for Nazis, as well as the top-secret army known as the Auxiliary Units. I always like to finish reading a book having learned something.
An excellent read. Thank you to Sophie and Poppy at Ransom PR for my spot on the tour and my gorgeous hardback copy of the book.
Cleverly plotted and interwoven over two timelines; 1940 and the present time.
When two sisters who have lived in their family home all their lives decide to rent out part of their home for income, Yew Tree House is spotted by Jack and is the perfect place for Jack, his 7 year old twins and his partner Stella to holiday. He wants to show his children where his mother is buried. As if that’s not gruesome enough for a holiday for 7 year olds, he then tells them she was murdered!
When the twins Millie and Justin find a skeleton in the disused wartime pillbox at the bottom of the garden, Millie decides they will investigate the murder. She is quite the character and knows her own mind!
The police are called and the investigation begins. By the police. Millie having been overruled.
In 1940 a girl went missing on her way home from school, miles away from Yew Tree House, but it appears the cases could be connected.
An absolute corker of a whodunnit, murders galore, plenty of twists, with some dubious characters living in and around the local village. Definitely has an air of Agatha Christie. There is so much going on I had no alternative but to completely immerse myself in both storylines. There are a lot of characters to get to know from both timelines, some are alive in both and some are relatives of characters who have died.
I enjoyed learning more about the home guard, and the use of pillboxes to look out for Nazis, as well as the top-secret army known as the Auxiliary Units. I always like to finish reading a book having learned something.
An excellent read. Thank you to Sophie and Poppy at Ransom PR for my spot on the tour and my gorgeous hardback copy of the book.
August 21, 2023
This book is set over two timelines, the 1940s and present day.
During the war time a young girl is walking home and disappears.
In the modern time Jack and Stella are having a break to see if they can live together, with Jack's twins, and decide to stay in Air bnb Yew Tree House for a month.
The elderly residents Stevie and Rosa are staying in an annexe next to the house and wish to be left alone. However when a skeleton is found by the brilliant Milly that wish fades quickly.
There are many secrets and lies throughout this, and it becomes clear that the stories of the war years are linked to those in the modern day.
Both Jack and Stella have links to the area.
There are some wonderful characters. I loved the main characters of both eras, and the twins were great and will be quite something of they continue to be featured. At 7 years old Milly is smart and strong willed!
There are some truly despicable characters too. I disliked (maybe even hated) Snace from the start.
It's clear how much research was done to get the feel of the war years right and it shines in the writing.
I loved Lucie and the addition of the motorhome. A truly engrossing read that had me captivated and wanting to keep going to find out what really happened. A few twists I really didn't expect, I know it's a cliche but they really were unexpected.
This is apparently part of a series but I had no idea. It read perfectly as a standalone.
During the war time a young girl is walking home and disappears.
In the modern time Jack and Stella are having a break to see if they can live together, with Jack's twins, and decide to stay in Air bnb Yew Tree House for a month.
The elderly residents Stevie and Rosa are staying in an annexe next to the house and wish to be left alone. However when a skeleton is found by the brilliant Milly that wish fades quickly.
There are many secrets and lies throughout this, and it becomes clear that the stories of the war years are linked to those in the modern day.
Both Jack and Stella have links to the area.
There are some wonderful characters. I loved the main characters of both eras, and the twins were great and will be quite something of they continue to be featured. At 7 years old Milly is smart and strong willed!
There are some truly despicable characters too. I disliked (maybe even hated) Snace from the start.
It's clear how much research was done to get the feel of the war years right and it shines in the writing.
I loved Lucie and the addition of the motorhome. A truly engrossing read that had me captivated and wanting to keep going to find out what really happened. A few twists I really didn't expect, I know it's a cliche but they really were unexpected.
This is apparently part of a series but I had no idea. It read perfectly as a standalone.
April 10, 2024
The Mystery of Yew Tree House by Lesley Thomson
I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Blurb
1940.
At Yew Tree House, recently widowed Adelaide Stride is raising her two daughters alone – but it's not just the threat of German invasion that keeps her up at night. She is surrounded by enemies posing as allies and, while war rages, she grows sure that something terrible is about to happen.
A BODY THAT REVEALS THEM ALL.
2023.
Soon after Stella Darnell begins her holiday at Yew Tree House, a skeleton is found in a pillbox at the bottom of the garden. The bullet hole in the skull tells her that the person was murdered. This triggers the unravelling of a mystery eighty years in the making. Stella will learn that Adelaide was right to worry – the fighting might have been happening abroad, but the true enemy was always much closer to home...
My Opinion
I have only read one other book in this series (book one) but I was able to keep up, so this could be read as a standalone. This is a very clever mystery told in two timelines, but both are very clearly labelled making it easy to follow. Lesley Thomson has littered the plot with red herrings, but that just made the book far more interesting. This was a great read that was easy to dip in and out of - but you will be thinking about the book when you aren't reading it. An enjoyable read.
Rating 4/5
I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Blurb
1940.
At Yew Tree House, recently widowed Adelaide Stride is raising her two daughters alone – but it's not just the threat of German invasion that keeps her up at night. She is surrounded by enemies posing as allies and, while war rages, she grows sure that something terrible is about to happen.
A BODY THAT REVEALS THEM ALL.
2023.
Soon after Stella Darnell begins her holiday at Yew Tree House, a skeleton is found in a pillbox at the bottom of the garden. The bullet hole in the skull tells her that the person was murdered. This triggers the unravelling of a mystery eighty years in the making. Stella will learn that Adelaide was right to worry – the fighting might have been happening abroad, but the true enemy was always much closer to home...
My Opinion
I have only read one other book in this series (book one) but I was able to keep up, so this could be read as a standalone. This is a very clever mystery told in two timelines, but both are very clearly labelled making it easy to follow. Lesley Thomson has littered the plot with red herrings, but that just made the book far more interesting. This was a great read that was easy to dip in and out of - but you will be thinking about the book when you aren't reading it. An enjoyable read.
Rating 4/5
September 11, 2023
The Mystery of Yew Tree House by Lesley Thomson is the ninth in the Detective Daughter series but the first for me. It didn't take long for me to become hooked and reeled in! It is a well-written and gripping dual timeline with interesting characters (my favourites are Lucie and the twins), atmosphere, historical bits and enticing plot. Though sometimes predictable, there is so much to recommend.
In the present, Jack and Stella along with Jack's seven-year-old twins go on a family trip, sort of a test to determine how everyone gets along with each other. On the trip the curious kids act like kids and speak in their youthful vernacular. They make fascinating discoveries including skeletal remains and begin to dig. Stella is a professional detective and also investigates. What they find is surprising. In the 1940s, WWII is raging and life is about survival. The two storylines are beautifully linked and both are equally intriguing to follow.
This mystery series is definitely one to pursue. I very much look forward to immersing myself in each installment.
My sincere thank you to Aria & Aries and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this arresting novel.
In the present, Jack and Stella along with Jack's seven-year-old twins go on a family trip, sort of a test to determine how everyone gets along with each other. On the trip the curious kids act like kids and speak in their youthful vernacular. They make fascinating discoveries including skeletal remains and begin to dig. Stella is a professional detective and also investigates. What they find is surprising. In the 1940s, WWII is raging and life is about survival. The two storylines are beautifully linked and both are equally intriguing to follow.
This mystery series is definitely one to pursue. I very much look forward to immersing myself in each installment.
My sincere thank you to Aria & Aries and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this arresting novel.
January 7, 2025
Ooopf. This was maybe a 2.25 for me, but because I love the series and some other aspects, I’m giving it 3 stars.
I think that maybe Lesley Thomson is almost too intelligent to be writing for normal people! These plots are quite complex, I think—to the point where it’s not as enjoyable to read the stories. There are so many people and multiple timeframes going on. I *can* follow it, but it’s not so fun. I couldn’t wait for the story to end. In this one, Jack’s two kids were there, and I found them annoying (as so many other GR reviewers have noted).
The saving grace of this book was that Toni Kemp arrives (Toni of the Mermaid “series”). That was my favorite part of the book—the fact that a character from a different series arrived, so that again tells you a lot about my experience with this book! There are some fun little moments with Toni and her Snickers, but I doubt most readers even understood them (unless they are Lesley Thomson addicts like me and have read every single book she’s written.) It was fun to have Toni there, but I also think that’s another example of Lesley being almost too smart for her own good with these books — inserting Toni in this series was a little Easter egg that maybe 2% of readers will follow? (I kind of think Lesley is writing these books to test and sharpen her own mind, rather than for the enjoyment of most readers.)
I think that maybe Lesley Thomson is almost too intelligent to be writing for normal people! These plots are quite complex, I think—to the point where it’s not as enjoyable to read the stories. There are so many people and multiple timeframes going on. I *can* follow it, but it’s not so fun. I couldn’t wait for the story to end. In this one, Jack’s two kids were there, and I found them annoying (as so many other GR reviewers have noted).
The saving grace of this book was that Toni Kemp arrives (Toni of the Mermaid “series”). That was my favorite part of the book—the fact that a character from a different series arrived, so that again tells you a lot about my experience with this book! There are some fun little moments with Toni and her Snickers, but I doubt most readers even understood them (unless they are Lesley Thomson addicts like me and have read every single book she’s written.) It was fun to have Toni there, but I also think that’s another example of Lesley being almost too smart for her own good with these books — inserting Toni in this series was a little Easter egg that maybe 2% of readers will follow? (I kind of think Lesley is writing these books to test and sharpen her own mind, rather than for the enjoyment of most readers.)
February 23, 2024
One of my favorite authors, Elly Griffiths, recommended this book. It sounded good - timelines in the present and during WWII, an English country home in a quaint little village, a dog - what more could I ask? Well I really didn’t like this book at all! For starters, I did not realize it is number NINE in a series, and I hate reading books out of order! Sometimes the author can catch you up on previous developments in the characters’ lives, but I felt lost from the start with all the characters in this book. I think there were a total of three murders, but after reading the book I’m not even sure who killed each person! This book was very confusing and it was hard to tell who was speaking. I didn’t care about any of the characters and I thought the seven-year old twins were very annoying and both their dialog and actions were unbelievable. I made myself plow through it because it had some good reviews, but ugh, I didn’t like it! I shan’t be reading any more of this series.
September 19, 2023
A clever Murder mystery told over two timelines. I felt the 1940 story of Adelaide and her family was cleverly woven into the present day and would have liked more of Adelaide and her girls together with Henry and Jimmy. It felt like there was more to tell of their lives in such a difficult time. The intrigue behind Churchill’s secret army added a fascinating twist to the story and I found it so interesting that these men were used in such a way and never properly recognised for their efforts.
Stella was a interesting character - her intuition was spot on a number of times when trying to work out what had happened over the years and why, and I liked her relationship with the flamboyant Lucie.
September 9, 2024
Seems to me Stella and Jack have lost their way a bit this time out. This is my least favourite of the series. The children were a distraction and the dialogue and interaction with them was weak and annoying. Maybe it's time to wrap this series up and send them all off into the sunset in the campervan.
October 31, 2023
"Eighty years of secrets. A body that reveals them all"
...
To date, I have only read the two most recent episodes #8 and #9 of this, 'The Detective's Daughter' series, although I do have several of the earlier stories still languishing on my Kindle. Would I take the time to go back and begin Stella's story from the beginning? Definitely, as there are still one or two loose ends regarding the relationship between Jack and Stella that I would like cleared up, although when taken at face value as excellent murder/mystery stories, they do work well as stand-alones and on the whole, the pertinent facts of the backstory were seamlessly woven in as I read. But, Hey! I never need an excuse to read a good 'whodunnit'!
So, what mess have Stella and Jack got themselves into this time?...
...
Daughter of late detective Terry Darnell and joint owner of her own highly successful cleaning business, Stella, is one of an increasingly popular band of female amateur sleuths, who have male companions, in Stella's case, underground train driver, Jack Harman. Stella and Jack have been in an on/off relationship for many years and have decided that it is now make or break time, as far as their future together goes. Especially as Jack hopes to have increased access to his seven year old twins, Justin and Millie and he needs to know that Stella is as committed to them as he is. Stella is petrified that helping to raise two young children is going to be too much for her at her time of life, given that she has never had children of her own, so a month alone, just the four of them together on holiday in the picturesque Sussex village of Bishopstone, is going to be the ultimate test for her.
However, nothing could have prepared Stella for the speed at which she would have to put her parenting skills into practice, even though she was still busily swatting up on the theory of it all. Millie is definitely the boss and ring-leader of any scrapes the twins get into, so when, within just a few hours of arriving at Yew Tree House she discovers a skeleton in one of the old wartime 'pill boxes' located near to the property in the adjoining Beggars Woods, the relaxing break Stella and Jack had envisioned, is over before it's begun. The police and press camp out on the doorstep; Stella's friend, journalist and her father's ex-girlfriend Lucie May arrives in her camper van; and to top it all off Bella, Jacks ex-wife and the twins' mother, decides that she should come and take her children home, away from the bad influence of Jack and Stella.
Much to their mutual surprise, Stella and Bella find themselves getting along famously, so rather than packing the children's bags to take them home, Bella finds herself clearing her diary and hunkering down to spend some valuable time coming to terms with an entirely new situation in her otherwise ultra organised life - and rather enjoying it into the bargain!
When a fresh new body is discovered, the finger of suspicion points in many opposing directions, which, as Yew Tree House itself begins to give up its long buried secrets, also includes both Stevie and Rosa Stride, proud spinster sisters who were brought up in the house and who now live in the annexe, using rental income from the main property to support their lifestyle of genteel poverty. The victim is the very elderly Reverend Snace, who was a very popular and respected figure in the local community, by everyone that is, with the exception of the Stride sisters, who have every reason to wish the 'Snace the Snake' harm. Did they commit the final sinful act, or do they have protectors who have always looked out for them?
Just how are both the Darnell / Harman murder victims linked to a separate wartime incident in Esher, Surrey. And will the outcome of this investigation help finalise Stella's decision about her future going forward with Jack and his children, or even if there is to be a shared future?
...
'The Detective's Daughter' series offers a slightly tongue-in-cheek, modern day slant to the traditional murder / mystery, although one of the main disadvantages of not having joined Stella and Jack on their previous cases, was that I found it very difficult to age either of them. As Jack's twins are only seven years old, I was trying to horseshoe Stella into the thirty-something age group, although the way she acted made her appear much older. I was actually gobsmacked when her true age was revealed in a conversation towards the end of the book, changing my perspective completely, hence my desire to revisit some of the earlier episodes.
This is a dual timeline story, which frequently alternates between the present day and the 1940s, at the height of WWII. The chapters are however, short and well signposted, so the journey back and forth is always a relaxing and easy one to take, although many of the events, especially those from the wartime period, are quite difficult to come to terms with and read about, as they encompass several trigger point social issues, including: stalking, coercive behaviour and domestic violence. The past and present definitely collide, although it does take a while before Stella and Jack realise that dovetailing the two timelines together, is going to be the key to solving everything.
This well-structured, multi-layered, twisty storyline, is tense, whilst at the same time and despite several seriously dangerous turns of events during the course of the investigation, has some moments of sheer exuberance, joy and laughter, especially when the twins are involved. Their forthright and open thought processes and powers of reason are right in your face and to the point, which sometimes subliminally showed Stella and Jack the way forward with their deducements, although it was never obvious at the time, only to the children themselves, who couldn't understand why it was taking the adults so long to catch up.
This particular investigation turned into something of a 'family affair', with Stella, Jack, Bella, Lucie and the twins - Oh! and not forgetting Stella's dog Stanley, all chipping in to help the local detectives solve this series of murders, which began way back during the war. With no one certain exactly how many suspects they were searching for, the list of names was inevitably rather long and the relationships between them complicated, made even more so by the fact that most of them were nonagenarians and centenarians, so sorting out fact from fiction, imagination from reality, and the tacit vow of silence and 'stiff upper lip' they shared between them, was never going to be a straightforward or trustworthy exercise.
I actually had guessed correctly, the identity of one of the murder suspects, however, life was never going to be that simple and the complicated decades old turns of events, totally evaded me until explained, with the final sting in the tail of this story being totally unexpected. This was definitely a journey to get involved, immersed and engrossed in, as much as a case to be solved and I loved going along for the ride.
The well drawn cast of characters, with the exception of one or two dubious specimens, were on the whole, although quite complex, most amenable, engaging and easy to connect with. The range of ages, separated as they were by several decades, definitely didn't harm either the authenticity or integrity of the ever-evolving and fluid storyline, which was totally addictive.
With the exception of a couple of mentions for Esher in Surrey, this story took place exclusively in the village of Bishopstone, Sussex, a real place which I could check out and get to know virtually, for myself. As a confirmed 'armchair traveller' this is always a treat and adds so much authenticity to the overall reading experience. I could tell that Lesley had undertaken plenty of extensive research to ensure that her facts were accurate, so that, together with some wonderfully descriptive passages, completely pulled me into the day to day vibrancy of the location and the lives of the people I met along the way.
...
To date, I have only read the two most recent episodes #8 and #9 of this, 'The Detective's Daughter' series, although I do have several of the earlier stories still languishing on my Kindle. Would I take the time to go back and begin Stella's story from the beginning? Definitely, as there are still one or two loose ends regarding the relationship between Jack and Stella that I would like cleared up, although when taken at face value as excellent murder/mystery stories, they do work well as stand-alones and on the whole, the pertinent facts of the backstory were seamlessly woven in as I read. But, Hey! I never need an excuse to read a good 'whodunnit'!
So, what mess have Stella and Jack got themselves into this time?...
...
Daughter of late detective Terry Darnell and joint owner of her own highly successful cleaning business, Stella, is one of an increasingly popular band of female amateur sleuths, who have male companions, in Stella's case, underground train driver, Jack Harman. Stella and Jack have been in an on/off relationship for many years and have decided that it is now make or break time, as far as their future together goes. Especially as Jack hopes to have increased access to his seven year old twins, Justin and Millie and he needs to know that Stella is as committed to them as he is. Stella is petrified that helping to raise two young children is going to be too much for her at her time of life, given that she has never had children of her own, so a month alone, just the four of them together on holiday in the picturesque Sussex village of Bishopstone, is going to be the ultimate test for her.
However, nothing could have prepared Stella for the speed at which she would have to put her parenting skills into practice, even though she was still busily swatting up on the theory of it all. Millie is definitely the boss and ring-leader of any scrapes the twins get into, so when, within just a few hours of arriving at Yew Tree House she discovers a skeleton in one of the old wartime 'pill boxes' located near to the property in the adjoining Beggars Woods, the relaxing break Stella and Jack had envisioned, is over before it's begun. The police and press camp out on the doorstep; Stella's friend, journalist and her father's ex-girlfriend Lucie May arrives in her camper van; and to top it all off Bella, Jacks ex-wife and the twins' mother, decides that she should come and take her children home, away from the bad influence of Jack and Stella.
Much to their mutual surprise, Stella and Bella find themselves getting along famously, so rather than packing the children's bags to take them home, Bella finds herself clearing her diary and hunkering down to spend some valuable time coming to terms with an entirely new situation in her otherwise ultra organised life - and rather enjoying it into the bargain!
When a fresh new body is discovered, the finger of suspicion points in many opposing directions, which, as Yew Tree House itself begins to give up its long buried secrets, also includes both Stevie and Rosa Stride, proud spinster sisters who were brought up in the house and who now live in the annexe, using rental income from the main property to support their lifestyle of genteel poverty. The victim is the very elderly Reverend Snace, who was a very popular and respected figure in the local community, by everyone that is, with the exception of the Stride sisters, who have every reason to wish the 'Snace the Snake' harm. Did they commit the final sinful act, or do they have protectors who have always looked out for them?
Just how are both the Darnell / Harman murder victims linked to a separate wartime incident in Esher, Surrey. And will the outcome of this investigation help finalise Stella's decision about her future going forward with Jack and his children, or even if there is to be a shared future?
...
'The Detective's Daughter' series offers a slightly tongue-in-cheek, modern day slant to the traditional murder / mystery, although one of the main disadvantages of not having joined Stella and Jack on their previous cases, was that I found it very difficult to age either of them. As Jack's twins are only seven years old, I was trying to horseshoe Stella into the thirty-something age group, although the way she acted made her appear much older. I was actually gobsmacked when her true age was revealed in a conversation towards the end of the book, changing my perspective completely, hence my desire to revisit some of the earlier episodes.
This is a dual timeline story, which frequently alternates between the present day and the 1940s, at the height of WWII. The chapters are however, short and well signposted, so the journey back and forth is always a relaxing and easy one to take, although many of the events, especially those from the wartime period, are quite difficult to come to terms with and read about, as they encompass several trigger point social issues, including: stalking, coercive behaviour and domestic violence. The past and present definitely collide, although it does take a while before Stella and Jack realise that dovetailing the two timelines together, is going to be the key to solving everything.
This well-structured, multi-layered, twisty storyline, is tense, whilst at the same time and despite several seriously dangerous turns of events during the course of the investigation, has some moments of sheer exuberance, joy and laughter, especially when the twins are involved. Their forthright and open thought processes and powers of reason are right in your face and to the point, which sometimes subliminally showed Stella and Jack the way forward with their deducements, although it was never obvious at the time, only to the children themselves, who couldn't understand why it was taking the adults so long to catch up.
This particular investigation turned into something of a 'family affair', with Stella, Jack, Bella, Lucie and the twins - Oh! and not forgetting Stella's dog Stanley, all chipping in to help the local detectives solve this series of murders, which began way back during the war. With no one certain exactly how many suspects they were searching for, the list of names was inevitably rather long and the relationships between them complicated, made even more so by the fact that most of them were nonagenarians and centenarians, so sorting out fact from fiction, imagination from reality, and the tacit vow of silence and 'stiff upper lip' they shared between them, was never going to be a straightforward or trustworthy exercise.
I actually had guessed correctly, the identity of one of the murder suspects, however, life was never going to be that simple and the complicated decades old turns of events, totally evaded me until explained, with the final sting in the tail of this story being totally unexpected. This was definitely a journey to get involved, immersed and engrossed in, as much as a case to be solved and I loved going along for the ride.
The well drawn cast of characters, with the exception of one or two dubious specimens, were on the whole, although quite complex, most amenable, engaging and easy to connect with. The range of ages, separated as they were by several decades, definitely didn't harm either the authenticity or integrity of the ever-evolving and fluid storyline, which was totally addictive.
With the exception of a couple of mentions for Esher in Surrey, this story took place exclusively in the village of Bishopstone, Sussex, a real place which I could check out and get to know virtually, for myself. As a confirmed 'armchair traveller' this is always a treat and adds so much authenticity to the overall reading experience. I could tell that Lesley had undertaken plenty of extensive research to ensure that her facts were accurate, so that, together with some wonderfully descriptive passages, completely pulled me into the day to day vibrancy of the location and the lives of the people I met along the way.
December 30, 2024
Too many names for me to keep track of!
September 17, 2023
I love the way that Lesley Thomson writes as she creates environments that are so atmospheric and you just know something is going to happen...but not what you expect. Set in the 40s and the current day, the story brings together Stella, Jack and Lucie with Toni Kemp - two series coming together like a crime venn diagram. Funny moments about Snickers bars will be lost on those who haven't read the stories with Toni in but those who know her will understand! It also brings together threads from previous Stella and Jack books. At first, I was a bit concerned about the story revolving around Jack's twins as I didn't want it to be either cosy family nor family upsets. I needn't have worried as, in Lesley's hands, the twins were integral but without schmaltz or unnecessary mayhem - in fact the various relationships with the children were beautifully handled. The pace is just right as tension is ratcheted up and slowly brought down before ratcheting up again. I jumped on quite a few occasions as I am hopeless with tension! I was confident I knew who had done what to whom and when but that was blown out of the water so many times - best to give up trying to work it out and just enjoy it as it evolves. A cracking read!
September 26, 2023
not the best in the series
Not the best one in this series sadly, the characters seemed flat and not as likeable and the plot didn’t run along nicely as with the others but felt as though the author had struggled to make it work.
Not the best one in this series sadly, the characters seemed flat and not as likeable and the plot didn’t run along nicely as with the others but felt as though the author had struggled to make it work.
September 18, 2023
The Mystery of Yew Tree House is the ninth book in Lesley Thomson's Detective's Daughter series. I haven't read the previous novels but having thoroughly enjoyed The Companion, I decided it was worth taking a risk and jumping in here. I'm so glad I did because despite a little initial confusion as I made sense of the relationships between the returning characters, this is such an enjoyable read with a cleverly plotted dual-timeline mystery.
The narrative alternates between the present day and the war years but is set in the same Sussex village of Bishopstone and is centred on what really happened at the titular Yew Tree House. In 1940 it's the home of recently widowed Adelaide Stride who is now raising her daughters alone but has more problems to deal with than solitary motherhood. In the present day, the house is the holiday home for Stella Darnell, her partner, Jack and his seven-year-old twins, Millie and Justin. Despite the passage of time, characters from the past are still around in 2023 and it's their secrets which are gradually revealed after a skeleton is discovered in an old pillbox. The two storylines complement one another perfectly and there's a beautifully immersive sense of place which is reminiscent of a classic English mystery and yet feels entirely fresh.
There can be no doubting that there's a very real tragedy at the heart of this novel, or that it features some truly despicable people. However, Lesley Thomson writes with a delightfully light touch and there are some very funny scenes too. Both Stella and Jack have sombre ties to the area and although I have missed seeing their relationship evolve over the course of the series, there is enough backstory to ensure I became thoroughly invested in them as a couple and as a family. Their different strengths and weaknesses are crucial to the plot and I was soon able to understand why this series has so many admirers. Their domestic situation undergoes changes here which may be unexpected but add a further layer of interest to the plot. Millie and Justin are – perhaps inevitably – the source of much of the humour and I suspect there may be a split between readers who love them and those who are left cold by their behaviour. I thought they were wonderful, especially the precocious, fiercely determined and morbidly fascinated Millie who is clearly a detective in the making.
The identity of the skeleton and what it reveals about the past is compelling, with the chapters that follow Adelaide and her family hinting at something awful which we know will result in murder. The wartime setting, where fear of the enemy and the darkness of the blackout creates an atmospheric, chilling backdrop. While all the stalwarts of village life are here, it's the sinister curate, Snace who is arguably the most intriguing character, especially as there are such divided options about him throughout the novel. It's not surprising that the Home Guard and ARP wardens should feature in a book set in this period but they are far from the Dad's Army image often conjured up, and there's a rather poignant look at the forgotten recruits to the highly secret Auxiliary Units. Also known as Churchill's Secret Army, this last line of resistance in the event of a German invasion were never entitled to any recognition after the war ended. Lesley Thomson's examination of long-held secrets results in the truth finally being told and as much as the fictional tragedy is compulsively heartbreaking, this recognition of the 'stay behinds' is touchingly welcome too.
The Mystery of Yew Tree House is a tense, absorbing exploration of dark secrets, family ties, and the best and worst of what people are capable of; I thought it was excellent and highly recommend this compulsive, entertaining and warm-hearted mystery.
The narrative alternates between the present day and the war years but is set in the same Sussex village of Bishopstone and is centred on what really happened at the titular Yew Tree House. In 1940 it's the home of recently widowed Adelaide Stride who is now raising her daughters alone but has more problems to deal with than solitary motherhood. In the present day, the house is the holiday home for Stella Darnell, her partner, Jack and his seven-year-old twins, Millie and Justin. Despite the passage of time, characters from the past are still around in 2023 and it's their secrets which are gradually revealed after a skeleton is discovered in an old pillbox. The two storylines complement one another perfectly and there's a beautifully immersive sense of place which is reminiscent of a classic English mystery and yet feels entirely fresh.
There can be no doubting that there's a very real tragedy at the heart of this novel, or that it features some truly despicable people. However, Lesley Thomson writes with a delightfully light touch and there are some very funny scenes too. Both Stella and Jack have sombre ties to the area and although I have missed seeing their relationship evolve over the course of the series, there is enough backstory to ensure I became thoroughly invested in them as a couple and as a family. Their different strengths and weaknesses are crucial to the plot and I was soon able to understand why this series has so many admirers. Their domestic situation undergoes changes here which may be unexpected but add a further layer of interest to the plot. Millie and Justin are – perhaps inevitably – the source of much of the humour and I suspect there may be a split between readers who love them and those who are left cold by their behaviour. I thought they were wonderful, especially the precocious, fiercely determined and morbidly fascinated Millie who is clearly a detective in the making.
The identity of the skeleton and what it reveals about the past is compelling, with the chapters that follow Adelaide and her family hinting at something awful which we know will result in murder. The wartime setting, where fear of the enemy and the darkness of the blackout creates an atmospheric, chilling backdrop. While all the stalwarts of village life are here, it's the sinister curate, Snace who is arguably the most intriguing character, especially as there are such divided options about him throughout the novel. It's not surprising that the Home Guard and ARP wardens should feature in a book set in this period but they are far from the Dad's Army image often conjured up, and there's a rather poignant look at the forgotten recruits to the highly secret Auxiliary Units. Also known as Churchill's Secret Army, this last line of resistance in the event of a German invasion were never entitled to any recognition after the war ended. Lesley Thomson's examination of long-held secrets results in the truth finally being told and as much as the fictional tragedy is compulsively heartbreaking, this recognition of the 'stay behinds' is touchingly welcome too.
The Mystery of Yew Tree House is a tense, absorbing exploration of dark secrets, family ties, and the best and worst of what people are capable of; I thought it was excellent and highly recommend this compulsive, entertaining and warm-hearted mystery.
September 13, 2023
'The Mystery Of Yew Tree House' is out from Head Of Zeus imprint, Aries Books, on September 14th.
It is a time slip novel, which begins in 1940, and the disturbing disappearance of a young girl, then flips forward to to 2023, and a family holiday gone horribly awry. Greta's disappearance creates ripples around the family who grew up in Yew Tree House, the two young girls who lived there at the time, Stevie and Rosa, now live in the annexe and rent the main house out.
Guinea pigs for this Air BnB-esque are train driver/detective Jack, his 7 year old twins and his cleaner friend/fellow sleuth Stella, their arrival becoming both catalyst, and jumping on point for the reader, into the historical deep dive. Told from multiple viewpoints, the mystery of the house needs a resolution much as Stella needs to come to a decision as to whether Jack and her have a future.
Thrust into a holiday with two very precocious 7 year olds, they appear to be a unit but Jack's wife Bella is very much in the picture and Stella's reaction to people thinking she is Milly and Justin's mum is very telling. They all seem to get on extremely well for a fractured and reconstructed group, including Stanley the errant dog, and it all feels very Famous Five, initially. But the past is dark and cloudy as carnival side show's crystal ball, yet to clear, as unexpected widow Adelaide bringing up her children Rosa and Stevie, plus refugee Henry, juxtaposes very well with Stella, and really highlights her insecurities as someone responsible for two young children.
As they take after their inquisitive dad, they ask so many questions about the graveyard which contains Jack's mum's grave-herself a murder victim-and possibly ghosts of crimes gone by. Whether they are real or not, there is very much an atmosphere of haunting before even the first body is found.
Flipping back and forth between the then and the now, you really begin to worry as a reader about who the skeleton is, Lesley puts flesh on the bones of the characters in `1940 and when you get to the alternating chapters, the panic sets in over who is dead. We know Stevie and Rosa are still alive, so just who was killed by whom? What happened to Greta? In the absence of men like Adelaide's husband, there is a space waiting to be claimed by horrible individuals like Michael Snace, who lurk and leer . He sees Adelaide as a possession and Yew Tree House as an extension of what he can lay claim to with no thought as to whether this family want him there or not.
The narratives, no matter what the time frame, shows the difficulties of living in a family which is not traditionally supported by society, the lies we tell in order to frame our sense of 'normal' , and the crimes committed from mistaken beliefs of self. I really enjoyed the mystery and working out whom did what and to whom.
I found the twins a little difficult to take to, they seemed to behave in a way that was far older than their age would suggest, whilst their speech was infantilised with their speech written as it would have been said aloud. I think it would have been better had I read other entries in the series, and was more familiar with the characters. Stella acted in ways I didn't fully understand as if this was a 'make or break' holiday, the inrusion of Jack's ex-wife PLUS her father's ex-girlfriend would have made, to my eyes, unwelcome bedfellows. Unless, of course, she wanted them as a distraction from what she really needed to work out which was where she stood in the context of her and Jack's relationship.
An intriguing and relentlessly entertaining time slip mystery, I really enjoyed 'The Mystery Of Yew Tree House.'
It is a time slip novel, which begins in 1940, and the disturbing disappearance of a young girl, then flips forward to to 2023, and a family holiday gone horribly awry. Greta's disappearance creates ripples around the family who grew up in Yew Tree House, the two young girls who lived there at the time, Stevie and Rosa, now live in the annexe and rent the main house out.
Guinea pigs for this Air BnB-esque are train driver/detective Jack, his 7 year old twins and his cleaner friend/fellow sleuth Stella, their arrival becoming both catalyst, and jumping on point for the reader, into the historical deep dive. Told from multiple viewpoints, the mystery of the house needs a resolution much as Stella needs to come to a decision as to whether Jack and her have a future.
Thrust into a holiday with two very precocious 7 year olds, they appear to be a unit but Jack's wife Bella is very much in the picture and Stella's reaction to people thinking she is Milly and Justin's mum is very telling. They all seem to get on extremely well for a fractured and reconstructed group, including Stanley the errant dog, and it all feels very Famous Five, initially. But the past is dark and cloudy as carnival side show's crystal ball, yet to clear, as unexpected widow Adelaide bringing up her children Rosa and Stevie, plus refugee Henry, juxtaposes very well with Stella, and really highlights her insecurities as someone responsible for two young children.
As they take after their inquisitive dad, they ask so many questions about the graveyard which contains Jack's mum's grave-herself a murder victim-and possibly ghosts of crimes gone by. Whether they are real or not, there is very much an atmosphere of haunting before even the first body is found.
Flipping back and forth between the then and the now, you really begin to worry as a reader about who the skeleton is, Lesley puts flesh on the bones of the characters in `1940 and when you get to the alternating chapters, the panic sets in over who is dead. We know Stevie and Rosa are still alive, so just who was killed by whom? What happened to Greta? In the absence of men like Adelaide's husband, there is a space waiting to be claimed by horrible individuals like Michael Snace, who lurk and leer . He sees Adelaide as a possession and Yew Tree House as an extension of what he can lay claim to with no thought as to whether this family want him there or not.
The narratives, no matter what the time frame, shows the difficulties of living in a family which is not traditionally supported by society, the lies we tell in order to frame our sense of 'normal' , and the crimes committed from mistaken beliefs of self. I really enjoyed the mystery and working out whom did what and to whom.
I found the twins a little difficult to take to, they seemed to behave in a way that was far older than their age would suggest, whilst their speech was infantilised with their speech written as it would have been said aloud. I think it would have been better had I read other entries in the series, and was more familiar with the characters. Stella acted in ways I didn't fully understand as if this was a 'make or break' holiday, the inrusion of Jack's ex-wife PLUS her father's ex-girlfriend would have made, to my eyes, unwelcome bedfellows. Unless, of course, she wanted them as a distraction from what she really needed to work out which was where she stood in the context of her and Jack's relationship.
An intriguing and relentlessly entertaining time slip mystery, I really enjoyed 'The Mystery Of Yew Tree House.'
October 18, 2023
After a two-book foray into someone else’s world, Lesley Thomson has returned to the one inhabited by Stella Darnell, the cleaner all busy women dream of finding. Stella and her Tube train driver partner Jack keep tripping over bodies. In earlier books it’s fair to say Jack went in search of them, or at least of of their killers, and Stella, the daughter of the late ace detective Terry Darnell, wasn’t averse to a bit of investigating on the side. These days she puts her considerable energy into running Clean Slate, her highly efficient and successful cleaning agency, but the bodies seem to keep turning up.
This time it’s a skeleton, discovered in a World War Two pillbox concealed by brambles in the garden of Yew Tree House, where Stella, Jack and Jack’s seven-year-old twins Milly and Justin, are on holiday. It’s the twins who make the discovery, and begin to investigate themselves. Enter Detective Inspector Toni Kemp, familiar to Thomson fans from the other world the author explored in the previous two books. Unlike many police officers, Toni isn’t averse to sharing the workload with amateur sleuths, especially when they have the reputation Stella and Jack have garnered. And so, begins an enquiry into an eighty-year-old mystery, which rapidly gains pace when there’s another murder a few doors away from Yew Tree House.
Two time-frames, plenty of eccentric characters, quirky locations and a plot with plenty of knots to unravel: these are Thomson’s stock-in-trade, and as usual she juggles them with skill and deftness. Some old friends turn up, notably Lucie May, investigative journalist and Stella’s good friend, accompanied by Prunella, her trusty motorhome (don’t dare call it a camper van!), which has a personality all of its own. The village has its share of oddballs: Rosa and Stevie, the owners of Yew Tree House, both ninety-something but spry and active and of perfectly sound mind; creepy centenarian Reverend Snace and garrulous Jimmy Chrismas, who have quite different memories of their wartime activities. And back in the 1940s there’s Adelaide, Rosa and Stevie’s redoubtable mother, whose life is not quite as it appears to the outside world; and her protegé Henry the evacuee. Yew Tree House offers plenty of scope for Stella’s hyperactive cleaning gene, and both the Old Rectory and the lodge the sisters have moved to are redolent of a bygone era.
Plenty of questions emerge. In the present-day strand: what is the origin of the knives that keep turning up? Why have the sisters abandoned Yew Tree House? Why does Snace’s house have a locked room? And in the 1940s: what is Snace up to? Why do Henry and Jimmy keep disappearing? What is Adelaide keeping from her children? They’re all answered before the end, along with the biggest question of all: will Stella stop dithering and decide to move in with Jack and the twins at last? No spoilers here; read it and find out for yourself. You won’t regret it.
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Reviewer: Lynne Patrick
For Lizzie Sirett (Mystery People Group)
This time it’s a skeleton, discovered in a World War Two pillbox concealed by brambles in the garden of Yew Tree House, where Stella, Jack and Jack’s seven-year-old twins Milly and Justin, are on holiday. It’s the twins who make the discovery, and begin to investigate themselves. Enter Detective Inspector Toni Kemp, familiar to Thomson fans from the other world the author explored in the previous two books. Unlike many police officers, Toni isn’t averse to sharing the workload with amateur sleuths, especially when they have the reputation Stella and Jack have garnered. And so, begins an enquiry into an eighty-year-old mystery, which rapidly gains pace when there’s another murder a few doors away from Yew Tree House.
Two time-frames, plenty of eccentric characters, quirky locations and a plot with plenty of knots to unravel: these are Thomson’s stock-in-trade, and as usual she juggles them with skill and deftness. Some old friends turn up, notably Lucie May, investigative journalist and Stella’s good friend, accompanied by Prunella, her trusty motorhome (don’t dare call it a camper van!), which has a personality all of its own. The village has its share of oddballs: Rosa and Stevie, the owners of Yew Tree House, both ninety-something but spry and active and of perfectly sound mind; creepy centenarian Reverend Snace and garrulous Jimmy Chrismas, who have quite different memories of their wartime activities. And back in the 1940s there’s Adelaide, Rosa and Stevie’s redoubtable mother, whose life is not quite as it appears to the outside world; and her protegé Henry the evacuee. Yew Tree House offers plenty of scope for Stella’s hyperactive cleaning gene, and both the Old Rectory and the lodge the sisters have moved to are redolent of a bygone era.
Plenty of questions emerge. In the present-day strand: what is the origin of the knives that keep turning up? Why have the sisters abandoned Yew Tree House? Why does Snace’s house have a locked room? And in the 1940s: what is Snace up to? Why do Henry and Jimmy keep disappearing? What is Adelaide keeping from her children? They’re all answered before the end, along with the biggest question of all: will Stella stop dithering and decide to move in with Jack and the twins at last? No spoilers here; read it and find out for yourself. You won’t regret it.
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Reviewer: Lynne Patrick
For Lizzie Sirett (Mystery People Group)
September 3, 2024
EIGHTY YEARS OF SECRETS.
1940. At Yew Tree House, recently widowed Adelaide Stride is raising her two daughters alone – but it’s not just the threat of German invasion that keeps her up at night. She is surrounded by enemies posing as allies and, while war rages, she grows sure that something terrible is about to happen.
A BODY THAT REVEALS THEM ALL.
2023. Soon after Stella Darnell begins her holiday at Yew Tree House, a skeleton is found in a pillbox at the bottom of the garden. The bullet hole in the skull tells her that the person was murdered.
This triggers the unravelling of a mystery eighty years in the making. Stella will learn that Adelaide was right to worry – the fighting might have been happening abroad, but the true enemy was always much closer to home…
A unique take on the traditional murder mystery from critically acclaimed author, Lesley Thomson, for fans of Elly Griffiths, Val McDermid and Mari Hannah.
My Review
Full of Agatha Christie style characters, all of whom have motives and means to want others out of the way, this is another classic from the Detective’s Daughter series. The Mystery of Yew Tree House conjures this Christie-esque atmosphere from the outset, with a grisly encounter, followed by a scene and character setting chapter, before we find ourselves back in familiar territory with Stella and Jack. This time they are about to embark on a holiday, getting away from it all to see if indeed Stella can live with him. In true amateur detective style though, murder and mystery is waiting for them at Yew Tree House, along with a raft of secrets.
Thomson weaves together the family who lived there in the second World War, with those who now visit for a holiday, Stella and Jack being the very first guests.
What they discover takes us back to chapters set in the early 1940s, where we meet the Stride family, who are desperate to keep the secrets of the house and its grounds.
As the story develops and secrets are quite literally unearthed, we are teased with suspicions and conjecture. In this quiet Sussex village, it seems some of the most elderly residents are not as honest as they make out. Another murder and the team of Darnell and Harmon, along with Stella’s father’s partner, ace reporter Lucie, are following their own theories.
Who can they trust? Who was responsible for these murders? Was it the same person or a revenge killing? Are they safe themselves?
Thankfully, Thomson gives us our Poirot moment at the end where all is unveiled and the final twist explained.
Style
The characters are sympathetically moulded, the plot unravels like a sheet of Williams Morris wallpaper, beautifully revealing itself, scene by scene and building a landscape for the story and the pace quickens in line with the tension as the story reaches its climax.
As Stella and Jack solve The Mystery Of Yew Tree House, it seems we might be treated to more of their detective work in the future – ?
Here’s hoping!
1940. At Yew Tree House, recently widowed Adelaide Stride is raising her two daughters alone – but it’s not just the threat of German invasion that keeps her up at night. She is surrounded by enemies posing as allies and, while war rages, she grows sure that something terrible is about to happen.
A BODY THAT REVEALS THEM ALL.
2023. Soon after Stella Darnell begins her holiday at Yew Tree House, a skeleton is found in a pillbox at the bottom of the garden. The bullet hole in the skull tells her that the person was murdered.
This triggers the unravelling of a mystery eighty years in the making. Stella will learn that Adelaide was right to worry – the fighting might have been happening abroad, but the true enemy was always much closer to home…
A unique take on the traditional murder mystery from critically acclaimed author, Lesley Thomson, for fans of Elly Griffiths, Val McDermid and Mari Hannah.
My Review
Full of Agatha Christie style characters, all of whom have motives and means to want others out of the way, this is another classic from the Detective’s Daughter series. The Mystery of Yew Tree House conjures this Christie-esque atmosphere from the outset, with a grisly encounter, followed by a scene and character setting chapter, before we find ourselves back in familiar territory with Stella and Jack. This time they are about to embark on a holiday, getting away from it all to see if indeed Stella can live with him. In true amateur detective style though, murder and mystery is waiting for them at Yew Tree House, along with a raft of secrets.
Thomson weaves together the family who lived there in the second World War, with those who now visit for a holiday, Stella and Jack being the very first guests.
What they discover takes us back to chapters set in the early 1940s, where we meet the Stride family, who are desperate to keep the secrets of the house and its grounds.
As the story develops and secrets are quite literally unearthed, we are teased with suspicions and conjecture. In this quiet Sussex village, it seems some of the most elderly residents are not as honest as they make out. Another murder and the team of Darnell and Harmon, along with Stella’s father’s partner, ace reporter Lucie, are following their own theories.
Who can they trust? Who was responsible for these murders? Was it the same person or a revenge killing? Are they safe themselves?
Thankfully, Thomson gives us our Poirot moment at the end where all is unveiled and the final twist explained.
Style
The characters are sympathetically moulded, the plot unravels like a sheet of Williams Morris wallpaper, beautifully revealing itself, scene by scene and building a landscape for the story and the pace quickens in line with the tension as the story reaches its climax.
As Stella and Jack solve The Mystery Of Yew Tree House, it seems we might be treated to more of their detective work in the future – ?
Here’s hoping!
June 28, 2024
Tiresomely ponderous and really pretty absurd. Had no idea it was part of a series when I took it out of the library, and now I do know, I'm fairly sure I will not take on to read any of the others, unless by mistake.
1. I knew I was going to find this a challenge to maintain patience with when I found myself reading the word 'indefatigable' twice within a space of five pages. First time (in a funeral speech, in the 1940s, for a military type) it was probably acceptable, but the second time (by the narrator, in the present day, to describe a character) no. I'm a reasonably literate person, and do not think I have used that word ever.
2. Incredibly irritating kids, especially the insufferably precocious daughter. Annoying misspelling of words (like 'murder-ah') attempting (unsuccessfully) to show childish mispronunciations.
3. Incredibly irriating behaviour and inner narrative from the step mother (main character) in response to said irritating kids. She's supposed to have known these kids since they were tiny, and she is reading Piaget in order to pick up tips on how to handle them. Seriously?
4. Her partner (the kids' dad) is just a fool in every possible way.
5. And the old gal with a motor-home is just a cartoon character.
6. All the main adult (but not geriatric) characters work full time, in fairly low-level jobs, but can apparently take seemingly endless time off to engage in the shenanigans arising. This is not realistic.
7. I never really got my head around what a 'True host' was supposed to be - at first it sounded like some kind of supernatural thing, but seemed by the end just to signify 'psychopath' or something similar. Why not just say that, rather than come over all Twilighty about it?
8. The characters all change their attitudes way too easily to be believable: the ex-wife suddenly becoming a true crime enthusiast and the older sister who owns the holiday home they're all staying at suddenly jumping on board with the investiagtion after keeping her family secrets for 80 years or whatever - just silly.
9. I get that the police officer was a bit of a fan girl of our main character's dad, but that does not excuse all the appalling breaches of procedure she goes in for. And eating Snickers all the time is not a character trait.
And that is only in the present day timeline. The 1940s parts of the story are equally unbelievable, and told in a thoroughly unnecessarily rambling manner.
1. I knew I was going to find this a challenge to maintain patience with when I found myself reading the word 'indefatigable' twice within a space of five pages. First time (in a funeral speech, in the 1940s, for a military type) it was probably acceptable, but the second time (by the narrator, in the present day, to describe a character) no. I'm a reasonably literate person, and do not think I have used that word ever.
2. Incredibly irritating kids, especially the insufferably precocious daughter. Annoying misspelling of words (like 'murder-ah') attempting (unsuccessfully) to show childish mispronunciations.
3. Incredibly irriating behaviour and inner narrative from the step mother (main character) in response to said irritating kids. She's supposed to have known these kids since they were tiny, and she is reading Piaget in order to pick up tips on how to handle them. Seriously?
4. Her partner (the kids' dad) is just a fool in every possible way.
5. And the old gal with a motor-home is just a cartoon character.
6. All the main adult (but not geriatric) characters work full time, in fairly low-level jobs, but can apparently take seemingly endless time off to engage in the shenanigans arising. This is not realistic.
7. I never really got my head around what a 'True host' was supposed to be - at first it sounded like some kind of supernatural thing, but seemed by the end just to signify 'psychopath' or something similar. Why not just say that, rather than come over all Twilighty about it?
8. The characters all change their attitudes way too easily to be believable: the ex-wife suddenly becoming a true crime enthusiast and the older sister who owns the holiday home they're all staying at suddenly jumping on board with the investiagtion after keeping her family secrets for 80 years or whatever - just silly.
9. I get that the police officer was a bit of a fan girl of our main character's dad, but that does not excuse all the appalling breaches of procedure she goes in for. And eating Snickers all the time is not a character trait.
And that is only in the present day timeline. The 1940s parts of the story are equally unbelievable, and told in a thoroughly unnecessarily rambling manner.
July 24, 2023
This is a rollicking addition to Lesley Thomson's series with its offbeat protagonists of Clean Slate cleaning company owner, Stella Darnell, and Jack Harmon, with his 7 year old twins Milly and Justin. Jack has booked the dilapidated Yew Tree House in Bishopstone, Sussex, for a month long holiday with Stella, the twins mother, Bella has agreed the twins can come too. It provides an opportunity to see if Stella can overcome her worries, and live with Jack, and the twins when they are with him. Both Stella and Jack have links with the area, Jack needs to take the twins to his murdered mother's grave, and Stella's deceased police officer father is connected to the area too. However, the trip turns out to be a busman's holiday for Stella and Jack that takes in murders from the war that result in murder in the present.
In a story that goes back and forth in time, the precocious Milly, an uncontrollable ball of energy and loose cannon, is intent on her and Justin conducting their own 'murdah' investigation when they discover a skeleton with a bullet in the head in a blocked up pill box from WW2 in the Yew Tree House garden. DI Toni Kemp is conducting police inquiries, and she brings in Stella to help. Yew Tree House is currently owned by the impoverished elderly sisters, Stevie and Rosa Stride, their father, Rupert, had been killed in 1940, leaving their mother, Adelaide, an ARP warden, on her own to look after them and Henry, an evacuee. Adelaide's concerns are heightened with the disappearance of 16 year old Greta, and in the present, there is the arrival of journalist Lucie in her luxurious motor home, Prunella, nosing around for an exclusive.
One of the joys of this series is the development of the characters through time and their relationships developed with others. Stella has a birthday, she is now 57, she has come a long way to think of living with Jack and the twins, and she gets closer to Bella, a botanical illustrator, who joins them at Bishopsgate. There is fun and humour in this latest brilliant crime story, we have the relentless Milly, insisting on pointing the finger at 'Father Chrismas' as a murderer, and the plotting is marvellous, it is virtually impossible to see the conclusion coming. A great crimes series that I think many readers are likely to enjoy. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.
.
In a story that goes back and forth in time, the precocious Milly, an uncontrollable ball of energy and loose cannon, is intent on her and Justin conducting their own 'murdah' investigation when they discover a skeleton with a bullet in the head in a blocked up pill box from WW2 in the Yew Tree House garden. DI Toni Kemp is conducting police inquiries, and she brings in Stella to help. Yew Tree House is currently owned by the impoverished elderly sisters, Stevie and Rosa Stride, their father, Rupert, had been killed in 1940, leaving their mother, Adelaide, an ARP warden, on her own to look after them and Henry, an evacuee. Adelaide's concerns are heightened with the disappearance of 16 year old Greta, and in the present, there is the arrival of journalist Lucie in her luxurious motor home, Prunella, nosing around for an exclusive.
One of the joys of this series is the development of the characters through time and their relationships developed with others. Stella has a birthday, she is now 57, she has come a long way to think of living with Jack and the twins, and she gets closer to Bella, a botanical illustrator, who joins them at Bishopsgate. There is fun and humour in this latest brilliant crime story, we have the relentless Milly, insisting on pointing the finger at 'Father Chrismas' as a murderer, and the plotting is marvellous, it is virtually impossible to see the conclusion coming. A great crimes series that I think many readers are likely to enjoy. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.
.
September 17, 2023
I haven’t read any others in this series, but I feel that you can read this as a standalone. You do get a bit of an intro and backstory at the beginning.
Eighty years of secrets. A body that reveals them all. 1940. At Yew Tree House, recently widowed Adelaide Stride is raising her two daughters alone - but it's not just the threat of German invasion that keeps her up at night. She is surrounded by enemies posing as allies and, while war rages, she grows sure that something terrible is about to happen. 2023. Soon after Stella Darnell begins her holiday at Yew Tree House, a skeleton is found in a pillbox at the bottom of the garden. The bullet hole in the skull tells her that the person was murdered. This triggers the unravelling of a mystery eighty years in the making. Soon, Stella will learn that Adelaide was right to worry - the fighting might have been happening abroad, but the true enemy was always much closer to home...
I got hooked on this one so quickly, it was right up my alley! A little bit Christie crossed with his fic like The Whalebone Theatre. I actually like the kids, with their famous five-esque want to find a murder- rah! (They are seven), the rector Snace is super creepy and I love a book where there are two timelines, so that slowly slowly the mystery is unravelled.
Stella is a ex detectives son, she has a professional cleaning business and solves murders on the side with her partner Jack, who has a true crime obsession and whose own mother was murdered when he was 3. Stella does not particularly want to solve murders it seems, she just seems to fall into it.
‘Adelaide caught him gazing at her in his strange contemplative fashion, she reminded herself it wasn’t only the Nazis she should fear.’
Jack and Stella are fabulously bickery, there are a classic pair of old ladies, a very creepy and anciently decrepit vicar, two brilliant kids and a crazy but fabulous journalist in a van! This would be TV gold!
‘Stella, you and I are the perfect team. We are wasted lolling about by the sea.’
It’s complex with a twisting plot, murder in the past and present, leading us finally to the truth, it’s very well done. I was totally addicted and read this over 2 days, obsessed as I was to get to the end. I definitely want to read more of this series now I have discovered it!
Original, fantastic plotting, basically a total treat!
Eighty years of secrets. A body that reveals them all. 1940. At Yew Tree House, recently widowed Adelaide Stride is raising her two daughters alone - but it's not just the threat of German invasion that keeps her up at night. She is surrounded by enemies posing as allies and, while war rages, she grows sure that something terrible is about to happen. 2023. Soon after Stella Darnell begins her holiday at Yew Tree House, a skeleton is found in a pillbox at the bottom of the garden. The bullet hole in the skull tells her that the person was murdered. This triggers the unravelling of a mystery eighty years in the making. Soon, Stella will learn that Adelaide was right to worry - the fighting might have been happening abroad, but the true enemy was always much closer to home...
I got hooked on this one so quickly, it was right up my alley! A little bit Christie crossed with his fic like The Whalebone Theatre. I actually like the kids, with their famous five-esque want to find a murder- rah! (They are seven), the rector Snace is super creepy and I love a book where there are two timelines, so that slowly slowly the mystery is unravelled.
Stella is a ex detectives son, she has a professional cleaning business and solves murders on the side with her partner Jack, who has a true crime obsession and whose own mother was murdered when he was 3. Stella does not particularly want to solve murders it seems, she just seems to fall into it.
‘Adelaide caught him gazing at her in his strange contemplative fashion, she reminded herself it wasn’t only the Nazis she should fear.’
Jack and Stella are fabulously bickery, there are a classic pair of old ladies, a very creepy and anciently decrepit vicar, two brilliant kids and a crazy but fabulous journalist in a van! This would be TV gold!
‘Stella, you and I are the perfect team. We are wasted lolling about by the sea.’
It’s complex with a twisting plot, murder in the past and present, leading us finally to the truth, it’s very well done. I was totally addicted and read this over 2 days, obsessed as I was to get to the end. I definitely want to read more of this series now I have discovered it!
Original, fantastic plotting, basically a total treat!
August 21, 2023
Bishopstone is a village straight from a jigsaw box, with Yew Tree House being a recent addition to Airbnb. Like all picture book villages though, Bishopstone has its secrets. Stella Darnell arrives there with her boyfriend Jack Harmon and his twins Milly and Justin. They also have an exuberant Border Terrier, Stanley. The holiday is going to be a trial run as Stella is considering moving in with the younger Jack. Yew Tree House is old and large with the current owners Stevie and Rosa Stride living in an attached annex. History and secrets start to come to light particularly in the cemetery just up the road where a rather creepy vicar lurks.
The novel has two timelines, the present day where Stella and Jack are on holiday, and the early 1940s. The war is still continuing and Rupert and Adelaide Stride reside at Yew Tree House. Mystery surrounds the disappearance of 16 years old Greta Fleming. It soon becomes apparent that the past and present are thoroughly intertwined and something appalling has happened at Yew Tree House.
I really liked the book and all the characters, even Milly who is totally precocious does not jar too much. Stella’s inner narrative is very entertaining. There is loads of mystery and suspense interspersed with plenty of humour. The only problem with the story was that I had not read the previous books in the series. Although each is said to work as a standalone, I really don’t think this particular one does. I had to go back and re-read certain sections to get a gist of what was going on and that interfered with the flow. The twist at the end though was done really well.
I’d certainly recommend this book, but would advise reading one or two of the previous books in the series first.
My thanks to #Netgalley, #Aries, and #LesleyThomson for an ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.
The novel has two timelines, the present day where Stella and Jack are on holiday, and the early 1940s. The war is still continuing and Rupert and Adelaide Stride reside at Yew Tree House. Mystery surrounds the disappearance of 16 years old Greta Fleming. It soon becomes apparent that the past and present are thoroughly intertwined and something appalling has happened at Yew Tree House.
I really liked the book and all the characters, even Milly who is totally precocious does not jar too much. Stella’s inner narrative is very entertaining. There is loads of mystery and suspense interspersed with plenty of humour. The only problem with the story was that I had not read the previous books in the series. Although each is said to work as a standalone, I really don’t think this particular one does. I had to go back and re-read certain sections to get a gist of what was going on and that interfered with the flow. The twist at the end though was done really well.
I’d certainly recommend this book, but would advise reading one or two of the previous books in the series first.
My thanks to #Netgalley, #Aries, and #LesleyThomson for an ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.
September 27, 2023
The latest book in the Detective’s Daughter series sees Stella and Jack taking a holiday in the Sussex countryside with Jack’s inquisitive and feisty seven year old twins, Milly and Justin. The aim of the holiday is to see if they can be a family together and for Stella to decide if moving in with Jack is something she can commit to.
The choice of location is Bishopstone, where Jack’s mother is buried, thus exposing the twins to not only the reality of death, but the notion of murder. Milly especially takes this very much in her stride as a would-be detective, helped by the twins’ discovery of a skeleton hidden in a pillbox in the garden …
As you’d expect from Thomson’s previous novels, this book is a cleverly plotted psychologically-rich story which keeps you guessing until the end. I kept thinking I had maybe got an idea of the plot twist but never quite got there…
The dual time-line works really well and the scenes set in the war are fascinating for the history they reveal about the UK’s secretive auxiliary units and the men who were involved in them.
One of the things I love about this series is the humour and affection with which the main characters are drawn - the idea that Stella is busy reading Piaget to learn about children and thus unaware that the twins have in fact left the garden and are busy chatting with strangers in the village is genius. As is reporter Lucie May’s new mobile home, nicknamed ‘Prunella’ and equipped with bedroom, shower, a kitchen - and CCTV capabilities.
Those familiar with Thomson’s other series of novels set in Newhaven will also enjoy the appearance of and burgeoning friendship between Toni Kemp, a local police officer who has featured in Death of a Mermaid and The Companion.
Highly recommend this as the latest in a very engaging series - and can also be read as a highly satisfying standalone.
The choice of location is Bishopstone, where Jack’s mother is buried, thus exposing the twins to not only the reality of death, but the notion of murder. Milly especially takes this very much in her stride as a would-be detective, helped by the twins’ discovery of a skeleton hidden in a pillbox in the garden …
As you’d expect from Thomson’s previous novels, this book is a cleverly plotted psychologically-rich story which keeps you guessing until the end. I kept thinking I had maybe got an idea of the plot twist but never quite got there…
The dual time-line works really well and the scenes set in the war are fascinating for the history they reveal about the UK’s secretive auxiliary units and the men who were involved in them.
One of the things I love about this series is the humour and affection with which the main characters are drawn - the idea that Stella is busy reading Piaget to learn about children and thus unaware that the twins have in fact left the garden and are busy chatting with strangers in the village is genius. As is reporter Lucie May’s new mobile home, nicknamed ‘Prunella’ and equipped with bedroom, shower, a kitchen - and CCTV capabilities.
Those familiar with Thomson’s other series of novels set in Newhaven will also enjoy the appearance of and burgeoning friendship between Toni Kemp, a local police officer who has featured in Death of a Mermaid and The Companion.
Highly recommend this as the latest in a very engaging series - and can also be read as a highly satisfying standalone.
April 11, 2024
The Mystery of Yew Tree House by Lesley Thomson is the ninth book in the Detective's Daughter series and is a gripping tale filled with suspense and intrigue. It can be read as a stand alone but I would encourage the reading of earlier books in the series before this one!
The story spans two timelines, 1940 and 2023, connecting the past to the present in a compelling way.
In 1940, Adelaide Stride is a recently widowed mother raising her two daughters amidst the uncertainty of World War II. Adelaide is convinced that something sinister is lurking beneath the surface, and as the war rages on, her fears only grow stronger. Fast forward to 2023, where Stella Darnell arrives at Yew Tree House for a holiday, only to discover a skeleton in the garden with a bullet hole in its skull.
As Stella delves into the mystery, she uncovers secrets that have been buried for eighty years. The unraveling of the mystery reveals that the true enemy was closer to home than anyone could have imagined. The suspenseful twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat and I enjoyed trying to piece together the puzzle along with our main lady, Stella.
Lesley Thomson has crafted a tantalizing mystery that kept me guessing and speculating until the very end. The dual timeline adds depth to the story, shedding light on the past while unraveling the present-day mystery. Fans of the Detective's Daughter series will be captivated by The Mystery of Yew Tree House, a thrilling addition to the series that is sure to keep readers hooked from start to finish.
The story spans two timelines, 1940 and 2023, connecting the past to the present in a compelling way.
In 1940, Adelaide Stride is a recently widowed mother raising her two daughters amidst the uncertainty of World War II. Adelaide is convinced that something sinister is lurking beneath the surface, and as the war rages on, her fears only grow stronger. Fast forward to 2023, where Stella Darnell arrives at Yew Tree House for a holiday, only to discover a skeleton in the garden with a bullet hole in its skull.
As Stella delves into the mystery, she uncovers secrets that have been buried for eighty years. The unraveling of the mystery reveals that the true enemy was closer to home than anyone could have imagined. The suspenseful twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat and I enjoyed trying to piece together the puzzle along with our main lady, Stella.
Lesley Thomson has crafted a tantalizing mystery that kept me guessing and speculating until the very end. The dual timeline adds depth to the story, shedding light on the past while unraveling the present-day mystery. Fans of the Detective's Daughter series will be captivated by The Mystery of Yew Tree House, a thrilling addition to the series that is sure to keep readers hooked from start to finish.
September 24, 2023
The Mystery of Yew Tree House is the first book by Thomson I have read though it is in fact the ninth book in The Detective’s Daughter series. Whilst I happily read it as a standalone I suspect I would have enjoyed it even more had I read some of the earlier books.
This is a dual timeline story that begins at Yew Tree House in the 1940s where recent widow Adelaide Stride is living with her two daughters. In 2023 Jack, Stella and Jack’s 7 year old twins arrive at the house for a month long holiday. Both Jack and Stella have connections to the area but the holiday takes a turn when the twins discover a skeleton with a bullet in its head. And so begins an investigation that university long held secrets.
I loved getting to know the characters in the book - the unlikely amateur sleuths Stella and Jack, the entertaining twins and their quest to find the “murder-rah” as well as some “interesting” village residents.
With an eeriness that pervades the wartime section, plenty of suspense and twists galore, along with a generous helping of humour, the stories are skilfully woven, making for an entertaining and enjoyable mystery.
This is a dual timeline story that begins at Yew Tree House in the 1940s where recent widow Adelaide Stride is living with her two daughters. In 2023 Jack, Stella and Jack’s 7 year old twins arrive at the house for a month long holiday. Both Jack and Stella have connections to the area but the holiday takes a turn when the twins discover a skeleton with a bullet in its head. And so begins an investigation that university long held secrets.
I loved getting to know the characters in the book - the unlikely amateur sleuths Stella and Jack, the entertaining twins and their quest to find the “murder-rah” as well as some “interesting” village residents.
With an eeriness that pervades the wartime section, plenty of suspense and twists galore, along with a generous helping of humour, the stories are skilfully woven, making for an entertaining and enjoyable mystery.
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