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Lady Evelyn Mystery #6
A Deadly Legacy
A few months after the Carlisle Detective Agency opened its doors, Lady Evelyn and her partner, Hugh, are twiddling their thumbs. The cases are slow to trickle in, leaving the detectives feeling uninspired. So, when Evelyn's Aunt Louise asks her to join the local chapter of the Women's Institute, she has no excuse to decline the invitation. Yet what she expects to be a tedious gathering, turns out to be anything but. She meets former suffragettes and outspoken women, eager for change, forcing Evelyn to reexamine her own prejudices. A decidedly less welcome surprise is the body she comes across only a few days later. Evelyn need hardly be a professional detective to recognize a murder when she sees one. Amid planning her wedding and navigating family affairs, she sets out to solve the case. The investigation takes Evelyn and Hugh into the past, examining the war years, which left the present far from untarnished. Is the victim's history connected to her death? Could her involvement in the war have given someone a motive for murder? The questions pile up, and Evelyn and Hugh must race against the clock to discover the truth, before more lives are lost, not least, their own...
364 pages, Paperback
First published March 15, 2022
About the author
Malia Zaidi
7 books631 followersHello and thanks for stopping by!
I am the author of the Lady Evelyn Mystery series and an avid reader, always happy to discover new books to add to my toppling pile:-)
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 23, 2023
Okay, so I'm biased, but...;-)
April 28, 2022
Two of my favorite genres, historical fiction and amateur sleuth mysteries, are brilliantly merged together in the Lady Evelyn series written by Malia Zaidi. I've read and thoroughly enjoyed the previous installments, and when a copy of the latest, A Deadly Legacy, became available, I immediately jumped on it. While Lady Evelyn's curiosities have newly led her to forming her own detective agency, she's very much unfamiliar with the business and heavily relies on her keen intelligence and natural interest in digging into things, thus making her still an amateur sleuth who is well on her road to becoming England's best unknowingly brilliant investigator since Miss Marple or (knowingly) Hercule Poirot.
The story slowly builds the background setting by introducing new and familiar characters, catching up on what's happened in the various intriguing and complicated lives of Lady Evelyn's friends and family. Our beloved protagonist is also weeks away from her own wedding to a man we met in the very first book back in Greece. Who would've thought they've come so far, not to mention the great relationship growth with Aunt Agnes and cousin Briony? I am fond of many of these cleverly crafted characters, each representing a different part of London from nearly a century ago. In this installment, a woman's group is looking to improve things for their gender. Lady Evelyn gets involved through a friend and swiftly becomes integrated into their inner workings, especially when one of the new recruits is found murdered.
Covering a decade of history pre and post World War I, the multi-dimensional side stories all come crashing together as Lady Evelyn and her partner in the detective agency split the work to solve the case. The police soon welcome her help, creating several poignant and humorous scenes, ultimately introducing us to an entirely new world of London Underground. Zaidi has done a tremendous amount of research to eloquently describe the time periods, sentiments, dress, and navigation of the city. I appreciated the differing language dialects and ingenious investigative methods, especially without cell phones, internet, and easily accessible transportation.
Another splendid installment, and I truly recommend this series. A Deadly Legacy kept me enthralled for several days, and I'm suffering from a bit of a book hangover... will I really need to wait another whole year?
The story slowly builds the background setting by introducing new and familiar characters, catching up on what's happened in the various intriguing and complicated lives of Lady Evelyn's friends and family. Our beloved protagonist is also weeks away from her own wedding to a man we met in the very first book back in Greece. Who would've thought they've come so far, not to mention the great relationship growth with Aunt Agnes and cousin Briony? I am fond of many of these cleverly crafted characters, each representing a different part of London from nearly a century ago. In this installment, a woman's group is looking to improve things for their gender. Lady Evelyn gets involved through a friend and swiftly becomes integrated into their inner workings, especially when one of the new recruits is found murdered.
Covering a decade of history pre and post World War I, the multi-dimensional side stories all come crashing together as Lady Evelyn and her partner in the detective agency split the work to solve the case. The police soon welcome her help, creating several poignant and humorous scenes, ultimately introducing us to an entirely new world of London Underground. Zaidi has done a tremendous amount of research to eloquently describe the time periods, sentiments, dress, and navigation of the city. I appreciated the differing language dialects and ingenious investigative methods, especially without cell phones, internet, and easily accessible transportation.
Another splendid installment, and I truly recommend this series. A Deadly Legacy kept me enthralled for several days, and I'm suffering from a bit of a book hangover... will I really need to wait another whole year?
July 15, 2024
Another rock solid instalment in the adventures of 1920s sleuth Lady Evelyn Carlisle. This time out, the detective work has dried up but, fear not, our fearless heroine gets involved in some espionage action instead.
A very enjoyable outing, with a memorable ending some of us have been waiting for for a while.
A very enjoyable outing, with a memorable ending some of us have been waiting for for a while.
March 19, 2022
Right from the start I felt very engaged in the two storylines that move along side by side. I don’t want to give away any of the mystery, or of Evelyn’s private develoments, so I won’t go into details. But I can say that it has made me feel the long term impact and destruction of war on people‘s lives and psyches again. While the story is well paced and interesting, this series is very character based, which I love. Evelyn, Daniel, Hugh and a number of other recurring characters are almost alive for me, something that happens only every now and then in books I read. I am looking forward to see how Evelyn‘s life progresses in the future!
June 4, 2022
Lady Evelyn stumbles upon the death of Juliet Nelson, a mysterious and quiet woman that likes to keep to herself. As she investigates to find Juliet’s killer, she learns that the victim had links to WWI. What was Juliet’s involvement in the war? Is this the reason why Juliet was quiet and liked to keep to herself? Lady Evelyn continues to investigate to discover Juliet’s past.
Lady Evelyn is an intriguing protagonist. She seems to have a thriving detective agency. She is about to get married to her longtime boyfriend and is ready to begin a new chapter in her life. She seems to be very confident and self-reliant. I like how she and her work partner, Hugh, conduct their investigation. I thought their undercover scenes were the most fun parts in this novel. They also seem to have formed an excellent partnership with the police. Thus, Lady Evelyn seems to be the most relatable character in the novel because she seems more carefree.
I do like Lady Evelyn’s partner, Hugh. He seems mysterious but is suffering from war trauma. It feels that he is trying to get his life together by becoming a private detective. Investigation seems to be his healing process from the war. Therefore, Hugh is also a very compelling protagonist. He also seems to be very adept with his job. I found Hugh to complement Lady Evelyn well, especially in solving crimes. Both of them have different personalities and circumstances. However, they both have a common goal, which is to pursue justice.
Overall, this novel is about secrets, war trauma, and recovery. I found all the characters to be very real and likable. The novel started out slow, but the mystery was well-crafted. I liked learning about Juliet and her past. This was the first book I have read in the Lady Evelyn series, and I am interested in reading the previous books in this series! I also hope that there will be more installments in the future! A Deadly Legacy is a must-read for mystery fans! I recommend A Deadly Legacy for fans of Maisie Dobbs, Death in Soho, and Murder at the Dolphin Hotel!
(Note: I received a copy of this book as part of a blog tour. All opinions expressed are my own.)
Lady Evelyn is an intriguing protagonist. She seems to have a thriving detective agency. She is about to get married to her longtime boyfriend and is ready to begin a new chapter in her life. She seems to be very confident and self-reliant. I like how she and her work partner, Hugh, conduct their investigation. I thought their undercover scenes were the most fun parts in this novel. They also seem to have formed an excellent partnership with the police. Thus, Lady Evelyn seems to be the most relatable character in the novel because she seems more carefree.
I do like Lady Evelyn’s partner, Hugh. He seems mysterious but is suffering from war trauma. It feels that he is trying to get his life together by becoming a private detective. Investigation seems to be his healing process from the war. Therefore, Hugh is also a very compelling protagonist. He also seems to be very adept with his job. I found Hugh to complement Lady Evelyn well, especially in solving crimes. Both of them have different personalities and circumstances. However, they both have a common goal, which is to pursue justice.
Overall, this novel is about secrets, war trauma, and recovery. I found all the characters to be very real and likable. The novel started out slow, but the mystery was well-crafted. I liked learning about Juliet and her past. This was the first book I have read in the Lady Evelyn series, and I am interested in reading the previous books in this series! I also hope that there will be more installments in the future! A Deadly Legacy is a must-read for mystery fans! I recommend A Deadly Legacy for fans of Maisie Dobbs, Death in Soho, and Murder at the Dolphin Hotel!
(Note: I received a copy of this book as part of a blog tour. All opinions expressed are my own.)
June 3, 2022
This book was received from the Author, and Publisher, in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.
This is a non spoiler review, because you as reader need to read this book. Also, I feel sometimes I have in the past gave away to much of the plot line. This has diminished the pleasure for would be readers.
A Deadly Legacy by Malia Zaidi is the sixth installment in the Lady Evelyn series.
It’s been a slow start since the Carlisle Detective Agency doors have opened. So when Evelyn aunt goes out of her way to invite to a local woman’s chapter, she can’t decline. An unexpected murder ignites her amateur sleuth instincts kick in. Lady Evelyn must balance family drama and the details of planning her own wedding with Hugh, and solve a murder mystery.
The storyline is well paced with reveals that come at just the right time, the authors narration flows effortlessly and smoothly. Making this book a fast read one that I completely inhaled. I was thoroughly entertained and enjoyed how this story unfolded right from the very beginning. And I was totally wrapped up in the lives of Evelyn, along with old and new characters. There two distinct parallel pot lines interwoven that eventually meet. The suspense is a subtle slow build, creating just the right enough tension.
A wonderful read one I truly enjoyed
Have a wonderful day ♡
This is a non spoiler review, because you as reader need to read this book. Also, I feel sometimes I have in the past gave away to much of the plot line. This has diminished the pleasure for would be readers.
A Deadly Legacy by Malia Zaidi is the sixth installment in the Lady Evelyn series.
It’s been a slow start since the Carlisle Detective Agency doors have opened. So when Evelyn aunt goes out of her way to invite to a local woman’s chapter, she can’t decline. An unexpected murder ignites her amateur sleuth instincts kick in. Lady Evelyn must balance family drama and the details of planning her own wedding with Hugh, and solve a murder mystery.
The storyline is well paced with reveals that come at just the right time, the authors narration flows effortlessly and smoothly. Making this book a fast read one that I completely inhaled. I was thoroughly entertained and enjoyed how this story unfolded right from the very beginning. And I was totally wrapped up in the lives of Evelyn, along with old and new characters. There two distinct parallel pot lines interwoven that eventually meet. The suspense is a subtle slow build, creating just the right enough tension.
A wonderful read one I truly enjoyed
Have a wonderful day ♡
March 13, 2023
A fine story and absorbing read
Malia Zaidi has a true gift for storytelling. 1920s London comes to life in this compelling period mystery. The characters are believable and well drawn. The settings are as well. The author deftly weaves a complex plot without dropping a stitch, which is an admirable accomplishment. While all this is true, the book would benefit from professional editing and proofreading. The author is deserving of representation so future installments of this series might be contracted for. I see a promising future ahead and will be first in line to read the next book!
Malia Zaidi has a true gift for storytelling. 1920s London comes to life in this compelling period mystery. The characters are believable and well drawn. The settings are as well. The author deftly weaves a complex plot without dropping a stitch, which is an admirable accomplishment. While all this is true, the book would benefit from professional editing and proofreading. The author is deserving of representation so future installments of this series might be contracted for. I see a promising future ahead and will be first in line to read the next book!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews