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The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side, Part 1: a more expansive world
I’m back! And with a great Miss Marple to come back to. I’ll be honest, I didn’t remember The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side that much when I started it. I recalled there being an irritating victim and some kind of Hollywood drama – but I did not remember how smooth a read it…
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TCO Reviews: Killing Me by Michelle Gagnon
Most of my reading fare is quite earnest, but every once in a while – when I’m in the right mood – I sit down for something a little snarky. I grew up in Florida reading Carl Hiaasen and Dave Barry, so crime and comedy have always seemed connected. So I was pretty excited to…
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Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers: The power of a cozy Sunday read
Only two point twenty-five years into the 2020s, and the decade is shaping up to be a lot. From the pandemic to a crazy economy, it feels like these few years will go down as both Historically and personally memorable. And while some days I wake up ready to dive right in, other days all…
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TCO Reviews: The Late Mrs. Willoughby by Claudia Grey
Like many an adult who used to be a teenage girl, I have a soft spot in my heart for Jane Austen and her ever-relatable stories. I’ve spent many a rainy afternoon cozied up with Eliza and Elinor and Anne and a warm mug of tea. As a mystery lover, you can imagine my delight…
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Epistolaries and choice: The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels
Those who follow the blog will know I am a HUGE fan of Janice Hallett – so much so that I import her books from the UK just to read them ahead of schedule. And despite some shenanigans, my Waterstones order of The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels has finally hit my mailbox. I’ve…
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TCO Reviews: Sepulchre Street / The House on Graveyard Lane by Martin Edwards
I’ve got the making of a series on the brain, and it’s a perfect week to take on a new entry in the Rachel Savernake series by Martin Edwards. Sepulchre Street is Edwards’ fourth novel, and the fourth to feature his mysterious amateur sleuth, Rachel Savernake. Edwards is, of course, the premier expert on Golden…
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4:50 from Paddington, Part 2: Battle of the Lucys
We’re back with 4:50 from Paddington, and this week I want to take a look at how the BBC and iTV chose to adapt Lucy Eyelesbarrow. As a quick recap: Lucy Eyelesbarrow is one of my favorite Christie characters – a smart, independent woman who knows her strength in the domestic sphere and has the…
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4:50 from Paddington, Part 1: What makes a series stick?
We’re past the halfway mark on the Miss Marple series, and I’m so excited for this exploration. 4:50 from Paddington is the epitome of Marple-dom, an encapsulation of so much that I identify with the sleuth. But Christie keeps it fresh with new additions to the formula – most notably Lucy Eyelesbarrow, a smart and…
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TCO Reviews: Murder in Postscript by Mary Winters
If last week was the week of culinary cozy, then this week is focused on epistolary content. As a long-time fan of advice columns, I was excited to learn about Murder in PostScript, the story of a Victorian agony aunt who stumbles upon a murdered correspondent. When our intrepid heroine – a countess, no less…
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The Twyford Code: How to re-read a twist ending
First of all, time for a mini-celebration. If you’d told me back in October that I’d write 50 posts – at all, let alone before 6 months were over – I wouldn’t have believed you. The idea that I could find the time to regularly write and edit and share 50 essays of Thoughts on…