Rhys Bowen: 12 Clues of Christmas and a Christmasy Link

First off, you'll enjoy visiting yet another of Katrina's "Christmas/Winter Books" posts at Pining for the West.

I'm luxuriating in the reading of one of Rhys Bowen's "Her Royal Spyness" mysteries, The Twelve Clues of Christmas. My stress level drops into an abyss when I pick it up and become immediately reabsorbed. Lady Georgiana or "Georgie" is young with a humorous outlook on life, and not pretentious a bit, despite being a great grand-daughter of Queen Victoria. She wants to make her own way, which is terribly difficult in early 1930s England during the Depression. After all, she's only 25th in line to the throne and must make her own way, given that her father, the Duke of Rannoch, is dead, and her brother inherited everything, including Castle Rannoch in Scotland, and her mother has not enough income to share with her.

So Georgie answers an ad to be a hostess at an upper-class country house in Devon for the Christmas and New Year's holidays. She is to provide the "proper" atmosphere and help out with the paying guests who will be staying over Christmas and New Year's. Even before Georgie arrives, people start dropping dead in  the village. Sinister doings there, mixed with lovely cosy and yes, enchanting, settings, wonderful characters (perhaps more than slightly stereotyped, but such endearing stereotypes!), and lots of fun.  Very highly recommended!! I borrowed it from my local library. I think I should buy it--would love to read it again and again!

This afternoon I turned to another book, all because I don't want to come to the end of this one!