Publisher: Bookouture
Format: Print, e-book and audio
Series: A Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery #22
Genre: Historical Mystery, Cosy Mystery Book Description For Lady Eleanor Swift, Paris means champagne at breakfast, romantic walks by the Eiffel Tower… and her deadliest case yet! Newlyweds Lady Swift and Detective Hugh Seldon are honeymooning in the most romantic city on earth. Clifford, her butler,has come along for the trip to make sure everything goes to plan for the happy couple. And Gladstone, the mischievous bulldog, to make sure it doesn’t! But the pair are shocked when, just as they are toasting their new marriage at the best table in their hotel’s opulent restaurant, a man tumbles through the glass roof and lands amid the silverware and coq au vin. Before he dies, he presses a striking pearl brooch into Eleanor’s hands. She has the strangest feeling of déjà vu. Has she met this man before? All too quickly, the local police arrive and immediately accuse the new Mr and Mrs of working with the victim – a thief who’d just robbed the museum down the block. With her new husband by her side, Eleanor races to clear their name and discover who would kill to get their hands on the unusual brooch. Following a clue about a doomed love affair takes the gang from the famous cabarets and cobbled streets of Paris to rubbing shoulders with the aristocracy at the very top of the Eiffel Tower. But soon Eleanor notices a mysterious man in black following their every footstep. Is he friend or foe? And can Eleanor and Hugh unravel the case before the City of Light becomes the city of death? An utterly charming and unputdownable golden age cozy mystery set in Paris. Fans of T.E. Kinsey, Catherine Coles and Lee Strauss will adore it. My Thoughts Book #21, A Recipe for Murder (my review) ended with the long-awaited wedding of Lady Eleanor Swift and DCI Hugh Seldon and what a lovely ending that was! This book opens with the honeymooners in Paris (where else?) with, at Hugh's invitation, Clifford, Ellie's butler, to take care of arrangements and help Hugh navigate the class divide and Gladstone, the bulldog, who is rarely separated from Ellie. Three days into their honeymoon, a celebratory dinner is interrupted by a man crashing through the atrium of the hotel dining room, practically landing in Ellie's lap. She rushes to his aid while Hugh goes for help, but sadly the man dies before that help can arrive. According to the police, the dead man was wanted for burglary of a local museum. Later, Ellie admits to Hugh and Clifford that she felt an inexplicable connection to the dying man and reveals the object he pressed into her hand, a brooch, evidence of the crime he is accused of. Hugh, although a detective has no jurisdiction in Paris, immediately realises the implication of not passing the object onto the police. Regardless, Ellie believes there were two people on the roof before the man fell, questioning whether it was an accident or something more sinister. With Hugh and Clifford once again trusting Ellie's instincts and pledging their support, the trio embark on an investigation that takes them into the Parisian art scene and into one of Paris' notorious prisons. This is not the honeymoon Ellie and Hugh envisaged. Clifford, as usual, is a fount of knowledge, providing those wonderful facts and figures that educate and entertain. Gladstone waddles his way through the story always on the look out for that tempting morsel and making new friends. And despite being caught up in not one but two murder investigations, Ellie and Hugh do get to spend some romantic time together. Brainstorming, banter and blushes (from Hugh) are prevalent. The banter is as amusing as ever. Hugh has shed his frazzled Scotland Yard personna and happily follows Ellie's lead in the investigation. Again, the mystery is complex. The stakes are higher this time, however, as Ellie, Hugh and Clifford are considered suspects and must remain one step ahead of the police. Their ingenuity adds an additional layer of entertainment, suspense and excitement. As each clue steadily leads our trio to the real murderer, it also brings Ellie closer to a revelation of a personal nature. Death at a Paris Hotel is a great addition to the series and I'm looking forward to the next book and more of Ellie and Hugh's life together. Meet the Author
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