Marie Benedict’s latest is a charming mystery featuring several of the legendary crime writers of the 1920s and 1930s, an era known as the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, and Margery Allingham were called the Queens of Crime. In this work, the author has added one additional writer to this group, Baroness Emma Orczy, author of The Scarlet Pimpernel. In this delightful story, these authors, though well known, aren’t respected by their male counterparts in the Detection Club. In order to prove themselves, the group decides that they will solve a real murder to gain the respect they deserve. This venture goes beyond the original intention as it turns into a quest to bring justice to a young nurse who unfairly gets her reputation trashed by the police and the press.
The mystery of who strangled a young English nurse in Northern France is well thought out. It contains the classic locked room device, which is quite fitting since the Queens of Crime used this often. The mystery is both intriguing and frustrating as the Queens are not only matching wits with the murderer, they must also contend with chauvinistic, ignorant, and indolent government officials, policemen, and news reporters.
While the mystery aspect of this novel is first-rate, the friendship among the Queens is truly the heart of the story. As the characters develop, one feels a genuine sense of camaraderie and love between them. The author also deftly weaves true aspects of their personalities into the book. Also, a real life secret that Dorothy Sayers had kept hidden during her lifetime is utilized as a key plot point in this story.
This book can be ranked as one of Marie Benedict’s best novels yet. If you love classic British mysteries or stories involving female friendships, you will definitely want to meet the Queens of Crime! This gets my highest recommendation!
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