Day: September 24, 2022

I am a big fan of the Fen Churche historical mysteries by Fliss Chester, so I was very excited to see a new heroine introduced in the cozy mystery, Death Among the Diamonds.

Cressida Fawcett embodies the 20s. She’s glamorous, sharp-witted, and likes a good time. I’ve mentioned before that when a character is well-written, I tend to picture movie stars as that character. For Cressida, I kept picturing Myrna Loy or Claudette Colbert. Maybe even a young Bette Davis.

It’s hard to narrow down what makes this book so enjoyable. Just as Cressida embodies the Roaring 20s, the author does a great job of creating the atmosphere of the time as well. I think that the whole package just transports and plops the reader down right in the middle.

I guess you could say it’s an immersive experience that works in every possible way.

I don’t want to say much about the mystery at hand because it would be easy to give away clues. But it felt like Agatha Christie meets Jeeves and Wooster meets Downton Abbey…you get the picture.  

One of the other things I really liked about Death Among the Diamonds is the writing style. It might not be for everyone, but just like the character and the atmosphere, the author captured the style of writing of the time.

That means that it can be verbose at times, and it does cause action to drag in a few places, but the reader just has to ride it out. Once the rhythm is recognized, it is easy to enjoy the cadence of the writing.

I know that sounds strange, but it was something that stood out to me in the overall plot.

A cozy mystery is not usually my first choice, but I’m a sucker for the 20s and now I’m taken in by Cressida. I think Death Among the Diamonds is a great opener for the new series, and I look forward to what Fliss Chester has up next for her.