jmatkinson1's review against another edition
5.0
A young florist is found murdered in her room, naked and posed like the Delacroix painting of Lady Jane Grey. For DI Edgar Stephens the coincidence with the arrival in Brighton of a troupe of tableau artistes is too obvious to ignore. Meanwhile Max Mephisto is looking forward to a TV show he is about to make with his daughter Ruby. When Max's lover becomes another victim of the killer the deaths become very close to home. Edgar is worried about his relationship with Ruby, they are engaged but can a small town policeman support the ambitions of a talented performer, and harbours feelings for his colleague Emma.
Elly Griffiths has done it again. She is a writer who really engages the reader and transports them to a time and a place, in this case 1950s Brighton and the life of a vaudeville performer. In the wrong hands this could becomes a very 'comfy' series of novels but Griffiths is a master of underpinning her writing with an air of menace. This Brighton is not a cosy seaside idyll but home to people living on the edge of existence in post-war austerity. The characters are developing nicely however a lot of loose ends are tied up at the end of this novel and I fear there won't be another in the sequence - roll on the next setting!
Elly Griffiths has done it again. She is a writer who really engages the reader and transports them to a time and a place, in this case 1950s Brighton and the life of a vaudeville performer. In the wrong hands this could becomes a very 'comfy' series of novels but Griffiths is a master of underpinning her writing with an air of menace. This Brighton is not a cosy seaside idyll but home to people living on the edge of existence in post-war austerity. The characters are developing nicely however a lot of loose ends are tied up at the end of this novel and I fear there won't be another in the sequence - roll on the next setting!
debsd's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
bluechew's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
stephlyon25's review
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
usbsticky's review against another edition
5.0
This is the 4th Stephens and Mephisto books I've read. This is kinda an interesting series. It's somewhat a mystery series. It's more a series of Stephens the detective inspector who solves crimes and his pal Mephisto who sometimes helps or is sometimes somehow involved in the crime in some way. It's also part romance. Sometimes I don't know why Mephisto is there. It's like the author added him in the first book, then tried to make him relevant in the others. But I find it's mainly a book that is about DI Stephens. The mysteries, Mephisto, his romance(s) are all things that occur around him.
In this book, a young lady is killed. As Stephens look for the killer, more bodies pile up. I really like the setting of the book. It's post-war Brighton, a sea-side holiday town. The stories also revolve a lot around the variety entertainment industry and its performers. In the last two books, a lot more is written about the Stephen's crew and I enjoy that a lot as well.
Overall, I like this series because I like the characters. Usually the mystery part is ho-hum but it's fairly well done in this book so I've given it 5 stars. I've already reserved the #5 in this series which is going to be available soon.
In this book, a young lady is killed. As Stephens look for the killer, more bodies pile up. I really like the setting of the book. It's post-war Brighton, a sea-side holiday town. The stories also revolve a lot around the variety entertainment industry and its performers. In the last two books, a lot more is written about the Stephen's crew and I enjoy that a lot as well.
Overall, I like this series because I like the characters. Usually the mystery part is ho-hum but it's fairly well done in this book so I've given it 5 stars. I've already reserved the #5 in this series which is going to be available soon.
naluju's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
raeallic's review against another edition
4.0
A 3.5 🌟 rolled up to 4. I'm very torn with this read! I enjoyed it thoroughly but the events both to characters I've grown to love and events have left me feeling kind of deflated. There is such a human characteristic at play that the twists in this story though understood left me feeling disparate.
halfcentreader's review against another edition
4.0
This series like all series in my opinion should be read in order, but in this case the author recalls past cases throughout and offers a way for a new reader to catch up or indeed become intrigues by the ones they may have missed along the way.
Another great tale with misdirection that kept me guessing.
Another great tale with misdirection that kept me guessing.
zelephante's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25