addy1991's review
3.0
This was a good read! The plot really made you think. Was what happened purposeful or accidental? Self-inflicted or caused by another? Just before Beth began to fit the pieces together, I figured out who but not how they were able to pull it off. Lives were changed because of this and so was a relationship. Beth kept her thoughts to herself and didn't share them with Inspector York while expecting him to tell her what she wanted to know. As far as I'm concerned, she did wrong in this regard. She also kept sticking her nose in where it didn't belong and neglected her work because she's determined to figure things out. This is something I don't care for and hope she realizes people could get hurt while she tries to think things through and come up with the solution to hand over to the inspector. It isn't a game or puzzle book and the sooner she realizes this, the better.
ljwrites85's review
5.0
(rounded up from 4.5)
This is the second in London Murder Mystery series and as with most series it works well as a stand alone.
So we’re back with Beth, who seems to have a knack for finding trouble! This time she finds a girl barely alive, laid out in mausoleum within the museum Picture Gallery. No girl has been reported missing and it’s a race against time to find out who she is.
You know it’s rare that I find a sequel that’s better than the first but that’s the case with The Girl In The Gallery. There’s plenty of twists and turns with a very surprising ending.
This book also deals with the issues of today’s teenage girls with all the social media and trying to look like they have the perfect life. Also there is sensitive subjects of anorexia and self harm showing how these mental illnesses are often misunderstood or marginalised as not being ‘that serious’.
I like the fact we get to know DI York and Beth’s friend Katie making them seem a little more rounded than in first book and not just there for Beth to bounce her ideas off.
I did feel that the middle got a little bogged down with slightly outlandish theories and lots of dialogue but as usual that could just be me being fussy.
I’m not going to say too much more in case of spoilers but I would highly recommend this to fans of MC Beaton or Agatha Christie.
This is the second in London Murder Mystery series and as with most series it works well as a stand alone.
So we’re back with Beth, who seems to have a knack for finding trouble! This time she finds a girl barely alive, laid out in mausoleum within the museum Picture Gallery. No girl has been reported missing and it’s a race against time to find out who she is.
You know it’s rare that I find a sequel that’s better than the first but that’s the case with The Girl In The Gallery. There’s plenty of twists and turns with a very surprising ending.
This book also deals with the issues of today’s teenage girls with all the social media and trying to look like they have the perfect life. Also there is sensitive subjects of anorexia and self harm showing how these mental illnesses are often misunderstood or marginalised as not being ‘that serious’.
I like the fact we get to know DI York and Beth’s friend Katie making them seem a little more rounded than in first book and not just there for Beth to bounce her ideas off.
I did feel that the middle got a little bogged down with slightly outlandish theories and lots of dialogue but as usual that could just be me being fussy.
I’m not going to say too much more in case of spoilers but I would highly recommend this to fans of MC Beaton or Agatha Christie.
steph1rothwell's review
3.0
You soon realise that Beth has the bad luck to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. There are many similarities with the previous book, her friendship with Katie, her scathing opinion of all the ‘yummy mummies’ and her often fractious relationship with York, the police officer who has to investigate the cases that she is has the misfortune to be involved in.
But the case she attempts to solve this time is completely different. More modern, some of it believable with regards to the social media influence. But this is cosy crime and there will always be parts that are less believable but that the reader can still enjoy.
I found this book much more sinister than the first. At times it was creepy, the control that certain people had over others, even down to what they were allowed to eat and the refusal by some parents to see a problem caused by social media.
But the case she attempts to solve this time is completely different. More modern, some of it believable with regards to the social media influence. But this is cosy crime and there will always be parts that are less believable but that the reader can still enjoy.
I found this book much more sinister than the first. At times it was creepy, the control that certain people had over others, even down to what they were allowed to eat and the refusal by some parents to see a problem caused by social media.
stephbookshine's review
4.0
*I received a free ARC of this book via Rachel’s Random Resources blog tour. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*
Beth is back, and back in the middle of another mystery!
The Girl in the Gallery is the second installment of Beth’s murder-solving adventures in Dulwich, but you don’t need to have read Death in Dulwich to enjoy it, as the author sprinkles enough information through the plot to update you as you go along.
This installment is actually even better than the first! Alice Castle has settled into her narrative voice, which is a combination of the academic elegance of P.D. James or Colin Dexter and a more modern school-and-parenting style found in books like Gill Hornby’s The Hive. This combination really works, providing a nice balance between the art and history of the city and the struggles of a single mum at the school gate and beyond.
Also nicely balanced is the relationship between Beth and the lovely Inspector York (who I am actively coveting now I’ve found out he is also a READER!). The hints of romance behind an outwardly professional facade provide a fascinating chemistry of tension within the comfortable friendship they are developing. I did think on a couple of occasions that he would probably be reprimanded or even terminated for giving a civilian so much unauthorised access to his case, but I suspended disbelief because the plot was just so exciting, their working relationship so fun to witness, and the author even addresses these concerns directly through the character’s own doubts and dialogue.
In terms of the plot, I was equal parts hooked and horrified. As a parent myself, I dread the coming days of social media and peer pressure, so the main investigation cut very close to home for me. The author handled the teen issues, such as eating disorders and self-harm, sensitively and with an awareness of the restrictions on adults in the world of adolescence that rang very true.
I am really enjoying the London Mysteries and so will any readers who enjoy well-written mysteries in a traditional style but updated to a modern setting.
Beth’s heart started to thud. It was a flash of scarlet.
Someone had once told her that Constable had added a dash of red to all his canvases – it was ‘the salt in the soup’. Beth felt quite vehemently that her life did not need even the tiniest jot more seasoning. In fact, she could no longer even think of the shade crimson lake without shuddering from head to toe, after making a ghastly discovery on the first day of her job at Wyatt’s.
– Alice Castle, The Girl in the Gallery
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpress.com/2018/07/20/blog-tour-the-girl-in-the-gallery-alice-castle/
Beth is back, and back in the middle of another mystery!
The Girl in the Gallery is the second installment of Beth’s murder-solving adventures in Dulwich, but you don’t need to have read Death in Dulwich to enjoy it, as the author sprinkles enough information through the plot to update you as you go along.
This installment is actually even better than the first! Alice Castle has settled into her narrative voice, which is a combination of the academic elegance of P.D. James or Colin Dexter and a more modern school-and-parenting style found in books like Gill Hornby’s The Hive. This combination really works, providing a nice balance between the art and history of the city and the struggles of a single mum at the school gate and beyond.
Also nicely balanced is the relationship between Beth and the lovely Inspector York (who I am actively coveting now I’ve found out he is also a READER!). The hints of romance behind an outwardly professional facade provide a fascinating chemistry of tension within the comfortable friendship they are developing. I did think on a couple of occasions that he would probably be reprimanded or even terminated for giving a civilian so much unauthorised access to his case, but I suspended disbelief because the plot was just so exciting, their working relationship so fun to witness, and the author even addresses these concerns directly through the character’s own doubts and dialogue.
In terms of the plot, I was equal parts hooked and horrified. As a parent myself, I dread the coming days of social media and peer pressure, so the main investigation cut very close to home for me. The author handled the teen issues, such as eating disorders and self-harm, sensitively and with an awareness of the restrictions on adults in the world of adolescence that rang very true.
I am really enjoying the London Mysteries and so will any readers who enjoy well-written mysteries in a traditional style but updated to a modern setting.
Beth’s heart started to thud. It was a flash of scarlet.
Someone had once told her that Constable had added a dash of red to all his canvases – it was ‘the salt in the soup’. Beth felt quite vehemently that her life did not need even the tiniest jot more seasoning. In fact, she could no longer even think of the shade crimson lake without shuddering from head to toe, after making a ghastly discovery on the first day of her job at Wyatt’s.
– Alice Castle, The Girl in the Gallery
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpress.com/2018/07/20/blog-tour-the-girl-in-the-gallery-alice-castle/
louiseog's review
4.0
I am really enjoying this series - although the mystery itself could be read as a standalone.
The characters are believable, the relationships interesting and it’s a great murder mystery.
Keep them coming!
The characters are believable, the relationships interesting and it’s a great murder mystery.
Keep them coming!
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