Welcome to my tour stop for Murder Most Malicious by Alyssa Maxwell. This is a mystery and a work of historical fiction, and the tour runs January 4-17 with reviews, interviews, guest posts and excerpts. Check out the tour page for the full schedule.
My Thoughts
It’s holiday time at the end of World War I, and the Renshaw family is expecting an important announcement to add an extra reason to celebrate. As the oldest of three, Julia Renshaw is expected to marry first, and the family is certain that a proposal is imminent from Henry Leighton, Marquess of Allerton. But on Christmas night, Phoebe, Julia’s younger sister, overhears a nasty argument between the pair, both Henry and Julia revealing knowledge of incriminating secrets about the other. Phoebe breaks up the argument, but the drama is just beginning.
The next day, Henry is nowhere to be found. Several household servants and townspeople have received grisly surprises in their Christmas boxes from the family, with lady’s maid Eva opening her box to find a signet ring . . . with a finger still attached to it. With Henry missing, the situation looks grim and the staff is soon under suspicion; the tension of living with a murderer in their midst is weighing heavily on everyone at Foxwood Hall. When an arrest is made, neither Phoebe nor Eva feel the right man has been found and so the lady and her lady’s maid lead an investigation of their own. But, while they may uncover the true killer, it may be at the cost of their lives.
Murder Most Malicious is the first in a new mystery series from Alyssa Maxwell and is definitely a new favorite of mine. Phoebe is a wonderful character, and I could really relate to her (not her fortune, though!) I felt her pain and frustration at being overlooked and overshadowed by her older sister’s beauty and popularity, and I admire her passion and love for her family and the care and concern she shows for not only her family, but also the staff and surrounding community. This is a wickedly clever cozy mystery and I can’t wait to read more of the series.
About the Book
Murder Most Malicious
(A Lady and Lady’s Maid Mystery Book 1)
New Series
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Kensington (December 29, 2015)
ISBN-13: 978-1617738302
E-Book ASIN: B00VQFKHPQ
Synopsis
In post–World War I England, Lady Phoebe Renshaw and her lady’s maid, Eva Huntford, step outside of their social roles and put their lives at risk to apprehend a vicious killer…
December 1918: As a difficult year draws to a close, there is much to celebrate for nineteen-year-old Phoebe Renshaw and her three siblings at their beloved family estate of Foxwood Hall. The dreadful war is finally over; eldest daughter Julia’s engagement to their houseguest, the Marquis of Allerton, appears imminent; and all have gathered to enjoy peace on earth, good will toward men.
But the peace of Foxwood Hall is shattered on the morning of Boxing Day, when the Marquis goes missing. Not entirely missing, however, as macabre evidence of foul play turns up in gift boxes given to lady’s maid Eva Huntford and a handful of others. Having overheard her sister and the Marquis in a heated exchange the night before, Lady Phoebe takes a personal interest in solving the mystery.
As the local constable suspects a footman at Foxwood Hall, Phoebe and Eva follow the clues to a different conclusion. But both young women will need to think outside the box to wrap up this case—before a cornered killer lashes out with ill will toward them…
About the Author
Alyssa Maxwell began a love affair with the city of Newport while visiting friends there back in her high school days. Time and again the harbor‑side, gas‑lit neighborhoods drew her to return, and on one of those later visits she met the man who would become her husband. Always a lover of history, Alyssa found that marrying into a large, generations‑old Newport family opened up an exciting new world of historical discovery. From the graveyards whose earliest markers read from the seventeenth century, to original colonial houses still lived in today, to the Newport Artillery Company whose curator for many years was her husband’s grandfather, Newport became a place of fascination and romantic charm. Today, Alyssa and her husband reside beneath the palms and bright skies of Florida, but part of her heart remains firmly in that small New England city of great significance, a microcosm of American history spanning from before the Revolution through the Civil War, the Industrial Age, the Gilded Age, and beyond.
Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Facebook
Where to Purchase
Amazon | Goodreads | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound
Giveaway: One print copy of Murder Most Malicious along with a cozy grab bag of books insides of a Kensington Mystery tote.
Tour Participants
January 4 – Back Porchervations – Review
January 5 – Babs Book Bistro – Review
January 6 – A Chick Who Reads – Review
January 7 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – Review
January 8 – Cozy Up With Kathy – Review, Interview
January 9 – View from the Birdhouse– Review
January 10 – Mallory Heart Reviews – Review
January 11 – The Ninja Librarian – Review
January 12 – Jane Reads – Review
January 13 – The Girl with Book Lungs – Review
January 14 – Brooke Blogs – Review
January 15 – Omnimystery News – Interview
January 16 – LibriAmoriMiei – Review
January 17 – StoreyBook Reviews – Spotlight
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The Girl with Book Lungs 
I enjoy reading books set back in the day of ladies and their hand maidens. The cover is enticing too. Thanks for the opportunity to enter for the chance of winning one.
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