Aloha to Catherine Lloyd and DEATH COMES TO THE FAIR - Book Review

One of the many perks of the RWA Annual Conference is the publishers' signings ... giving me the opportunity to catch up on books I missed last year, including Catherine Lloyd's DEATH COMES TO THE FAIR, Book Four in the Kurland St. Mary's series (a Regency Cozy Mystery):

It’s harvest time in the village of Kurland St. Mary as Lucy and Robert prepare to take their vows—but a murderer has taken an unseasonable vow of vengeance . . .

As Miss Lucy Harrington, daughter of the village rector, and Major Sir Robert Kurland plan their nuptials, the major is beginning to wonder if he’ll ever hear wedding bells. He’s seen complex military campaigns that involved less strategy, and he’s finding Lucy’s meddling family maddening.

When the body of Ezekiel Thurrock, the church verger, is discovered crushed by a stone gargoyle that has fallen from the bell tower, the tragic death strikes a somber note and the wedding is delayed. But the evidence suggests this was no accident, and Lucy wonders if bad blood at the village fair had anything to do with the man’s mysterious demise, since there was much bitterness over Ezekiel’s prizewinning vegetables.

As Lucy and Robert uncover long-standing village feuds, the town’s dark secrets begin to take their toll and the couple soon finds they too are in grave danger . . .

County fair, county fair
Everybody in town will be there
So come on, hey, we're goin' down there

- Bruce Springsteen

After three books, Lucy Harrington and Major Sir Robert Kurland are ready to marry.  She helped him recover from a battlefield injury and he inspired her to consider a life away from the rectory. Alas, Lucy's aristocratic family wants a London social wedding while she and Robert would rather marry in the village. The ongoing marriage negotiations are put on hold when the beloved verger is found dead in the bell tower. Was it a tragic accident or the intentional act of revenge?

Catherine Lloyd holds a master's degree in history from University College of Wales. It is not surprising, then, that she hits the mark in this Regency cozy mystery. Catherine incorporates the customs, language, and nuances readers enjoy in Jane Austen books. While the plot focuses on the unusual death of the church verger, the ongoing romance between Lucy and Robert plays out in the background. Catherine adds humor with the secondary characters, including an enemy-turned-friend, an overreaching cook, and the magical Romany. I appreciated that this Regency mystery reaches further back into English history to create an intriguing read. Secret tunnels, unexpected spies, and royal treasure, oh my!

DEATH COMES TO THE FAIR can be read as a stand alone book but I recommend reading the series in order to follow the characters' development.

I received a copy from the Kensington signing.

I am giving away a swag pack from RWA17 to four randomly selected commenters from my posts published in the month of August. To enter the giveaway,

1. Trouble begins in DEATH COMES TO THE FAIR with the vegetable contest. What's your favorite veggie, fruit, or special treat from a country fair or farmer's market?

I miss the fresh fruit, especially pineapple, from Hawaii!

2. Comments are open through Thursday, August 31, 10 pm in Baltimore.

3. I'll post the winner on Friday, September 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City

More books in the series ...

Weekly Winners

We have winners at SOS Aloha! 

Catherine Lloyd's DEATH COMES TO KURLAND HALL
- Debby wins a book choice from my convention stash.

Diana Cosby's AN OATH SWORN
- LSU wins Scottish swag.

Winners, please claim your prize by sending your mailing address to sos.aloha@yahoo.com.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha spirit in Charm City

Aloha to Catherine Lloyd and DEATH COMES TO KURLAND HALL - Book Review

As wedding bells chime in Kurland St. Mary, a motley group of visitors descends on the village—and with a murderer on the prowl, some of them may not be returning home…

Lucy Harrington has returned to Kurland St. Mary to help with her friend Sophia Giffin’s wedding. But her homecoming is made disagreeable by the presence of Major Robert Kurland, whose bungled proposal has ruffled Lucy’s composure, and a meddling widow who has designs on her father, the village rector.

Wary of the cloying Mrs. Chingsford from the start, Lucy has doubts about the busybody’s intentions with her father. But everyone else seems to think they make an ideal match—until the courtship is curtailed when Mrs. Chingsford is found dead at the bottom of a staircase. It’s clear that it wasn’t an accident, and in hopes of finding the culprit, Lucy and Robert call a truce and begin scrutinizing the wedding guests.

But the widow left behind plenty of enemies, and when one of them is the next to turn up dead, Lucy and Robert discover that the truth is far more scandalous than anyone could have imagined… 

A Korean couple wed at the Ko Olina resort on Oahu

Love is an endless mystery, for it has nothing else to explain it. - Rabindranath Tagore

DEATH COMES TO KURLAND HALL is Book Three is Catherine Lloyd's cozy mystery series set in Regency England.   I enjoyed the first two books and recently purchased DEATH COME TO KURLAND HALL ... I could not put it down!

The series focuses on the friendship between Major Robert Kurland, a veteran of Waterloo, and Miss Lucy Harrington, the rector's daughter.  Lucy prodded Robert out of his  post war funk and helped him recover the use of his leg.  Their friendship turned into a partnership when they became entangled in a mystery in the village of Kurland St. Mary (Book 1) and during Lucy's introduction to London (Book 2). Their partnership is now threatened by their growing feelings for each other - can a cripple and a spinster find happiness together?  Neither have time to ponder on their circumstances when a murderer strikes during a wedding party.

DEATH COMES TO KURLAND HALL follows the typical pattern of a cozy mystery - suspicious characters, red herrings, and the amateur sleuth (Lucy) exposes herself to danger.  Lloyd sets this series apart with its historical setting, secondary characters who are not quite who they seem to be, and the budding romance between the practical Lucy and the cranky Robert.   Lloyd is not afraid to allow Lucy and Robert to make mistakes with the mystery and their relationship.  Likewise, Lloyd pleasantly surprised me with a few twists of the mystery plot and how secondary characters flushed out from previous books.  

Recommended read for fans of cozy mysteries and historical settings.

A bide on Kailua Beach

I am giving away a book choice from my convention stash, which includes DEATH COMES TO THE VILLAGE, to one randomly selected commenter.  To enter the giveaway,

1.  Leave a comment about a wedding you attended - did anything happen that was out of the ordinary?  Four years ago, we flew from Hawaii to Ohio for my cousin's daughter's wedding.  The groom's uncle also came from Hawaii ... so we had an Aloha moment.

2.  Comments are open through Saturday,

3.  I'll post the winner on Sunday, 

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Learn more about Catherine and her books at catherine-lloyd.com. 

Best of 2014 - Historical Romance

Here are my favorite historicals I read in 2014 ...

Jane Ashford's THE BRIDE INSISTS (link)

Jayne Fresina's ONCE UPON A KISS (link)

Lillian Marek's LADY ELINOR'S WICKED ADVENTURES (link)

Mia Marlowe's A RAKE BY ANY OTHER NAME (link)

Darlene Marshall's THE PIRATE'S SECRET BABY (link)

Catherine Lloyd's DEATH COMES TO THE VILLAGE (link) and DEATH COME TO LONDON (link).  

Cathy Maxwell rings in three books on this year's list from the Brides of Wishmore Series:

THE BRIDE SAYS NO (link)

THE BRIDE SAYS MAYBE (link)

THE GROOM SAYS YES (link)

Can you recommend a favorite historical from 2014?  One randomly selected commenter wins a book choice from my convention stash.  Comments are open through Saturday, January 3, 10 pm in Baltimore.  I'll post the winner on Sunday, January 4.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Aloha to Catherine Lloyd and DEATH COMES TO LONDON - Book Review

DEATH COMES TO LONDON is coming from Kensington on November 25, 2014:

A season in London promises a welcome change of pace for two friends from the village of Kurland St. Mary until murder makes a debut. With the reluctant blessings of their father, the rector of Kurland St. Mary, Lucy Harrington and her sister Anna leave home for a social season in London. At the same time, Lucy's special friend Major Robert Kurland is summoned to the city to accept a baronetcy for his wartime heroism.

Amidst the dizzying whirl of balls and formal dinners, the focus shifts from mixing and matchmaking to murder when the dowager Countess of Broughton, the mother of an old army friend of Robert, drops dead. When it's revealed she's been poisoned, Robert's former betrothed, Miss Chingford, is accused, and she in turn points a finger at Anna. To protect her sister, Lucy enlists Robert's aid in drawing out the true culprit.

But with suspects ranging from resentful rivals and embittered family members to the toast of the ton, it will take all their sleuthing skills to unmask the poisoner before more trouble is stirred up.

Boats on the Thames, 1850
Public Domain (link)

If you're curious, London's an amazing place. - David Bailey

Lucy Harrington, the reliable daughter of the village rector, accompanies her beautiful (and younger) sister to London for the season.   Although Lucy enjoys tending to her father's flock, she is eager to find a husband and set up her own household.   Lucy thinks she is leaving behind her special friend (and sleuthing partner) Major Robert Kurland.  Yet fate takes him to London at the same time to appear before the Prince Regent. Their paths cross among the ton ... and they find themselves knee deep in a murder mystery.  

Lloyd returns readers to the enchanting world of Regency England with two characters who continue to grow in their friendship and their attraction to the other.   Lloyd captures the pageantry of the ton while delivering witty dialogue and a hint of "penny dreadfuls".    Lloyd subtly addresses Lucy's apprehension to accept the limited opportunities for women in Regency England.  Likewise, she continues to reveal Robert's hidden wounds from his military service.  DEATH COMES TO LONDON is the perfect escape for fans of cozy mysteries and historical romances.

DEATH COMES TO LONDON is Book 2 in the Kurland St. Mary Mysteries series.  It can be read as a stand alone story.   However, readers will appreciate how Lucy and Robert became friends in Book 1, DEATH COMES TO THE VILLAGE.

I received an ARC from Kensington for an honest review.  

The New Ballroom at Buckingham Palace 

Louis Haghe (1856)

Public Domain (link)

I am giving away a print copy of DEATH COMES TO LONDON.  To enter the giveaway,

1.  Leave a comment about what sandwich would you eat during afternoon tea at the Countess' house - cucumber, watercress, egg salad, or chicken curry?   

2.  Comments are open through Saturday, November 22, 10 pm in Baltimore.  

3.  I'll post the winner on Sunday, November 23.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Check out my review of DEATH COMES TO THE VILLAGE at this link.

Learn more about Catherine and her books at catherine-lloyd.com.

Aloha to Catherine Lloyd and DEATH COMES TO THE VILLAGE - Book Review

Catherine Lloyd is the alter ego of Kate Pearce, an award winning author of spicy books.  Kate moved to the Big Island of Hawaii just as I left Oahu ... but we have become Twitter friends.  After meeting Kate at the RT Booklovers' Convention, I contacted Kensington to review DEATH COMES TO THE VILLAGE:

Major Robert Kurland has returned to the quiet vistas of his village home to recuperate from the horrors of Waterloo. However injured his body may be, his mind is as active as ever. Too active, perhaps. When he glimpses a shadowy figure from his bedroom window struggling with a heavy load, the tranquil facade of the village begins to loom sinister...Unable to forget the incident, Robert confides in his childhood friend, Miss Lucy Harrington. As the dutiful daughter of the widowed rector, following up on the major's suspicions offers a welcome diversion - but soon presents real danger. Someone is intent on stopping their investigation. And in a place where no one locks their doors, a series of thefts and the disappearance of two young serving girls demands explanation...As Robert grapples with his difficult recovery, he and Lucy try to unearth the dark truth lurking within the village shadows, and stop a killer waiting to strike again...

My mother's family hails from Kenn, Devon.
My ancestors are buried at the Church of St. Andrews
churchofstandrew.org.uk

Few things are more pleasant than a village graced with a good church, a good priest and a good pub. - John Hillaby

In the village of Kurland St. Mary, the pleasantries derive from the rector's daughter, Miss Lucy Harrington.   She cares for her widowed father, her four siblings, and the villagers in need.  She also cared for the village's benefactor, Major Robert Kurland, when he returned from Waterloo.   But Lucy wants more for her own life, maybe even a season in London.

Kurland struggles with his recovery and vents his anger on those who care most about him, including Lucy.   After falling in the night, Lucy visits him at her father's behest.   In the quiet moments they share without the servants, Kurland revelas to Lucy that he witnessed someone carrying something across his property (as he tried to close the curtains, which lead to his fall).  Lucy agrees to casually ask around the village for any strange incidents.   Her inquiry leads to more time spent with Kurland as they ultimately overcome the restrictions placed upon them by injury and society. 

Lloyd shines with an unexpected hero in Kurland.  He has a short temper, making him a difficult patient for those trying to help him.   Yet Kurland employs his mind (and authority) to aid Lucy in the investigation.  Likewise, Lucy is a likable heroine who makes the best of every situation.  She soon makes the best of working with grumpy Kurland, forming an adult friendship with a childhood playmate.   Kudos to Lloyd for the very last scene between Kurland and Lucy - he develops a sense of humor and she stands up for herself.   Lloyd hints at a budding romance that may unfold in the next book, DEATH COMES TO LONDON, scheduled for release on November 25, 2014.

The cozy mystery kept my interest while I enjoyed Lloyd's vivid descriptions of the quaint village.   Recommended read for those who enjoy amateur detectives with a historical twist.   

I received an ARC from Kensington for an honest review.

The Ley Arms in Kenn, Devon
theleyarmskenn.co.uk

I am giving away a book choice from my convention stash.  To enter the giveaway,

1.  Leave a comment about a picturesque village and/or church you have visited (even if it is in your town).

2.  Comments are open through Saturday, July 12, 10 pm in Baltimore.  I'll post the winner on Sunday, July 13.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore

Aloha Spirit in Charm City

Learn more about Catherine Lloyd aka Kate Pearce at katepearce.com.