A Legacy of Murder: A Kate Hamilton Mystery
by Connie Berry
About A Legacy of Murder
A Legacy of Murder: A Kate Hamilton Mystery
Traditional Mystery
2nd in Series
Crooked Lane Books (October 8, 2019)
Hardcover ~336 Pages
ISBN-10: 1643851543
ISBN-13: 978-1643851549
Digital ASIN: B07NKQDYM3
American antique dealer Kate Hamilton’s Christmastime jaunt to a charming English village leads to an investigation of a missing ruby…and a chain of murders.
It’s Christmastime and antiques dealer Kate Hamilton is off to visit her daughter, Christine, in the quaint English village of Long Barston. Christine and her boyfriend, Tristan, work at stately-but-crumbling Finchley Hall. Touring the Elizabethan house and grounds, Kate is intrigued by the docent’s tales of the Finchley Hoard, and the strange deaths surrounding the renowned treasure trove. But next to a small lake, Kate spies the body of a young woman, killed by a garden spade.
Nearly blind Lady Barbara, who lives at Finchley with her loyal butler, Mugg, persuades Kate to take over the murdered woman’s work. Kate finds that a Burmese ruby has vanished from the legendary Blood-Red Ring, replaced by a lesser garnet. Were the theft and the woman’s death connected?
Kate learns that Lady Barbara’s son fled to Venezuela years before, suspected of murdering another young woman. The murder weapon belonged to an old gardener, who becomes the leading suspect. But is Lady Barbara’s son back to kill again? When another body is found, the clues point toward Christine. It’s up to Kate to clear her daughter’s name in Connie Berry’s second Kate Hamilton mystery, a treasure for fans of traditional British mysteries.
I’m not joking when I say I’ve found a new must-follow series! Connie Berry’s A Legacy of Murder is one the best cozy mysteries I’ve read for the year… and I read a lot of them!
The story has everything I love in a cozy: lovable characters, beautiful setting, deliciously intricate mystery plot and a touch of romance.
The setting is atmospheric and fantastically depicted. Admittedly there are some paragraphs upon paragraphs of descriptions of landscapes, buildings and artefacts. Some kept my rapt attention and a couple I may have glossed over. It’s never overdone though and certainly does not upset the flow of the story.
This is book two in the Kate Hamilton Mystery series and the first that I’ve read. I did not feel lost at all. I immediately got a sense of Kate’s character and a bit about her background. Reference was made to a couple events from the first book, but just enough to whet the appetite to read it and not enough to be tiresome.
The mystery, or I should say mysteries, are very well-plotted. They are twisty and utterly delightful to read. We have several conundrums to puzzle through: the murders, the heists, the missing son, the mysterious stranger, the ring’s Identity and the random list of objects. All of these elements make for intriguing motives and opportunities. As those develop the reader has a difficult time fixating of the true culprit. The red herrings that pop up are often dead ends but sometimes related to another aspect of the case. I really enjoyed sifting through all the clues.
The characters help bring the story to life and we’re treated to some very different personalities. Where Tom Mallory is patient and level-headed, Kate’s daughter is impetuous and acts a bit spoilt. Lady’s Barbara timeless grace and elegance contrasts against Ivor’s unrefined charm. Each of the players adds to the story, and their interactions with Kate help the reader understand the protagonist better.
I did enjoy Kate as a main character and I found her to be determined, strong, a little flawed and quite endearing overall. There is one disagreement she has with Tom where her actions and responses are completely believable and understandable even if I think she borrowed a page from Christine’s spoilt-child-behaviour book. All of this simply made me more invested in the characters and intrigued to find out what happened next!
I give a Legacy or Murder 5/5 espresso shots and look forward to reading more in the series!
About Connie Berry
Like her protagonist, Connie Berry was raised in the antiques trade. After teaching theology for twenty-five years, she took up writing mysteries featuring high-end antiques and the legacy of the past. Connie loves history, cute animals, travel with a hint of adventure, and all things British. She lives in Ohio with her husband and adorable dog, Millie.
Author Links: Website –www.connieberry.com
Facebook Author@Facebook.com
Twitter @conniecberry
Goodreads –https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18733373.Connie_Berry
Purchase
Amazon Barnes & Noble Indiebound Kobo
TOUR PARTICIPANTS
November 1 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT
November 1 – The Power of Words – REVIEW
November 1 – Literary Gold – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
November 2 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW
November 2 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
November 2 – MJB Reviewers – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
November 3 – Carole’s Book Corner – REVIEW
November 3 – I Read What You Write – REVIEW
November 3 – Babs Book Bistro – SPOTLIGHT – Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers
November 4 – Baroness’ Book Trove – REVIEW
November 4 – eBook Addicts – SPOTLIGHT
November 4 – Diane Reviews Books – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
November 5 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST
November 5 – Brianne’s Book Reviews – REVIEW
November 5 – Brooke Blogs – GUEST POST
November 6 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
November 6 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST
November 7 – A Blue Million Books – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
November 7 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW
November 8 – Book Club Librarian – REVIEW
November 8 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
November 8 – Cassidy’s Bookshelves – GUEST POST
November 9 – Readeropolis – SPOTLIGHT
November 9 – The Bookwyrm’s Hoard – REVIEW
November 10 – A Wytch’s Book Review Blog – REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW
November 10 – Here’s How It Happened – GUEST POST
November 11 – LibriAmoriMiei – REVIEW
November 11 – The Cozy Pages – REVIEW
November 11 – Christa Reads & Writes – REVIEW
November 12 – Mysteries with Character – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
November 12 – Read Your Writes Book Reviews – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
November 12 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – SPOTLIGHT
Have you signed up to be a Tour Host?
Click Here Find Details and Sign Up Today!
The Cozy Pages 
Thank you for your review on “A Legacy of Murder” by Connie Berry and for being part of the book tour.
Can’t wait for the opportunity to read this great sounding book.
2clowns at arkansas dot net
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome Kay. It was a great one.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Excellent review, Nina. I saw this and narrowly missed signing up for it. Glad you found it so good. Hate missing a good one tho!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh no. Yeah, it’s definitely one that I’ll remember. Never would have expected it! Haha.
LikeLike