New to Me Historical Cozy Mysteries

by Donna Huber

Thanks to my library system buying a lot of audiobooks at the end of the fiscal year, I've been clearing my to-be-read pile. I had three cozy mysteries by Anna Lee Huber on my list. I have never read her series, but since we share a last name I wanted to try her books. Two books are from her Lady Darby series, and the third is the Verity Kent series. Are you reading these series?

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Murder Most Fair by Anna Lee Huber

August 2021; Kensington; 978-1496728494
audio, ebook, print (384 pages); cozy mystery

I was drawn to the cover of this book because it reminded me of the covers of Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs series. Winspear's series takes place in the 1930s and 40s. So when I started Huber's book, I assumed it was the same period. It's not. It took me a bit to wrap my head around that the story is set post-World War 1. The description says it is November 2019.

Murder Most Fair is book 5 in the series. I haven't read the first 4, and I did struggle a bit with getting the relationships and everything sorted. This book references Verity's time in the Great War but I don't know if the whole series is post-war or if the earlier books in the series take place during the war. 

I enjoyed the mystery. There is a lot of anti-German sentiment. (If you've watched Downton Abbey, there is an episode where Edith's publisher boyfriend is going to become a German citizen so he can divorce his wife. She calls Germans "the most hated race".) It turns out that Verity has a German great-aunt. 

It wasn't uncommon for the British to have German relatives - the Royal family had German relatives. Because of the Great War, the Royal family changed their official name to Windsor (the Kaiser was a grandson of Queen Victoria). 

But all the same, the British were suspicious of Germans at best and detested them at the worst. So when Verity's Great-Aunt shows up, it is difficult to tell if the threats are just anti-German sentiments or something more nefarious. Exploring the social issues was an interesting part of the book.

The early 1900s, isn't a time period that I read a lot. I'm not sure I'm reading any cozy mysteries set in the 1910s so this one would be a good one to add to my reading list, but I'm not sure I enjoyed it enough to make it a top series to read. By the end of August, there will be a total of 8 books published in the series so I will keep it in mind when I'm in between books and want a cozy to read.

Buy Murder Most Fair at Amazon

I'm putting the following two books in publication order, but I actually read the second book before I read the first. While it was fine, it would have been better to have read them in the right order, as the end of A Perilious Perspective leads right into A Fatal Illusion.

A Perilous Perspective by Anna Lee Huber

April 2022; Berkley; 978-0593198469
audio, ebook, print (400 pages); Regency cozy mystery

A Perilous Perspective is book 10 in the Lady Darby series. It got pushed to the bottom of the pile because I forgot that it was a cozy mystery. When I saw the cover, my brain would say Regency Romance, and I would question why it was even on my list to review, as I do not read romance, and definitely not Regency Romance.

My brain was only half right. It is a Regency-era cozy mystery. I have a couple of series set in the late 1800s during the Victorian era that I really enjoy. I'm not sure if one of the series will have any more books, as it has been quite some time since a book was published in it, so I would love to find a similar series to replace it. 

Like the series that I'm trying to replace, this is a partner cozy mystery series. Lady Darby and her husband, Sebastian Gage, investigate the crimes together. Gage is quite progressive in that he isn't just humoring his wife. He actually recognizes and appreciates her talents. Her maid and his valet also assist in the investigations. I liked this team. The characters are great, and their interactions are as enjoyable as the mystery.

As I'm new to the series, I wasn't sure if they always involve a murder. This one starts off with art forgery, and I thought that might be the mystery. It is central to the mystery, but there is eventually a dead body or two.

After reading this book, I definitely want to read more books in the series. Lucky for me, my library recently added the entire series to its digital catalog, so I can get caught up.

Buy A Perilous Perspective at Amazon

A Fatal Illusion by Anna Lee Huber

June 2023; Berkley; 978-0593198483
audio, ebook, print (368 pages); Regency cozy mystery

A Fatal Illusion is book 11 in the Lady Darby series and follows directly on the heels of A Perilous Perspective. At the end of that novel, they receive word that Gage's father has fallen ill.

I find it interesting that in the previous book, we spent time with Kiara's family, and now in this book, we are with Sebastian's family. There is a stark contrast between their families. Lord Gage is very demanding and definitely never thinks he is in the wrong. I know emotions were not expressed as they are today, and that might be some of it. But I also don't think Lord Gage is as progressive as Sebastian. 

I didn't enjoy this book as much as the previous novel, but it does shed light on family dynamics. 

I enjoyed the characters in this one, though their interactions are different. In the last book, they were preparing for a wedding; in this one, they are sitting vigil at a sickbed.

I really felt we were in the 1830s with this book. People used "thee" and "thou" in normal speech - thankfully, that was only used for a short while, and not every character did.

I think this is the only series that I have read that has a sleuthing couple with a baby. And now that I say that, I'm reminded of another favorite series of mine that has ended. Catherine Lloyd's Kurland St. Mary Mystery Series. It was also set in the Regency era, and they had a baby at the end of the series. But they were definitely amateur sleuths, whereas I think Kiara and Sebastain may work as private detectives (not that they were called private detectives back then). 

Anyways, I didn't care as much for the mystery in the novel. I had trouble getting into it. But I really like the characters, and that is enough of a reason to continue with the series.

Buy A Fatal Illusion at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.

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