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While decorating the Pennyfoot's ballroom for a Christmas reception, Cecily sends her husband Baxter and stable manager Samuel into the woods to cut some fresh boughs of holly for the ballroom. An hour later their one-horse open carriage returns with the horse, the holly...and the unwelcome gift of a dead body. Baxter and Samuel are nowhere to be found. In what should be a season of celebration with friends and family, Cecily means to reunite hers and solve the mystery-even if a killer leads her in a merry measure.
In Kingsbury's charming third holiday-themed Pennyfoot Hotel mystery (after 2006's Slay Bells), hotel proprietor Cecily Sinclair Baxter is supervising the final details of the decorations in the ballroom while her husband and the stable master head into the woods to gather holly. All too quickly, the horse-and-carriage return driverless, bearing only the corpse of a stranger. Frantic and dissatisfied with the Badger's End constabulary, Cecily takes it upon herself to find the missing men and identify a murderer. The Edwardian England setting is emphasized by the romances and adventures of numerous stereotypical characters, from Colonel Fortescue with his brandy-soaked tales of exploits in the Boer War to the downstairs crew of stout housekeeper, high-strung French cook and several gossipy maids. Bright, engaging Cecily doggedly seeks the truth in this fast-paced cozy that will provide warm holiday entertainment for Kingsbury's many fans. (Nov.)
Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information More Reviews and RecommendationsKate Kingsbury is the author of the Pennyfoot Hotel and Manor House mystery series.
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September 03, 2007: In Badgers End, England Pennyfoot Hotel proprietor Cecily Sinclair Baxter praises Madeline Pengrath for decorating the ballroom for the upcoming Christmas holiday. To complete the d?cor, Cecily?s husband and stable master Samuel went -to the nearby woods to gather holly.-------------- However one of the horses returns too quickly without either man. Instead inside the trap to contain the holly is a dead stranger Mr. Baxter and Samuel failed to come home. Cecily sends for Constable Northcott. However, when he makes no progress on the case, a frustrated, worried and determined Cecily begins her own inquiry into what happened to her spouse and stable master, and who killed the man in the trap.------------- SHROUDS OF HOLLY is a delightful Edwardian whodunit starring an intrepid heroine who turns investigator out of fear for her husband as she believes the constable fails to understand time is running out. Fans of the series will enjoy this fun to read historical holiday cozy as the latest Pennyfoot Hotel mystery (see SLAY BELLS and NO CLUE AT THE INN) cleverly uses stereotypes of Pre WWI English to round out the entertaining amateur sleuth mystery.-------------- Harriet Klausner