Tag: Ancestry Detective series

REVIEW: Fatal Family Ties by S. C. Perkins

REVIEW: Fatal Family Ties by S. C. Perkins

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

When Lucy Lancaster worked for a university library, Camilla Braithwaite was among her least favorite co-workers. Alone, Camilla was fine, but she was a follower. And when her cronies were unkind or manipulative to Lucy, Camilla always went along with them.

Out from under the expectations of that job, Lucy doesn’t have to put up with any of Camilla’s antics any more. But Camilla comes to Lucy for help. A national publication has published an article maligning Camilla’s family and her famous ancestor who fought in the Civil War.  Someone is claiming Camilla’s ancestor ruined their family. Camilla wants Lucy to find the truth and clear her family’s name.

As Lucy digs into the family history, one of Camilla’s relatives is killed. And a prized family painting is stolen. So Lucy and her FBI boyfriend, Ben, start hunting for a killer.

Review

This is such a great series! I enjoy Lucy and all of the fascinating things she knows about history and about family relationships. She and Ben get to team up in this one, which I loved.

The history and the art angles in this story were fascinating. And there are some great twists. The mysteries in this series are always well-plotted, and this one kept me guessing until the end.

Series fans should not miss this. Newcomers shouldn’t struggle if they start here. Some of Lucy’s relationships might not feel well-developed for those who start with this book. But the foundational work with Ben and with Lucy’s friends/officemates was done in the earlier books, Murder Once Removed and Lineage Most Lethal. Mystery fans and genealogy fans should not miss the Ancestry Detective series!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥ = Great! Might re-read.

REVIEW: Lineage Most Lethal by S. C. Perkins

REVIEW: Lineage Most Lethal by S. C. Perkins

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Lucy Lancaster, genealogist, is preparing the last details on her research regarding the Sutton family. Her client, Pippa Sutton, is the last descendant of the wealthy family to carry the name. She’s called all of her distant relatives out to help Lucy with her project. Now, days before New Year’s, Lucy is going to complete her final interviews, present her findings, and enjoy a “vacation” of sorts at the Hotel Sutton.

While at the hotel, a sickly man stumbles into Lucy and passes her a Mont Blanc pen and a secret message before he dies.

Lucy contacts her grandfather, a collector, about the pen, and he tells her a startling story. He knew the dead man. And the pen was a clue about a secret mission Lucy’s grandfather was part of in WWII – when he was a spy.

Lucy barely has time to take in this surprising information before other people start to die. Are the deaths around Hotel Sutton connected to the WWII mission and the pen? Or has Lucy stumbled onto two mysteries at once?

Review

This is just as exceptional as the first book in the series, Murder Once Removed. The storytelling and the mystery are fantastic. I love the characters and the intricacy of the story. I was even able to puzzle out the killer, which is always so satisfying.

Lucy’s office mates/best friends and her FBI fella are not featured as prominently in this book, which was sad. I missed them. But their involvement was logical based on the story, so I can’t complain. The book was just as strong with them in the background as the first book was when they were more central. But I have high hopes for them to have a higher involvement in book 3.

Lucy is a fantastic protagonist. She’s so smart. She really knows her stuff with genealogy, but she never makes it too stuffy or too “inside” for those who only have a passing understanding. Everything in the book is well explained, and I never feel like I don’t know what is going on. The historic pieces of this particular book are also well explained – and fascinating!

If you missed book one, it is now available in mass market paperback (my favorite format). Do not skip it! I don’t think you have to have read it to understand this one, but it is just too good for mystery fans to miss it. Cozy mystery fans should be sure this series is at the top of their TBR lists.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Murder Once Removed by S. C. Perkins

REVIEW: Murder Once Removed by S. C. Perkins

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Gus Halloran hired Lucy Lancaster of Ancestry Investigations to look into his family history. One of the most significant pieces of his family lore was a story about the death of his great-great-grandfather Seth. Lucy found proof that Seth had been murdered rather than accidentally trampled by horses. And she even found out a few facts about who planned the murder – a man with initials C. A. involved in Texas politics at the time. She narrowed the suspects to a couple men, but Gus latched onto one name – Caleb Applewhite. Caleb’s descendant, Daniel, is a U. S. Senator. And Gus’s son, Pearce, is running against him.

Lucy still wants to do some digging and find out for sure who ordered Seth’s death. But journals about the incident and the community where it happened are stolen in a burglary. And then the photographic evidence of the crime is taken – and a friend of Lucy’s is killed. Now Lucy is racing against a murderer to see who can get to the truth first.

Review

This was outstanding! The characters, the setting, the mystery, the writing. All of it was perfect!

I loved Lucy, but the whole cast is terrific. It’s big enough for some fun, interesting interactions, but not so large you can’t keep track of everyone. I enjoyed the diversity and the culture pieces with the Mexican restaurant and Lucy’s community. And the work set up with her friends – and their interesting jobs – was unique and I loved it. I never felt like I was reading something I’ve read a hundred times before. I read a lot of cozy mysteries – and this one stands out from the crowd.

The mysteries were fantastic. You have the 150 year old murder and then the contemporary one. Both were fascinating. I loved how all the pieces came together! Any nuanced genealogical tidbit was clearly explained without long technical details. And the cases twisted in on themselves in fantastic, clever ways.

The voice of this is a delight. Lucy is funny! Her banter with the FBI agent who’s driving her crazy was so fun. Several fun details – like the cat NPH – added to the overall enjoyment of a truly great story. I can’t recommend this highly enough!!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥+++