A Murder of Crows: A completely gripping British cozy mystery (A Dr Nell Ward Mystery Book 1)

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As he went to sleep, he thought happily that he now had all the explanation he needed for Carey’s wild streak. By God, the Careys were an entertaining bunch.” Sometimes the collective noun applied to a particular bird was a marker of rank. Berners gave a list of which birds were suitable for hunting based on one's station in life, and the names for those groups were also class-specifics. So hawks came in casts, for two kept in a nobleman's hawking tower, or leashes, for three kept in a tower. Cast was used to mark technique: Berners notes that one should always cast a hawk at prey, and never let it fly. And a leash of hawks was modeled on the name for a group of hunting greyhounds, another animal favored by the gentry. In the sleepy village of Cookingdean, Dr Nell Ward is busy working in the grounds of a local manor house. Whilst inspecting an old tunnel, the last thing she expects to overhear is a murder. As the only person with any clues as to what happened, Nell soon finds herself in the middle of the investigation. Both Marlowe and Will Shakespeare have roles in this adventure, which reminded me to look up a lot of the other characters, like Topcliffe and Heneage, to see who’s real and who’s fictitious. They’re both real, as are a surprising number of others, which is what’s so enjoyable about good historical fiction. Nell, I can see where you are. You're still sharing your location with me from doing the survey. What the bloody hell are you doing?'

A Murder of Crows by Ian Skewis | Goodreads A Murder of Crows by Ian Skewis | Goodreads

The corruption extended all the way up through the ranks into the Queen’s Court. The maneuvering for power, for the favor of the Queen, along with the necessary fending off of those courtiers who would supplant any Royal in the way of advancement was constant. For another look inside this society, read any of Shakespeare’s plays, especially the history plays and the tragedies.If you are allergic to love triangles, you may develop a rash while reading this book, as Nell also has a flirtatious relationship with a coworker. Peeking ahead at the description of book two, it seems that will resolve soon, so I wouldn't necessarily worry too much about it, but perhaps it's better to be forewarned. A minor complaint is that the crows promised in the title don't appear in the novel. I heard Topcliffe buys the bawdy-house boys that get poxed and nobody ever sees them again,’ put in Poley. Don't go into A Murder of Crows expecting a tea and crumpets in front of the fire type of cosy; it's more hiking boots, waterproofs and bats, with the occasional flute of champagne. There are no 'cute' plays on words - excuse my sigh of relief - but you will learn a lot about bats. And Nell is quite adept at using her ecological survey equipment for surveillance on murder suspects.

Murder of Crows by K. Ancrum | Goodreads Murder of Crows by K. Ancrum | Goodreads

I believe there is a follow up in the works for which I am truly grateful. Detailed, lyrical and imaginatively done, A Murder of Crows was a huge hit for me. I also often found myself questioning whether the author was clear in her own mind about what type of book she wanted this to be. For the most part it has a cosy mystery feel to it - though there are elements that you wouldn't expect to find in a cosy. Plus, it also felt too long and too much like hard work, which a successful cosy cannot afford to be. There were also significant portions that seemed far more like a mainstream police procedural - but with plot developments that would never pass muster in a true example of that genre and that you could only get away with in a cosy mystery. On top of that, there were also regular diversions into Mills & Boon territory and, rather than adding an extra dimension to the story, I found them to be annoying and unhelpful distractions.The second thing I found, if not confusing perhaps a little passé, was that Nell has a secret identity. Although I don't think it is really a spoiler I will put it in spoilers to be safe. Nell is actually a member of the aristocracy (Lady Eleanor Ward-Beaumont), fabulously wealthy, and her family has an ex-SAS protection officer/chauffeur on hand because her mother is an MP who has received death threats. Now this all feels eerily familiar (but I'm too lazy to google it) and a bit of an excuse for Nell to be able to do anything she wants, no expense spared. It’s like reading gossip magazines that are several hundred years old. Whole power structures rose and fell on the jealousies of the nobility and the notoriously moody whims of rulers. What we’re experiencing in today’s politics is nothing new. The plotting was cleverly character and timeline driven to maximum effect, there are twists and turns in the narrative but they are more of character than mystery – the final moments resonate unexpectedly and leave you with a deeply discombobulated feeling of unease. I loved it. That's not to say that lexicographers are somehow biased against these terms. By all means, resurrect them and use them as much as possible. (But pity the poor pipers, perhaps, and choose a less stingy noun than poverty.) Here's a list to get you started from The Book of Saint Albans: