Murder Most Royal: The brand-new murder mystery from the author of THE WINDSOR KNOT

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But when a second man is found dead, and a prominent local woman is nearly killed in a hit-and-run, the mystery takes an even darker turn. Agatha Christie meets The Crown in MURDER MOST ROYAL , the much-anticipated third book in the 'Her Majesty The Queen Investigates' mystery series by SJ Bennett - for fans of The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, Agatha Christie and M.C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin.

I wondered how Bennett would handle this series in light of the Queen’s death last September. She has set the book in 2016, is the answer. And there will be at least one more book in the series, already announced. As with SJ Bennett's first two books in the series in which Queen Elizabeth II has now been established as a more than capable, below the radar, sleuth, solving intricate mysteries with the aid of her trusted assistant private secretary, Rozie Oshodi, I listened to this one on audio, nine and half hours long, and narrated by the wonderful actor, Samantha Bond. Bond does a warm and stellar job in immersing the listener into the royal household and family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk during the festive season. The Queen and Philip arrive not in the best of health, looking forward to spending Christmas with the family, including the grandchildren and great grandchildren, although William and Kate are not there, choosing to spend it instead with Kate's family. There is banter and fun as the intimate side of a royal family at Christmas, that endeavours to keep these aspects of their lives private, is detailed. Close by, on a Norfolk beach, a severed hand in a plastic bag washes up on the beach. The police are seeking to identify the victim, but it is the Queen who identifies the 70 year old victim from the signet ring as a well known member of the aristocracy, Edward St Cyr, who as a boy was a frequent visitor to Sandringham. As the police investigate, hunting for the rest of his body, and looking into his life, movements and family, they struggle to make any headway. When another man is discovered dead and a local woman is almost killed in a hit and run, the Queen feels obliged to become involved in what turns out to be her most twisted and challenging inquiry yet and which brings danger far too close to home. Family history, secrets, deceptions and lies are slowly uncovered with a Queen determined to get to the truth, irrespective of the obstacles in her path. He looked exactly like the Terminator, absolutely expressionless and very focused, and that look still haunts me.

About SJ Bennett

With the local police investigating the Queen and her trusted assistant Rozie do their own "off the radar" detective work and as they try to unravel the complicated history and relationships of the St Cyr family there's another murder and a possibly linked hit and run accident lending a sense of urgency. Ten years on from his first meeting with Devyani Rana, Crown Prince Dipendra was given an ultimatum by his parents - his royal position or marriage to his lover. The Queen soon figures out not only who must have cut off Ned’s hands, but why, and where the rest of his body will be found—but not before running into danger herself. New Sports Biographies and Autobiographies: Gift a Book for the Sports Fan In Your Life this Christmas

With a police investigation underway, the search for the rest of Ed's body begins, and the police now probe into Ed's life, movements, and family. However, they struggle to make any solid leads. Then, another man is discovered dead, and a local woman is almost killed in a hit and run. The Queen feels compelled to become involved in what turns out to be her most challenging investigation yet and puts her life in real danger. Present-giving at Sandringham takes place on Christmas Eve - in the German tradition that they have observed since Prince Albert’s day. But what do you give a member of the family who has everything? On 1 June 2001, Crown Prince Dipendra went on the shooting spree in the royal palace, killing his parents, sister, younger brother and five other royals. Crown Prince Dipendra was found with a single bullet wound through the head. The royal family is at Sandringham for Christmas when the Queen’s aide, Rosie Oshodi, tells her that severed hands have been discovered on a nearby beach. The Queen is able to tip give Rosie an anonymous tip for the police as to their identity, because the Queen recognizes a signet ring as having been worn by Ned St. Cyr, who used to visit Sandringham when he was a boy, many years earlier.

This mystery centres around a local aristocratic family, whom the Queen knew quite well many years ago. In fact the victim used to come and play with Charles when he was boy. So there’s a personal connection that makes things a bit awkward but also a bit easier. I kept changing my mind about who the murderer was because of all the red herrings, and only really discovered who it was when the big reveal came! History Makers: Female Writers Dominate the 2023 William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award Shortlist December 2016 sees the Royal Family decamping to Sandringham for the Christmas festivities ,while a severed hand is washed up and found by a young girl on a nearby beach. As we've become used to in this series Queen Elizabeth takes more than a passing interest and identifies the hand as that of local minor aristocrat Edward St Cyr, an elderly man with a chequered history from a dysfunctional family. Murder Most Royal is Her Majesty the Queen's third attempt at solving a mystery, and I think, the weakest one yet in the series. I'm a big fan of S.J. Bennett's Her Majesty the Queen Investigates series - I loved the first two books and was keen to get my hands on her latest. But something about Murder Most Royal had it missing the highs of its predecessors. There were a few defining moments for sure - the Duke, for example, was at his characteristic best in #3, and on par with previous appearances.

The programme also reveals how the crown prince became increasingly frustrated at his role within the royal family. When a second man is found dead, and a prominent local woman is nearly killed in a hit-and-run, the mystery takes an even darker turn. That said however, I didn’t think it was as good as the first book which had the element of originality. This was more of the same but with an inordinate amount of characters so that at times I found it difficult to work out who everyone was. Agatha Christie meets The Crown in MURDER MOST ROYAL, the much-anticipated third book in the 'Her Majesty The Queen Investigates' mystery series by SJ Bennett - for fans of The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, Agatha Christie and M.C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin. Si el segundo libro de esta colección ya me convenció de que estos libros eran para mí, este tercero no hace más que cimentar esa certeza. Aunque es cierto que la ambientación navideña es tan mínima que me alegro de no haberlo reservado para diciembre, he disfrutado sobremanera de la atmosfera y los personajes que crea la autora.

With the Christmas break coming to an end, the Queen and her trusted assistant Rozie must race to discover how the pieces of the puzzle fit together. Or the next victim may be found even closer to home. About This Edition ISBN: I like this series’ plotting and the feeling it gives of an inside look at the royal family. Bennett seems to know her stuff, but she doesn’t engage in anything that feels gossipy. None of today’s unpleasantness creeps into the story, unless you count some pointed criticisms of the British press expressed by Prince Philip and the Queen.