Review: A Terribly Nasty Business

A Terribly Nasty Business by Julia Seales
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was not as amusing as the first in this series, but it was humorous. It is a story of intrigue, lies, censorship, romance, and murders. This is a book with more characters than good sense; it was difficult at times to keep track of who was who, especially since the author interchanges first names with last names, so you must remember who is who by other means!

I really want to see a book about Mary-I, or shall I say, we have an inkling of what she may be, but are not 100% positive. She would make a good addition to the Inspectors team! She seems like she would be great at sniffing out clues!

A worthy read, and one that I'm sure book clubs would enjoy discussing.


*ARC supplied by the publisher Random House, the author, and NetGalley.


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DESCRIPTION:"After achieving her lifelong dream of solving a murder, bringing a killer to justice, and proving she is not, in fact, a morbid creep, Beatrice Steele feels like everything is finally falling into place. She’s traded her etiquette-obsessed community of Swampshire for the big city of London, accompanied by her ever-trusty chaperone, Miss Bolton. They’ve settled in a lovely neighborhood, Sweetbriar, known for its proximity to the Sweet Majestic theater, picturesque pleasure gardens, and an unfortunate infestation of flying squirrels. But Beatrice’s favorite part is that Sweetbriar is also home to DS Investigations, the new office she opened with the prickly, annoyingly logical Inspector Drake to solve the city’s brutally thrilling crimes.

However, nothing is turning out how Beatrice imagined it would. Sir Huxley, famed gentleman inspector and Beatrice’s former crush, is still considered the real investigator in London, so the only cases left for Beatrice and Drake are lost pets and spectacles. Not that Beatrice has much time for crime-solving anyway, as her mother still expects her to find an eligible (rich) husband to protect their family from destitution. Beatrice is struggling to balance all the demands on her and begins to wonder if she can become a true detective in a city that feels full of false promises.

That is until a string of murders thrusts Beatrice and Drake into the center of a scandal that pits the neighborhood’s wealthiest against the arts community, spreading fear and chaos throughout the city. As they follow the trail through bewildering ballrooms, secretive shops, and odd operas, Beatrice must survive threats to her partnership, her business, and her place in society to break the case—before it’s too late."