A Fiancée’s Guide to First Wives and Murder is the charming new book in the Countess of Harleigh mystery series by Dianne Freeman, set in Victorian England and featuring American-born Countess Frances Wynn and her dashing fiancé, George Hazleton.
Title: A Fiancée’s Guide to First Wives and Murder
Author: Dianne Freeman
Series: Countess of Harleigh Mystery #4
First Published: July 27, 2021
Publisher: Kensington
Genres: Mystery
Acquired: from the publisher via Netgalley
*** Thank you to Kensington, for providing me with an advanced e-copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. ***
For Frances Wynn, widow to the late Earl of Harleigh, life has a cosmopolitan flavor of late. No sooner has she sent her mother and daughter off on a shopping trip to Paris than she and her fiancé, George Hazleton, are socializing with visiting members of the Russian royal family. Yet amid this whirlwind, scandal also comes calling when Inspector Delaney turns up outside Frances’s house with a young French woman with a shocking claim: she is Mrs. George Hazelton.
As the future Mrs. George Hazelton, Frances assumes the woman is either lying or demented. Mrs. Hazelton, aka Irena, makes other outrageous statements. Among them, she insists that she is the illegitimate daughter of Russian royalty, that she has been abducted and held for ransom many times, and that someone is sending her threatening letters. When George arrives, he clarifies that he is certainly not married to Irena—though he can confirm her royal parentage. But even as he agrees to investigate whether Irena’s life is in danger, her claim proves tragically true. Irena is found strangled in Frances’ garden.
To uncover a killer—and clear their own names—Frances and George must determine which of Irena’s outlandish stories were based in fact, and who stood to benefit from her death. And as the search reaches a shocking conclusion, they may find that villainy lurks all too close to home…
A delightful, lighthearted historical cozy mystery
The Countess of Harleigh series is one of my favourite cozy mystery series. I love both the setting and the characters. I’ve been reading this series from the very beginning and it has just gotten stronger and better (Click here to read my reviews of Book 2: A Lady’s Guide to Gossip and Murder by Dianne Freeman and Book 3: A Lady’s Guide to Mischief and Murder by Dianne Freeman).
It’s always interesting to see how an author keeps the romantic tension going when the main characters get past the “will they, won’t they” stage and settle into a regular relationship. The banter between Frances and George as their friendship (and sleuthing relationship) grew closer was always an important part of the series and I’m glad to see that it hasn’t faltered, even though they are now engaged to be married.
Frances is a wonderful character. She is smart, independent, caring and loyal. She chafes a little bit in the restrictions of ‘proper’ Victorian society and is considered a bit unconventional for her position. George, while often portrayed as a proper British gentleman, is still moderately modern for his time. He values Frances’ independent streak and, unlike many cozy mystery beaus, doesn’t discourage Frances from her sleuthing and actively supports her in her murder mystery solving.
Of course, this time, there’s a lot at stake as both Frances AND George are considered suspects in Irena’s murder. On top of that, George has to deal with how society is going to view him and Frances if the rumours continue to grow that he was already married to Irena when he proposed to Frances. Oh those old-fashioned society rules!
Will the real Mrs. Hazelton please stand up?
I have to admit, I didn’t feel much sympathy for Irena. She bursts in upon poor Frances’ life, insisting that she’s married to George, and in quick succession proves herself to be a self-centred, spoilt, bragging brat. I didn’t believe for a second that she was really married to George, but it was interesting how that little story works itself out. I know by the end of the story the reader is supposed to feel a tiny bit sorry for Irena but I just couldn’t work up the emotions. However, I didn’t need to have sympathy for the victim in order to be drawn into the solving of her death.
There’s quite a cast of characters, including Frances’ brilliant Aunt Hetty, Inspector Delaney, loyal friends and servants, theatre managers and actresses, a Russian bodyguard, PLUS British and Russian royalty. Whew! The two people who aren’t present in the story who we have met in the past are Frances’ mother and daughter (although there is a hilarious series of telegrams from her mother).
Frances remains a loyal and trustful fiancee in the face of this new ‘Mrs. Hazelton’ and doesn’t hesitate for a second to go about proving to the police, and to society, that George is innocent and that she will stand by him, no matter what happens. I was cheering for her a bit, but really got a feel for how difficult the ‘rules of society’ were back then. It’s still a bit relevant in modern society, where the scandal and rumours can destroy a person’s reputation, even if they’re proven innocent at a later time.
A wonderful addition to the Countess of Harleigh series
I found the book well-paced and the mystery was intriguing from the start. There were several storylines happening at once but it never felt too confusing and you could feel the mystery moving forward with every chapter. I didn’t spend much time trying to figure out whodunnit but just sat back and enjoyed the ride. The premise is a really fun one (how would we react if someone showed up and declared that they were already married to the person you were engaged to?) and provided a lot of opportunities for characters to play wonderful parts in the story.
There was a very interesting cast of characters and some lovely character development, both for Frances and Hetty. I think we saw even more of Frances’ loyalty and backbone in this story and it made me like her even more as a main character. I’m really looking forward to the next book!
Read A Fiancée’s Guide to First Wives and Murder for yourself
(The following Amazon link is an Affiliate Link – if you click on the link and buy certain items, I will receive a small commission, even though the price remains the same for you. Click here to read my full Advertising & Affiliate Disclaimer)
ADD TO GOODREADS | PURCHASE ON: AMAZON
