The Book Addicted Girl: Robin Stevens

Showing posts with label Robin Stevens. Show all posts

Saturday, 21 March 2015

Arsenic For Tea by Robin Stevens

Series: Wells & Wong, Book Two

Publisher: Corgi Childrens

Format: Paperback

Published: 29^th January 2015

Number of Pages: 352

Book: Bought

Genre: Mystery, Crime Fiction, Murder Mystery, Historical, Suspense, Thriller, Action-Adventure, Middle Grade, YA, YA-Child Crossover

Recommended Age: 9+

Contains: Death, Mild Swearing and Alcohol References

Author's Site: Robin Stevens

WARNING: COULD CONTAIN SPOILERS… WILL DEFINITELY INCLUDE LOTS OF FANGIRLING.

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED…

I looked at Daisy. Her eyes were glittering and her cheeks were pink. This was Daisy with a Plan.

Schoolgirl detectives Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong are at Daisy’s home, Fallingford, for the holidays. Daisy’s glamourous mother is throwing a tea part for her birthday, and the whole family is invited, from eccentric Aunt Saskia to dashing Uncle Felix. But it soon becomes clear that this party isn’t about Daisy at all. (Naturally, Daisy is furious.)

Then one of the guests falls seriously, mysteriously, fatally ill – and everything points to poison.

Suddenly, Fallingford feels like a very dangerous place to be. And when someone close to Daisy looks suspicious, the girls must reveal the truth… no matter the consequences.

Review:

“Daisy and I will both need to think like detectives again. You see, just now we overheard something quite awful; something that proves that what happened to Mr Curtis was not simply an accident, or a sudden illness. Someone did this to him, and that can only mean one thing: the Detective Society has a brand-new case to investigate…”

Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong's Detective Society have already solved one huge mystery – the Murder of Miss Bell. Now, on holiday from school at Daisy's home, they plan to attend the tea party Daisy's mother is throwing for Daisy and eat cake and deal with the extended Wells family.

Of course, this isn't what they end up doing, not when a guest mysteriously and suddenly becomes ill – the deadly kind of ill...

When Daisy and Hazel discover that his death wasn't accidental but was, in fact, murder – poison, to be precise – they of course have to investigate.

With everyone present turning from guests to suspects, Daisy's home Fallingford seems deadly dangerous...

It seems the Detective Society has a new case – one a little too close to home...

I absolutely adored Murder Most Unladylike, so of course I had to pick up a copy of Arsenic For Tea the moment I laid eyes on it in WHSmith. I began reading the book in Costa, as you do, and was a hundred pages in before I could came up for air. Oh, how I love this series! It's the most fun, exciting and brilliant thing to read – I would happily read both Wells & Wong books back to back, over and over for a whole year. And speaking of this year, a third book is coming out later in 2015! I knew this was going to be the best year ever!

Hazel has become a lot stronger since the events of MMU – and a much better detective too. She's still the calm to Daisy's crazy, the emotion to Daisy's logic and the one who narrates the Detective Society's exploits. I love Hazel!

I really don't know how Daisy kept it together for so long in Arsenic For Tea! Poor girl. But she was her smart, sneaky, cunning, witty, bossy self – and I loved it. I also loved seeing more emotion from her, seeing her vulnerable side.

This time Kitty and Beanie were allowed to join in with the detecting, something that added new depths to Hazel and Daisy's little partnership. It showed just how brilliant the President and Vice President of the Detective Society are – and added extra mayhem to the mystery! Kitty was funny and Beanie was sweet – and it was nice to get to know them better.

Now, I really don't want to say too much about the other characters – can't give away any spoilers! – but I will say they were a varied, bizarre and intriguing bunch! Some were hilarious (Lord Hastings), some were curious (Miss Alston) and some were irritating (Lady Hastings). But I felt each and every one of them were unpredictable, mysterious and intriguing. I also had no freaking clue who the murderer was – like, no clue. It's embarrassing...

Oh, and it's cool – the Inspector had the same name as the author of An Inspector Calls – Priestley. Great play – great inspector. Although this isn't really anything to do with Arsenic For Tea. Just noting it...

Moving on from that, I absolutely adore Stevens' writing – it's so 1930s, so addictive and so brilliant. I love Hazel's voice, the suspense, the humour and the heart. It’s so brilliant!

Now, because the death in Arsenic For Tea happened in Daisy's own home, the plot was a lot more complicated than in Murder Most Unladylike, because the majority of the suspects were related to Daisy. This, obviously, made the detecting feel much more urgent. Letting Kitty and Beanie in on the secret on top of the personal angle made for an infinitely intriguing and exciting plot, one that kept me hooked and guessing from the first page to the very last. Robin Stevens truly is a master of the whodunnit – and at making me scratch my head! Bravo! And I also like how the plots aren't as open-shut as they first seem. The motives behind the murders are real – believable. Like in this one... I kind of totally got it.

How I adore the Wells & Wong series! It is just so much fun! It makes me feel younger, smarter and more interesting – and I just have so, so much fun reading it! I literally love everything about it and cannot wait for First Class Murder! It can't come quickly enough! I can't be without my two favourite detectives for too long! I'll lose my detective-ing edge!

If you've deduced by the end of this review that I absolutely, totally and completely adore the Wells & Wong series, bravo! Brilliant detective-ing! If you've listened to the facts and done the smart thing, you will decide to go out right now and buy both Murder Most Unladylike and Arsenic For Tea and read them on the floor in the bookshop. Which is a brilliant idea – one I wholly support and one you won't regret!

But I've talked your ear off, haven't I? I apologise – I just loved Arsenic For Tea so much! Before I go (and because Hazel is so fond of lists), I feel I should end this review with a little list of why EVERYONE EVERYWHERE must read the Wells & Wong series ASAP! Here we go...

Murder mysteries have been proven to be good for the brain – especially murder mysteries set in the '30s in England following two brilliant school-girl detectives.
The girls are hilarious – mischievous, devious, sneaky, brilliant, clever, a little bonkers. Basically, they are all such bricks! (Read Wells & Wong to find out what brick means.) You'll love the girls and will hold your breath as they sneak around, finding clues and questioning suspects without them even realising!
Arsenic For Tea is marvellously gripping! It will suck you in, hold you tight and not let you go 'til the very end. It is more addictive than bun breaks!
You never know who the murderer is – you literally suspect everyone and are left on the tip of your toes like Hazel and Daisy, watching everyone and trying to detect their secrets.
Reading a Wells & Wong book is more fun and more addictive than watching Scooby Doo while drinking tea (arsenic-free), eating chocolate and reading a good book. Which is one of the most addictive scenarios I've ever encountered. Which means this book is seriously hardcore.
It's set in the '30s! This leads to all kinds of awesome words, (occasionally) wonderful manners, Lords, Ladies, butlers and lots of other awesomeness that's enough to make a girl want to invent a time machine, hop inside, and pop back in time. Trust me, if you read it, you'll want the exact same thing!
Now, who here didn't want to be Sherlock Holmes as a kid? Exactly! Everyone wanted to be Sherlock! Well, this book lets you live your dream and have so much fun doing it!
If you don't read the Wells & Wong series, you'll be a dreadfully bad sport – and you wouldn't want that. If you read it, however, you shall be a brick!
Reading Murder Most Unladylike and Arsenic For Tea is the most fun you'll have in any murder mystery! Just clear an afternoon before starting – you won't want to put it down. I stayed up 'til the wee hours to finish – and didn't care one bit, because it was just so marvellous!
Because... just because! I've been rambling for this long! Because I read both books in one sitting! They are too freaking addictive! They are so much fun! They are amazing! Because I've just used a billion exclamation marks in a row – something that means this is deadly serious! Just trust me and read them now! Like, right now. I'll be waiting!

And that's my list. I hope I've convinced you! I can't recommend Wells & Wong enough and have already pushed the book onto my family and friends. I can't wait to hear what everyone thinks of the books!

Star Rating:
4½ Out of 5

Read this book if you liked:

Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens

The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place by Julie Berry

Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle

The Lynburn Legacy by Sarah Rees Brennan

Nancy Drew by Kathryn Keene

Young Sherlock Holmes by Andrew Lane

Happy Reading

Megan

Friday, 27 February 2015

Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens

Alternate Title: Murder Is Bad Manners

Series: Wells and Wong, Book One

Publisher: Corgi Childrens

Format: Paperback

Published: 5^th June 2014

Number of Pages: 352

Book: Paperback

Genre: Mystery, Crime Fiction, Murder Mystery, Historical, Suspense, Thriller, Action-Adventure, Middle Grade, YA, YA-Child Crossover

Recommended Age: 9+

Contains: Death, Mild Swearing and Alcohol References

Author's Site: Robin Stevens

“Are you sure we shouldn’t just go to the police?” I asked.

“Don’t be stupid,” said Daisy severely. “We don’t have any evidence yet. We don’t even have a body. They’d simply laugh at us. No, we’re on our own. And anyway, this is our murder case.”

When Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong set up a secret detective agency at Deepdean School for Girls, they can’t find a truly exciting mystery to investigate. (Unless you count The Case of Lavinia’s Missing Tie. Which they don’t.)

Then Hazel discovers the body of the Science Mistress, Miss Bell – but when she and Daisy return five minutes later, the body has disappeared. Now the girls have to solve a murder, and prove a murder happened in the first place, before the killer strikes again (and before the police get there first, naturally).

But will they succeed?

And can their friendship stand the test?

Review:

I've been hooked to murder mysteries for as long as I can remember and I've read and watched so, so many – all different sorts, in all shapes and forms. But in all my murder-mystery-ing, I've never read anything like Murder Most Unladylike. It was fun and light, but also addictive and suspenseful. Young and old crime fiction fans like me will adore it – it's just impossible to resist!

“We're still the only people who can solve the crimes."

I had to admit that Daisy's logic made sense. Under the circumstances, in fact, the Detective Society had never seemed so important.'

The year: 1934. The location: Deepdean School For Girls. The Mystery: The murder and disappearance of Miss Bell. The Detectives: Hazel Wong and Daisy Wells of the Wells & Wong Detective Society.

When Daisy Wells decides that she and her best friend, Hazel Wong, will set up a Detective Society at Deepdean School For Girls, she hopes for exciting cases. But she gets none.

And then Hazel stumbles across a body in the gym – literally. She runs to find Daisy, but by the time they return, the body has vanished. Without the body, they have no evidence – and no chance of proving a murder has taken place.

So Daisy decides that she and Hazel will serve the murder, much to Hazel's horror.

And so they begin finding clues, following suspects and making secret inquiries, with Hazel writing down everything they find.

Soon, the stakes rise and the girls find that proving the murder happened might be even harder than stopping the killer striking again – and remaining friends throughout the investigation...

Up until a few weeks ago, I hadn’t read this book, even though I'd heard so many good things. I don’t know why I hadn’t read it – Murder Most Unladylike is so my kind of book! I mean, Nancy Drew-Sherlock types in a boarding school in the 1930s trying to find a killer? C'mon, tell me that doesn’t sound totally awesome?! So when I got the chance to review the book, I said: YES PLEASE! And man, Murder Most Unladylike exceeded my expectations. It was so much fun – and so utterly addictive! I started reading, just planning on reading a few pages, and then before I knew it I was halfway through and utterly hooked, unable to stop reading. Always a good sign in a mystery!

Hazel was brilliant – level-headed, sweet, a little nervous, but understandably so! She was far more sensible than Daisy, more likable too, since her ego was nowhere near as big and she was much more sympathetic and in touch with her emotions. Daisy, however, intrigued me more. She looked like the perfect little British girl, but she was really this logical, rational, genius, sceptical want-to-be detective with a brilliant mind and intuition. She was a bit like Sherlock: at times it was hard to know why you liked her, but she was so intriguing it was hard not to, even when she did these strange things and showed her shockingly large ego.

The relationship the two of them had was rather intriguing – and by the end the perfect tortoise-and-rabbit example of murder mystery solving (read MMU and you'll get it). I loved how close the girls were, and yes, they still had little spats – but they made up. I liked watching Daisy evolve into a better person and Hazel evolve into someone a little more daring. They were so good for one another and really grew in the short space of the novel.

The other characters were varied and brilliant: each was original and real, unlike many younger murder mysteries, where there are cardboard-cut-out characters. I won’t say any more on the characters: don’t want to give you any suspect-spoilers!

I will talk about the writing, ‘cause it was simply smashing: it felt totally perfect for the era! I adored it – it felt as if I'd been transported back in time! Hazel's voice was brilliant and addictive – her compassion and humanity really came across – and I simply loved the casebook style of writing. There was lots of suspense in Murder Most Unladylike, but humour too. Some bits (mainly involving Daisy's brilliantly barmy plans) made me laugh out loud. And all the while, the suspense grew!

A murder in a boarding school, two girls determined to find the killer... C'mon, how can't you want to find out more? There was a real Nancy Drew feel to Murder Most Unladylike – only I adored MMU way more than I ever liked Nancy Drew. As with all good murder mysteries, there were twists, false turns and red herrings – along with numerous suspects. I was quite proud of myself by the end: I'd had a suspicion for quite a while that turned out to be true – of course, I had two or three similar suspicions that were completely terrible... But still! I've always enjoyed murder mysteries and Murder Most Unladylike totally appealed to my life-long love of the genre, making me even more excited than a Diagnosis Murder marathon!

As for the setting: loved it! I've always found the archetypal British boarding school to be a fascinating place for a story. Put said story back in the 1930s and you get a deliriously happy book addicted girl! I mean, I loved the boarding school setting so much I just wanted to go back in time and go to Deepdean – be in the Detective Society with Daisy and Hazel, sneak around solving a murder, have bun breaks and just do everything! Someone invent a time machine ASAP!

I also adored all the Sherlockian nods in Murder Most Unladylike: as a Sherlocked gal, I found this addictive! And seeing the diversity in the book was awesome too: canoodling between men and women and two women, a Chinese Watson, the younger girls “pashing” on Daisy... Oh, and the map and character list at the front and 'Daisy's Guide To Deepdean' at the back were just awesome! I loved both – especially Daisy's guide: her voice was brilliant and so Daisy!

I've not had so much fun reading a book for ages as I did reading Murder Most Unladylike. Utterly compelling, captivating, fun and addictive, I easily read it in one sitting and was left feeling desperate for more.

Oh, I just can't recommend this one enough! I absolutely adored it and cannot wait to get my greedy little hands on the next Wells and Wong book! With enough thrills to keep a crime junkie like me happy and more than enough light hearted silliness to entertain all, Murder Most Unladylike will appeal to everyone – and everyone should read it, ASAP!