Murder at Whitehall by Amanda Carmack

Murder at Whitehall by Amanda Carmack ISBN-13: 9780451475695 Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: Obsidian Mystery Released: Dec. 1, 2015

Source: Review copy from the publisher.

Book Description from Back Cover:
1559. The Twelve Days of Christmas at Whitehall Palace will be celebrated as a grand affair. But there are those who wish to usher in the New Year by ending Queen Elizabeth’s reign....

Despite evenings of banquets and dancing, the European delegates attending Her Majesty’s holiday festivities are less interested in peace on earth than they are in fostering mistrust. Kate, the queen’s personal musician, hopes she can keep the royal guests entertained.

But then Queen Elizabeth receives a most unwanted gift—an anonymous letter that threatens to reveal untoward advances from her beloved Queen Catherine’s last husband, Thomas Seymour. Tasked with finding the extortionist, Kate has barely begun investigating when one of Spain’s visiting lords is found murdered. With two mysteries to unravel and an unsettling number of suspects to consider, Kate finds herself caught between an unscrupulous blackmailer and a cold-blooded killer.


My Review:
Murder at Whitehall is a historical suspense set at Christmas time in 1559 in England. It's the fourth book in a series, but you don't need to read the previous books to understand this story. However, it did spoil events from the previous books.

The historical details brought the time period vividly alive in my imagination. The main characters were likable and reacted realistically to events. The suspense came from the physical danger to Kate and other main characters.

There were several mysterious things that needed to be resolved, including a murder. There were some clues as to what was going on. The whole plot was only uncovered, though, when whodunit confessed to it all.

There was no sex. There was a minor amount of swearing. Overall, I'd recommend this intriguing historical novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


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