Mrs. Jeffries and the Three Wise Women by Emily Brightwell

Mrs. Jeffries and the Three Wise Women by Emily Brightwell ISBN-13: 9780399584220 Hardcover: 288 pages Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime Released: Oct. 17, 2017

Source: Review copy from the publisher.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Christopher Gilhaney insults every guest at Abigail Chase’s Guy Fawkes Night dinner party. But when Gilhaney is shot dead under the cover of the night’s fireworks, his murder is deemed a robbery gone wrong. When the case hasn’t been solved six weeks later, Inspector Witherspoon is called upon to find the killer—and quickly!

With Christmas almost here, Inspector Witherspoon and everyone in his household is upset at the possibility of having to cancel their holiday plans—all to solve a case that seems impossible. Only Luty Belle, Ruth, and Mrs. Goodge refuse to give up and let the crime become a cold case. In fact, the American heiress, the charming next-door neighbor, and the formidable cook use all of their persuasive powers to get the others on board, because these three wise women know justice doesn’t take time off for Christmas.


My Review:
Mrs. Jeffries and the Three Wise Women is a historical mystery set in England in the 1890's. It's the thirty-sixth book in a series. You don't need to read the previous books to understand this one, and this book didn't spoil the whodunit of the previous books. The story isn't heavily historical, though there were enough details to provide a historical feel.

Our crime-solving crew got a "cold case" to solve, and they're upset that their Christmas plans may be spoiled by the case. They've never handled a cold case before, and they're not sure they can solve it. The characters were engaging and realistic, though not highly complex. It's a clue-based puzzle mystery. While we started with a large number of suspects, the actual mystery didn't turn out to be very complex as the clues narrowed things down. I strongly suspected whodunit and the motive from the start. Still, the investigation was fun.

There was no sex. There was a very minor amount of bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable mystery.


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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