A Death in Chelsea

The Mayfair 100 squad has been idle for nearly a month and they are antsy for another case after the success of their last one. In A Death in Chelsea by Lynn Brittney, when Chief Inspector Beech is summoned to the Superintendent's office he anticipates a new case. (A Death in Chelsea will be published by Crooked Lane Books on March 10.)

The Duchess of Penhere's daughter, Lady Adeline Treborne, was found hanged in her apartment. The duchess wants the police to prove Lady Adeline did not kill herself and was murdered instead.

When Inspector Beech learns about Lady Adeline's scurrilous gossip column activities, there appear to be many suspects. Beech assembles his team and takes them to Lady Adeline's apartment. Although the duchess says she doesn't want the police surgeons to do an autopsy on her daughter, Beech asks Dr. Allardyce to perform one to discover whether Adeline killed herself or was murdered.

After the autopsy it is apparent Adeline was dead already when she was strung up. This

complicates the investigation but Beech has two excellent policeman in DS Arthur Tollman and Constable Billy Rigby, and the remainder of his squad includes pharmacist Mabel Summersby, Dr. Caroline Allardyce, Victoria Ellingham and her mother Lady Maud. They all have their own unique skills and make the Mayfair 100 squad most effective.

When Inspector Beech speaks to Adeline's maid, he discovers her mistress almost never had visitors, rarely went to social events and only went outside to shop, so how did she gather her malicious gossip? That's what the team intends to discover. 

The characters in this series make it most interesting. They are three society ladies working with two police officers, and in this book a stray relative or two set against World War I. Very insightful commentary about the war and highly entertaining interaction among all characters. A fine plot with many twists, turns and unpredictable connections. 

Murder in Belgravia

Set during the early years of World War I, Murder in Belgravia by  Lynn Brittney introduces a new series subtitled A Mayfair 100 Murder Mystery. London is flooded with women seeking jobs and  Chief Inspector Beech has been advocating for using women on the police force in non-traditional jobs, but has met some resistance from the older male officers. (The American version of Murder in Belgravia will be released on March 2019 by Crooked Lane.)

While he is investigating the murder of Lord Murcheson supposedly at the hands of his meek, mild wife Lady Harriet, Inspector Beech realizes he needs a woman to assist in interviewing the injured wife.  He organizes a group called Mayfair 100 and off they go solving the murder and lots of other crimes.

He recruits two professional women he knows from his youth. They are Caroline Allardyce, a doctor, and the newly-widowed Victoria Ellingham, trained in the law.  Adding to his squad, he includes PC Billy Rigby and veteran police officer Arthur Tollman to round out the squad. Their headquarters are to be in Victoria's mother's luxurious home in Belgravia.


While Dr. Allardyce treats the gravely injured Lady Harriet, Chief Inspector Beech questions the staff at the Murcheson home and determines one of the maids is missing. As they search for Polly, Lady Harriet fights for her life and cannot be questioned. They also learn that since his return from the war injured, Lord Murcheson has been subject to fits of rage.

As Beech, Victoria, Caroline, Rigsby and Tollman investigate the murder, they found themselves in the midst of brothels, underworld drug rings catering the the upper classes and Harley Street physicians abetting the addiction to drugs.

Interesting set of characters and an intriguing plot. This is the first in the series. Looking forward to others.

Pre-order purchase link