Tessa Arlen

Charming and feisty Poppy Redfern stumbles into murder in this exciting new World War II historical mystery series from critically acclaimed author Tessa Arlen. "Absolutely smashing! Readers will fall in love with clever and quirky Poppy Redfern and the colorful villagers of Little Buffenden..."--Anna Lee Huber, bestselling author of the Lady Darby Mysterieseries

Poppy Redfern and the Midnight Murders

Charming and feisty Poppy Redfern stumbles into murder in this exciting new World War II historical mystery series from critically acclaimed author Tessa Arlen. Summer 1942. The world has been at war for three long and desperate years. In the remote English village of Little Buffenden, Poppy Redfern’s family house and farmland has been requisitioned by the War Office as a new airfield for the American Air Force. As the village's Air Raid Warden, Poppy spends her nights patrolling the village as she tries to ease her neighbors’ fears about the “Friendly Invasion” and what it means to their quiet way of life. When two young, popular women who were dating American servicemen are found strangled, Poppy quickly realizes that her little town has been divided by murder. The mistrust and suspicion of their new American partners in war threatens to tear Little Buffenden apart. Poppy decides to start her own investigation with the help of a charismatic American pilot and she soon unearths some chilling secrets and long-held grudges. Poppy will have no choice but to lay a trap for a killer so perilously close to home, she might very well become the next victim....

Colleen

3 Stars

*An decent mystery with too flippant a tone*


I've been burnt out on WWII novels for years now. But after the moderate enjoyment of The Amber Shadows, I thought I'd give another WWII Mystery a try. Enter Poppy Redfern and the Midnight Murders which I saw on bookstagram. The results were mixed.

This is the story of Poppy Redfern, an air warden in a small English town during the war passing the time while working on her novel. But when young women in her village started being murdered, Poppy decided she needed to solve the murders herself.

Poppy Redfern and the Midnight Murders was mostly a Cozy Mystery. The main problem I had with the story was that there was an almost flippant tone to the writing. At first, I gave it the benefit of the doubt. I thought that it would be like Dear Mrs. Bird which started out with a fluffy tone but ended up being quite poignant. But Poppy Redfern and the Midnight Murders never got to that level of emotion or depth. Even for a Cozy Mystery, a story about grisly murders and bleak war should have had more moments of seriousness. But despite historical research, there was always a disconnect with reality.

The story is narrated in first person by Poppy, so it is her voice that gives the story that off feeling. I think the goal was chipper dreamer, but Poppy sounded too insouciant. And severely lacking in empathy. It was off-putting to be in the head of someone whose primary goal for investigating the murders is get inspiration for her novel. The way she used the victim’s friends and family for her own ends was pretty abhorrent. I don’t recall her exact age being mentioned, but I think she was meant to be in her early twenties? Regardless, both her tone and her actions were often immature and irresponsible. And the conversations between Poppy and her fictional character were weird.

The writing also switches between past and present tense almost as if Poppy is writing a diary. But the timing of when this is supposed to be written (during or after the events) seems to shift along with the tense into something murky and indistinct.

Part of the disconnect may also be that I'm less patient with amateur sleuths the older I get. While I enjoy my role as armchair investigator, I have less and less sympathy for average joes who meander obliviously into danger just because they are convinced they are the only ones who can solve the crime.

And to add one last nitpicky note: the dog on the cover is the wrong breed.

That being said, the plot did keep me guessing. The story was good overall, but not great. I may continue on with the series at some point when I want a lighter in-between read, but it won’t be one that I actively seek out.


RATING FACTORS:
Ease of Reading: 4 Stars
Writing Style: 3 Stars
Characters and Character Development: 3 Stars
Plot Structure and Development: 4 Stars
Level of Captivation: 3 Stars
Originality: 3 Stars

Judy McClure

Great start to a new series. Really enjoyed it.

Poppy Redfern and the Midnight Murders

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