Mini-Reviews - May 2021

Another day, another mini-review post. So, what makes this one so different from my other mini-review post? Well, unlike the other titles which were kindly given to me via publishers, these three titles are titles I either bought out of my own money or borrowed from my local library. 

Yes, I put my money where my mouth is and bought many books, ebooks and audiobooks (have you not SEEN my TBR lists on Goodreads and my many wishlists on Amazon.co.uk, Audible and other online retailers?!). So, while I should do another mini-review post of some of the library books and NetGalley/Gifted by Publishers, I thought I would do a small post about these three titles: Dead In The Water by Chris McDonald, The Other Miss Bridgerton by Julia Quinn and The Lady With The Gun Asks The Questions by Kerry Greenwood. 

But, to cut to the chase, these were all fun reads and I had a blast. Like I warned earlier this month, I want to read fun for a while before I scare you all with books that make me think/turn me into a furious reader. So, shall we start?

Self-Isolation Audiobook - The Green Mill Murder

• Title And Author: The Green Mill Murder by Kerry Greenwood
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press/Constable or C&R Crime
• Physical, eBook or Audiobook: Audiobook
• Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Borrowed from local library via BorrowBox
• Length: 224 Pages or 6 Hours 19 Minutes

My self-isolation reading has pinball all over the place the past few weeks. But the audiobooks I’ve requested from my library has been very hit and miss. I would request an audiobook WEEKS ago/before self-isolation, excited to audiobook it, only for it to come available to me now during these crazy times and my brain going “Nope!” over it. 

But my brain allowed me to listen and enjoy The Green Mill Murder, the fifth book in the Phryne Fisher series and my third outing (after Murder on the Ballarat Train and Flying Too High). 

Phryne Fisher is dancing to jazz at the Green Mill in 1920s Melbourne, when a man collapses to the floor, stabbed in the chest. But no one was near the man so how was he stabbed? 

When the Police arrive at the Green Mill, Phryne’s dance partner goes to bathroom to be ill, and vanishes without a trace… 

Soon, Phryne is investigating the case of the dead man and her dance partner’s disappearance and the trouble he left in his wake…

Audiobook Review - Flying Too High

• Title And Author: Flying Too High by Kerry Greenwood
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press/C&R Crime
• Physical, eBook or Audiobook: Audiobook
• Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Borrowed from local library via BorrowBox
• Length: 236 Pages or 5 Hours and 2 Minutes 

Another audiobook that I listened to while during Believathon (I really should have prepped myself much better but I had to wait till it was available), and it’s another cosy crime. I seem to enjoy reading/audiobooking crime stories, as long as I click with it. 

And after listening to my first Phryne Fisher mystery - Murder on the Ballarat Train - back in October, I wanted to do another. I was torn between this, the second in the series, or Death at Victoria Dock, the fourth. This came available first so nabbed that. 

Phryne Fisher likes a thrill. Flying a Tiger Moth plane and walking the wings of one in full flight should be enough excitement for some people, but not Phryne. Now becoming a private investigator, Phryne finds herself involved in trying to solve a murder, save a child from kidnapping, all while having young, attractive men at her door… Sometimes, a woman’s work is never done.

Audiobook Review - Murder on the Ballarat Train

• Title And Author: Murder on the Ballarat Train by Kerry Green
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press/C&R Crime
• Physical, eBook or Audiobook: Audiobook
• Bought, Borrowed or Gifted: Borrowed from local library via BorrowBox
• Length: 162 Pages or 4 Hours 48 Minutes

I tried to audiobook the first book in the Phryne Fisher Mystery (or the Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, if you are a fan of the TV show via Alibi or Netflix), Cocaine Blues, a few months back but due to my hay fever headache and me not warming to the first few chapters (I don’t think I got halfway through chapter 3), I DNFed it. So, why did I decide to try the third book in the series? I wanted something light and quick after audiobooking Eragon, which I struggled with. 

All Phryne Fisher wants is a week of fabulousness in 1920s Ballarat, and going by train should be fun. Expect she woke up with the first class carriage filled with chloroform. Soon, she finds herself in the middle of several investigations: the murder of an elderly woman whose body was dragged up out of the window, a girl with no memory and rumours of white slavery with young girls rumoured to be sold into prostitution. But Phyrne will get to the truth before a possible second murder happens, and if she can have a discreet dalliance with a young man, so be it…