Synopsis

Traveling secretary Hattie Davish and her trusty typewriter alight on a small town in Illinois, where the Civil War may long be over, but certain mysteries refuse to be buried…

Hattie Davish is delighted to be ably assisting her wealthy employer, Sir Arthur Windom-Greene, an English scholar who is fluent in Civil War history and hard at work putting together a definitive biography of General Cornelius Starrett. Their research takes them to Galena, Illinois, where they quickly learn that time has done little to heal old battle wounds. Distrust and betrayal seem to linger in everyone’s minds, none more so than the General’s pompous son Henry. And Hattie is certain he has something to do with a string of bizarre incidents in town–especially when he turns up dead…

Between her work for Sir Arthur, preparing for Christmas, and unscheduled visitors from her past, Hattie hardly has time to investigate a murder, but soon she is lost in a labyrinth of secrets and deceit that leads to more questions than answers. Henry had a knack for finding trouble and making enemies, and there’s no shortage of suspects–including Sir Arthur. Now, Hattie must uncover the truth while maintaining her civility in a most uncivil situation.

Review

What a great follow up to A Lack of Temperance! I still didn’t guess who did it, BUT I was closer than the first book. I knew something was up with the killer but wasn’t sure what.

I found the information about the Civil War interesting and the author does a great job with the details.

I’m not sure about Sir Arthur – he has no regard for the law and thinks he is above it all. Perhaps it was the time then? It was also more civilized when Hattie was sorting out who was the klller – no one rushed to leave the room or try and kill someone else to escape it all.

We give it 4 paws and can’t wait for the 3rd book to come out in a few months….I’m on a blog tour for that book so check back later.

About the Author

I live in a Victorian farmhouse in the Iowa countryside with my patient husband, inquisitive four year old daughter and my old yellow dog. I was born and raised in Syracuse, NY but have lived in Finland, Canada and Texas. I have a BA in Biology from Wells College in Aurora, NY and a MLIS from McGill University in Montreal. I’m a biologist, librarian, information specialist and now with the Hattie Davish Mysteries Series, a novelist.

If you want to know some more quirky and personal tidbits about me and my life, such as the fact that I once trained monkeys and drink tea every afternoon from my 19th century china collection, check out the various Q&A’s I’ve done over the past year!

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The Giveaway

I’m giving away the ARC copies of A Lack of Temperance and Anything But Civil that the author sent me.  Open to US residents only (due to shipping costs)

a Rafflecopter giveaway