Ink and Intrigue at Ivy Tree Inn: An Ariadne Winter Mystery
Historical Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Power to the Pen (October 2, 2024)
Print length ‏ : ‎ 323 pages

Synopsis

Stumbling across a dead body could be the making … or breaking of an aspiring reporter.

During 1958, when the workforce is predominantly male, societal norms dictate women should be compliant, fashionable housewives. To Ariadne Winter, the sole tradition she aims to embrace is that of being fashionable. Amidst the ambiance of Ivy Tree Inn, where she’s been dispatched as a writer for Ladies’ Lifestyle Magazine, her focus wavers as she grapples with an interview assignment concerning a Hollywood starlet on the cusp of royal matrimony—an event hailed as the “Wedding of the Century.” While Ariadne dutifully attends to her task, her heart yearns for the pursuit of her collegiate ambition: to be an investigative reporter for a renowned newspaper.

However, fate intervenes when she discovers a dead body and recognizes the opportunity it presents to write her way into the role she desires. Yet, as Ariadne delves deeper into the lives of the inn’s inhabitants, she uncovers a labyrinth of intertwined relationships and long-buried secrets among guests and staff alike, yielding a plethora of suspects. With a murderer on the loose, her magazine deadline looming, and the inn cordoned off by authorities, Ariadne faces a race against time to untangle the web of deceit and solve the murder before she loses more than just her job.

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Review

This was quite a delight to read. It is different from other cozies that I have read, as it seems more “proper.” Considering the time frame, it isn’t too surprising. It is a time when women and men dressed every day. No jeans, sweats, or yoga pants!

The murder doesn’t happen until about 60% of the way through the book. But don’t discount that first 60% because it sets up the characters, backstory, and possible motives once the murder occurs. The last 40% of the book flies by as Ariadne deciphers the clues and solves the crime for the police. It is very similar to Agatha Christie’s novels, and the author mentions that in her notes.

I really enjoyed the storyline that brought Ariadne to this town. It is a take on Grace Kelly’s story, and I was amazed to learn that she had to pay a dowry to the family she married into. It is in the author’s notes, so make sure to read those at the end.

There are several people to suspect as the murderer, and I didn’t quite figure it out. I should have based on a few clues and comments littered throughout the story. I have to say that Edward, the young man, was a character. He is whip-smart, and I can only imagine what he might accomplish once he grows up.

I enjoyed reading this book, and I look forward to more in this series. We give it 4 paws up.

About the Author

Ellen Butler is the international bestselling author of the Karina Cardinal mystery series. Her experiences working on Capitol Hill and at a medical association in Washington, D.C., inspired the mystery-action series. Multiple books in the series have hit #1 on Amazon bestseller lists in the US and abroad. Book critics call the Karina Cardinal mysteries “intelligent escapism.” Butler is also the author of the award-winning historical suspense novel The Brass Compass. The Brass Compass has won multiple awards for historical fiction, including the 2022 Speak Up Talk Radio Firebird Book Award, the 2018 Indie Reader Discovery Award, and 2019 Readers’ Favorite Silver Medal Winner. Butler started writing in the romance genre and won the The Romance Reviews Readers’ Choice Award 2015 with her novel Planning for Love. Her 12th book, Operation Blackbird, a Cold War Spy novel, was published in October 2022 and won a Next Generation Indie Book Award gold medal for historical fiction.

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