An Invitation to Murder

Lady Katherine Regency Mysteries Series, Book 1

De: Leighann Dobbs, Harmony Williams

Narrado por: Beverley A. Crick

To stop a high-society killer, she'll have to play matchmaker one last time....

Lady Katherine would rather chase clues than suitors. Her reputation as a matchmaker could give her the cover she needs to follow in her detective father's footsteps. If she catches the Pink Ribbon Killer before he strikes again, she'll win her dowry and her independence in the process....

One look through the exclusive Northbrooke estate house party doubles her suspect list. With the help of her trusty maid and her precocious pug, Katherine risks it all to unmask the killer. But is winning her freedom worth putting another debutante in mortal danger?

©2017 Leighann Dobbs Publishing (P)2018 Tantor

Cute, cozy mystery

This was a very relaxing and entertaining story. It’s also a very fast read. I did have to turn the speed down almost immediately on starting the story. I liked the dog Emma for another facet of this story.

Meh

It’s ok, not great. Lady Katherine, Harriet and Lyle have the makings of endearing characters, but just aren’t quite compelling enough

ok. it was free.

The narrator had an annoying male voice. The story was ok. The dog was cute.

Interesting Heroine

Good story and excellent performance. The story and characters held my interest, and now I’m going to see if there are future books with the same characters . 

Generally fun background listen

Mostly scratched my itch for a Regency/Victorian cozy mystery, with some flaws. As other reviews mention, some things don’t make sense, like why Katherine’s father would insist on her solving a crime alone and putting herself in danger. Mainly my issue is that this doesn’t feel like the first book in a series. Katherine supposedly accepts one final matchmaking job, but where were all the others? The pink ribbon murders are talked of as though we’re supposed to already know about them. The deal with her father is mentioned as though it were previously arranged.

The story

It took a bit to get started, but once it did I really enjoyed it! Mystery and lots of characters so pay attention!

pretty good. a bit elementary.

the mystery was way too obvious. 😒 I had it figured out way too soon.

Good Historical Mystery Cozy Mystery

Lady Katherine took the matchmaking job but really wants to be a detective and this got her into getting information about the Pink Ribbon Killer. Two young women had died with one last party for debutantes to find husbands, Katherine knew it would be the perfect place for the killer to strike again.
Katherine’s father said she was to prove her ability by her birthday or lose her dowry within one week to solve the mystery. Her friend Lyle was one of the Bow Street Runners his help would be invaluable as long as her father didn’t find out.
Katherine checked out many of the suspects and needed to dig more deeply as well as keep any prospective victims safe. Katherine had a theory and needed to prove it before another woman was murdered.
An Invitation to Murder by Leighann Dobbs is the first in the Lady Katherine Regency Matchmaker series and is an entertaining with action, swooning ladies and arrogant lords and dukes in the mix, plus Emma, Katherine’s adorable pug, this historical cosy set in the Regency period has a lot to offer fans of the genre. Highly recommended. I enjoyed it as an audio book.

Can't suspend all my disbelief

The series has an interesting concept--female detective during the Regency--but the premise of this book doesn't make sense. What father would send out his daughter to identify and collar a serial killer of young women, specifying that she do it on her own? She has no self-defense training or weapons. She needs to catch the killer within ten days in order to gain control of her dowry. Even for a cozy, this is unreal. It doesn't seem to occur to anyone, especially the authors, how dangerous this is. The proposed method for cornering the killer is equally unbelievable. Lady Katherine is supposed to gather evidence, confront the killer with it, and he will then confess. Uh, right. Or is this taking place in an alternative universe?

The book begins badly with an overly long and "cutsie" scene of Lady Katherine's pug making away with her notebook. The reader needs to know that the dog steals things, but not with an extended discussion and ridiculous attempts to get the notebook back. I almost tuned out the whole thing right there. Fortunately it improves and gets down to the real story, which is entertaining enough.

A Happy Surprise

I expected this to be a light piece of fluff to space between more serious titles. I was pleasantly surprised to find an engaging, humorous, fun romp brimming with intrigue and packed with fascinating characters. True, as the disclaimer at the beginning states, there are historic liberties taken. That said, those liberties make the story fun and prepare the reader/listener to suspend disbelief and just enjoy the ride.