Agatha Christie meets The Crown in MURDER MOST ROYAL , the much-anticipated third book in the 'Her Majesty The Queen Investigates' mystery series by SJ Bennett - for fans of The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, Agatha Christie and M.C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin. Mais um livro que junta um policial aos mais recatados corredores das propriedades da família real britânica. Devyani Rana fled Nepal and is reported to be in Europe. Her uncle, the Maharajah of Kashmir and an Indian politician, Dr Karen Singh, says she is also a victim: With a police investigation underway, the search for the rest of Ed's body begins, and the police now probe into Ed's life, movements, and family. However, they struggle to make any solid leads. Then, another man is discovered dead, and a local woman is almost killed in a hit and run. The Queen feels compelled to become involved in what turns out to be her most challenging investigation yet and puts her life in real danger. It’s always the family, one way or another. I pitied those wives of his. Not surprised they didn’t last the distance. The man shagged half the county.’

I was not quite as engrossed as I had been when reading the first book in the series but I did enjoy reading more about Rozie, the Queens assistant who helps her investigate. I also liked the setting of Sandringham which was well described and I found it interesting to read the anecdotes about the royal family celebrating Christmas there.. SJ Bennett wrote several award-winning books for teenagers before turning to adult mysteries. She lives in London and has been a royal watcher for years, but is keen to stress that these are works of fiction: the Queen, to the best of her knowledge, does not secretly solve crimes. It is a further adventure concerning our late Queen investigating a murder- this time set on her estate of Sandringham, Norfolk around Christmas 2016. When a severed hand is found on a local Norfolk beach Her Majesty recognises it immediately and resolves to work out what has happened to the rest of the body. Close by, on a Norfolk beach, a severed hand in a plastic bag washes up on the beach. The police are seeking to identify the victim, but it is the Queen who identifies the 70 year old victim from the signet ring as a well known member of the aristocracy, Edward St Cyr, who as a boy was a frequent visitor to Sandringham. As the police investigate, hunting for the rest of his body, and looking into his life, movements and family, they struggle to make any headway. When another man is discovered dead and a local woman is almost killed in a hit and run, the Queen feels obliged to become involved in what turns out to be her most twisted and challenging inquiry yet and which brings danger far too close to home. Family history, secrets, deceptions and lies are slowly uncovered with a Queen determined to get to the truth, irrespective of the obstacles in her path. Present-giving at Sandringham takes place on Christmas Eve - in the German tradition that they have observed since Prince Albert’s day. But what do you give a member of the family who has everything?Once again, a wonderful outing for Queen Elizabeth in which she solves another crime, this time in Sandringham. It was very emotive reading this not long after Her Majesty had died but as the books are set in the past it did help. I am finding that this series is going from strength to strength and that with each outing I like the characters more and more and the crimes are not obvious even though all the clues are there. Sinceramente, creo que esos dos aspectos son el punto fuerte de estas historias. La atmosfera palaciega y noble y la peculiaridad de nuestra detective de turno: la reina Isabel II. Sí que es cierto que hay que tener en cuenta que este libro habla de la reina desde una perspectiva de cariño y sin adentrarse en temas que pueden ser problemáticos. Es decir, prácticamente vemos solo los blancos de la monarca, ni los grises ni, mucho menos, los negros. No es algo que a mí me haya molestado, pero me parece que no está de más mencionarlo, al ser libros basados en una persona real. El retrato que se hace aquí de ella no es ajustado 100% a la realidad. Pero la forma de pensar de la reina en el libro, sus interacciones con el resto de personajes, su inteligencia, su humor... Esta versión sobre el papel me encanta.

Murder Most Royal (a.k.a. The King's Pleasure) (1949) is an historical fiction novel by Jean Plaidy. But when a second man is found dead, and a prominent local woman is nearly killed in a hit-and-run, the mystery takes an even darker turn. With the Christmas break coming to an end, the Queen and her trusted assistant Rozie must race to discover how the pieces of the puzzle fit together. Or the next victim may be found even closer to home.

LoveReading Says

Do you see that flat-topped middle finger? He cut off the tip doing some carpentry when he was a teenager. But it's the signet ring, of course….Bloodstone. Quite distinctive. And that carving is of a swan from the family crest. This is the hand of Edward St Cyr. History Makers: Female Writers Dominate the 2023 William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award Shortlist After the passing of the Queen I wondered how I would feel reading this book, but it brought me such joy. It’s strangely bittersweet, reading this in the week of the coronation. It’s another delightful and incredibly respectfully put together tale, and very much a price of fun to imagine that this is one of the late Queen’s activities. Crown Prince Dipendra's brother-in-law, Gorahk Rana, who was married to Dipendra's sister, Princess Shruti, remembers the crown prince's surprise:

It’s almost Christmas and the Royal family have arrived at Sandringham. A severer hand has been found near the estate and it is the Queen who is able to identify the victim from a ring on the little finger of the hand. Turns out it belongs to a family member who happen to be close friends of the Royals. Murder Most Royal is the third book in SJ Bennett's "Her Majesty The Queen Investigates" series. Before reviewing the book 2 things. Yes it features the late Queen Elizabeth the Second in a fictional role and no it's no way disrespectful and I'm sure with her known wry sense of humour our late Monarch would enjoy these books and find the whole thing quite amusing.He looked exactly like the Terminator, absolutely expressionless and very focused, and that look still haunts me. SJ Bennett was born in Yorkshire, England in 1966, and lives in London. An army child, she grew up travelling around the world. Her first novel was published when she was 42, after a varied career and lots of procrastination. She is the award-winning author of several books for children and teaches and podcasts about writing.

Agatha Christie meets The Crown in MURDER MOST ROYAL, the much-anticipated third book in the 'Her Majesty The Queen Investigates' mystery series by SJ Bennett - for fans of The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, Agatha Christie and M.C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin. The programme also reveals how the crown prince became increasingly frustrated at his role within the royal family.As with SJ Bennett's first two books in the series in which Queen Elizabeth II has now been established as a more than capable, below the radar, sleuth, solving intricate mysteries with the aid of her trusted assistant private secretary, Rozie Oshodi, I listened to this one on audio, nine and half hours long, and narrated by the wonderful actor, Samantha Bond. Bond does a warm and stellar job in immersing the listener into the royal household and family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk during the festive season. The Queen and Philip arrive not in the best of health, looking forward to spending Christmas with the family, including the grandchildren and great grandchildren, although William and Kate are not there, choosing to spend it instead with Kate's family. There is banter and fun as the intimate side of a royal family at Christmas, that endeavours to keep these aspects of their lives private, is detailed. Just like in the other books I loved the banter between the Queen and other family members. There’s a particularly amusing conversation between Princess Anne and Prince Charles, that made me smile! On 1 June 2001, Crown Prince Dipendra went on the shooting spree in the royal palace, killing his parents, sister, younger brother and five other royals. Crown Prince Dipendra was found with a single bullet wound through the head. The tragedy was fuelled by the king's refusal to let the crown prince marry his lover, Devyani Rana, who he met in 1989.