Death Beside the Seaside by T E Kinsey

Death Beside the Seaside is the sixth book in T.E. Kinsey’s Lady Hardcastle Mystery series.

What ho!!

Lard Hardcastle Mystery is a highly recommended series and if you haven’t read it yet, believe me, you are missing out on a lot of good stuff.

Lady Hardcastle series is a historical cozy series featuring Lady Hardcastle and her maid/side-kick Florence Armstrong. The duo has seen it all, been there, done that. From spying to chasing to being chased, the two have had a roller coaster of a life so far. Adventurous? yes. Mysterious? yes, yes. Thrilling? definitely yes!

The story starts like this: Emily (Lady H) and Flo are embarked on their long-overdue seaside break – a week’s stay at Weston-super-Mare in Steep Holm. With plans of donkey rides, ice creams and a dip or two in the sea, the duo are looking forward to their well-deserved break. But, as you know, wherever the two go, mystery follows.

They meet Dr Goddard, a scientist who works for the government. Goddard is the first to disappear from the hotel. And gone with him is his mysterious strongbox. His room is ransacked too. The hotel is full of international guests. There’s a chap from France, another from Japan, a grumpy Austrian fella, and a sweet lady and her niece from America. Is this coincidence or are they all spies?

Goddard’s disappearance is a matter of national security. After all, his strongbox contained some secret files. As the story proceeds, there is a slight hint that there might be a personal connection too. A personal connection to whom? Well, well, I cannot tell you that now, can I? 😉

‘Where’s the sea?’ I asked plaintively.

‘Out,’ said Lady Hardcastle.

‘What, “out” as in “gone to visit some friends in Ireland, back next week” out?’

Death Seaside the Seaside is the sixth book in Lady Hardcastle series. The story is, as narrated by Florence Armstrong. As you can see from the above excerpt, Flo and Lady Hardcastle share quite a bond. I would also like to say that this is the best book in the series so far. The mystery and the suspense are sure to keep you hooked on to the story. And not just that, the spy-ring and ‘matter of national security’ brings back some old memories – the duo reminisce their times in China and Burma.

It goes without saying that T E Kinsey is one of the most brilliant authors. Be it his storytelling or the characters, everything is simply perfect! The characters (excluding Emily and Flo) are mysterious and seem to have a secret of their own. As the story proceeds, the mystery of the missing strongbox gets murkier and deadly. The humor bits add quite a charm to the story.

I really cannot reveal any more details about the story without making this review a spoiler. So go ahead and read Death Beside the Seaside today! Or rather, tomorrow, because that is when the book is releasing. 😉 If you are new to the series, I recommend you to start from book #1 – A Quiet Life in the Country. If you have been following this series then I hope you are excited to read this book because I am pretty sure you are going to enjoy every bit of it. 😀

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Many thanks to Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for the ARC.