Congrats to the winner of the giveaway, Laura M.!
The lovely staff over at St. Martin’s Press gave me a free copy of Murder at the Brightwell for my review.
The publisher’s description certainly got it right with this one: “Set in 1930s Britain’s posh seaside holiday scene, Murder at the Brightwell is at once a glamorous glimpse into the past, a delightful love story, and, of course, a gripping, exciting whodunit. Drama, gossip, and mystery all abound!”
Very much in the style of Agatha Christie and Rhys Bowen’s Royal Spyness series, this book was a fun sleuthing romp through the early part of the 20th century. The heroine, Amory, is a unique mix of confidence, wit, and romantic uncertainty – the latter usually occurring when her ne’re do well husband, Milo, is concerned. Amory takes a trip to the seaside with an old flame and his friends, and as members of their party drop like flies, she simply can’t stay on the sidelines. As with any amateur sleuth, she doesn’t figure out who is perpetrating the murders until she’s made a few wrong guesses, but she does manage to impress CID’s Detective Inspector Jones along the way.
This was a charming, light read, and I’ll certainly be interested to read more books by this author!
St. Martin’s also asked if I’d like a second copy of this book to give away. Silly question, right?! This title won’t be released for sale until October 14, 2014, but for the next week you can enter to win your very own advance copy of the book, along with a few other fun items from yours truly!
As you may have seen from the sneak peek I posted here on the blog and on my Instagram, the prize package looks a little something like this:
The winner of this giveaway will receive everything they need for a good old-fashioned afternoon tea:
- A paperback advance copy of Murder at the Brightwell by Ashley Weaver
- A book full of tasty “afternoon tea” recipes (I’ll admit, I was tempted to keep this for myself, the little cookies and sandwiches in here look awesome!)
- A patterned tea cup from Anthropologie (I got the blue/green version for myself, and chose the orange to give away because I thought it went nicely with the cover of the book)
- A (sealed) container of my favorite tea – Earl Grey Crème from Giant foods – which is an Earl Grey tea with a vanilla-y creaminess to it. I’m usually a milk and sugar girl when it comes to Earl Grey, but this works nicely without any milk or sugar, as it already has a little sweetness to it.
To enter the giveaway, click on the Rafflecopter link below (it may take a second or two to load). Then, you can get up to two entries, by either a) leaving a comment below that answers the prompt or b) following/subscribing to my blog (please make sure to enter the username you use to follow/subscribe, because I will verify this before I mail the prizes to the winner!) Or you can do both and get 2 bites at the apple 🙂 The giveaway will accept entries until midnight on Friday, August 22nd** and I will select a winner at random. The winner will be announced on the blog on August 23rd and I will provide an email address so the winner can send me their contact info.
Thanks so much for entering – Good luck!
(This giveaway is now closed. Congrats to winner Laura M.!)
* A little disclaimer – The copy of Murder at the Brightwell for this giveaway was provided by St. Martin’s Press, but all other items were purchased by me. The links on the book title and photo go to Barnes & Noble simply because they are my favorite bookstore, but they are not sponsoring/affiliated with me in any way.
** I’m hoping that’s correct, and I didn’t somehow screw this up, but it’s my very first giveaway, so if there are any issues, I beg in advance for your patience. Thanks!
Barks and Baking 