Hi everyone! I am so excited to be one of today’s tour stops for Murder at the Dolphin Hotel by Helena Dixon, which is hosted by the amazing gang at Bookouture!
Murder at the Dolphin Hotel
Author: Helena Dixon
Publication Date: 11 December 2019
Genre: Adult Fiction – Cozy Mystery/Historical Fiction
Pages: 264
Publisher: Bookouture
A room with a view… to murder
June 1933. Independent young Kitty Underhay has been left in charge of her family’s hotel, The Dolphin, on the tranquil English coast. She’s expecting her days at the bustling resort to be filled with comfortable chatter with chambermaids as they polish the mahogany desk and glittering candelabras of the elegant foyer. Everything must be perfect for the arrival of a glamourous jazz singer from Chicago and a masked ball that will be the cultural highlight of the season.
But when several rooms are broken into and searched, including Kitty’s own, she quickly realises that something out of the ordinary is afoot at the hotel. Soon rumours are flying in the cozy town that someone is on the hunt for a stolen ruby. A ruby that Kitty’s mother may well have possessed when she herself went missing during the Great War. And when the break-ins are followed by a series of attacks and murders, including of the town’s former mayoress, it seems the perpetrator will stop at nothing to find it.
Aided by ex-army captain Matthew Bryant, the Dolphin’s new security officer, Kitty is determined to decipher this mystery and preserve not only the reputation of her hotel, but also the lives of her guests. Is there a cold-blooded killer under her own roof? And what connects the missing jewel to the mystery from Kitty’s own past?
A classic page-turning murder mystery! Fans of Agatha Christie, Elizabeth Edmondson and T.E. Kinsey will love this unputdownable whodunnit.
As much as I love a heart-racing, hang onto your seat thriller, there’s something about slowing down and being completely engrossed in a cozy mystery during the holiday season that I absolutely love.
The Murder at the Dolphin Hotel takes place in the summer of 1933 in Dartmouth, England. Mrs. Treadwell (Grams) owns the beautiful Dolphin hotel, which is always bustling during the summer. However, Grams must reluctantly leave since her sister took quite the tumble resulting in some broken bones. While Grams trusts her granddaughter Kitty Underhay to run the hotel in her absence, she decides to hire ex-army Captain Matthew Bryant as head of security to keep an eye on things. The timing couldn’t be more perfect since Grams been receiving some ominous and threatening letters regarding some sort of treasure.
While Kitty may have brushed off Grams concerns at first, strange things start happening. After Kitty discovers that someone has rummaged through her belongings and people are being attacked/murdered, she realizes that she may actually be in serious danger. Matt and Kitty realize that they have to work together in order to figure out what is happening before Kitty loses the hotel or her life.
From the very first chapter, I was sucked into this storyline. I loved that Kitty is an independent and headstrong woman that is capable of not only running a hotel in the 1930s, but that she can also help solve mysteries without completely losing her sanity. She was such a fantastic character to get behind. Matt and Kitty were a lot of fun to watch together and complement each other throughout the story. They make a fantastic team, and I can’t wait to see what else is in store for them in the future. I loved all the twists and turns that this whodunnit presented, which left me guessing up until the very end.
Overall, if you’re looking for a great cozy murder mystery then definitely give this one a read!
Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for providing an eARC for review. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.
Get your copy of Murder at the Dolphin Hotel here!
Nell Dixon was born and continues to live in the Black Country. Married to the same man for over thirty-five years she has three daughters, a cactus called Spike, a crazy cockapoo and a tank of tropical fish. She is allergic to adhesives, apples, tinsel and housework. Her addictions of choice are coffee and reality TV. She was winner of The Romance Prize in 2007 with her book Marrying Max, and winner of Love Story of the Year 2010 with her book, Animal Instincts. She also writes historical 1930’s set cozy crime as Helena Dixon.
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