Book Review: Chaos at Carnegie Hall by Kelly Oliver

I am so pleased to be welcoming Kelly Oliver to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her book, Chaos at Carnegie Hall.

Agatha Christie meets Downton Abbey in the Fiona Figg and Kitty Lane Mystery series opener.

Can Fiona catch a killer and find a decent cup of tea before her mustache wax melts?

1917. New York.

Notorious spy, Fredrick Fredricks, has invited Fiona to Carnegie Hall to hear a famous soprano. It’s an opportunity the War Office can’t turn down. Fiona and Clifford are soon on their way, but not before Fiona is saddled with chaperon duties for Captain Hall’s niece. Is Fiona a spy or a glorified babysitter?

From the minute Fiona meets the soprano aboard the RMS Adriatic it’s treble on the high C’s. Fiona sees something—or someone—thrown overboard, and then she overhears a chemist plotting in German with one of her own countrymen!

And the trouble doesn’t stop when they disembark. Soon Fiona is doing time with a group of suffragettes and investigating America’s most impressive inventor Thomas Edison.

When her number one suspect turns up dead at the opera and Fredrick Fredricks is caught red-handed, it looks like it’s finally curtains for the notorious spy.

But all the evidence points to his innocence. Will Fiona change her tune and clear her nemesis’ name? Or will she do her duty? And just what is she going to do with the pesky Kitty Lane? Not to mention swoon-worthy Archie Somersby . . .

If Fiona’s going to come out on top, she’s going to have to make the most difficult decision of her life: the choice between her head and her heart.

*****

It’s 1917 and Fiona Figg finds herself in New York. She’s been invited by spy, Fredrick Fredricks to Carnegie Hall, to watch a famous soprano. However, on top of her duties for the war office, she’s also having to chaperone Eliza, her boss’s niece.

From the moment they board the ship for America, there is mystery and potential crimes.

The plot thickens when Fiona’s prime suspect is found dead.

Can Fiona solve the mystery?

I was intrigued by the premise of this novel. I love mysteries and so this seemed right up my street and it didn’t disappoint.

Fiona is a strong female character; a trailblazer at a time where women were expected to be at home, didn’t have the vote and, according to some of her colleagues, shouldn’t be working in the war office. Fiona is out to prove she is a great spy and I loved her.

Eliza adds an unexpected element to the novel and proof that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover and I wanted to reach in and give Poppy the dog a big hug.

The mystery is woven well, and the plot is well paced. There are many twists and turns and I think I suspected everyone being involved at one point. It did have me guessing all the way through.

This book is also set in one of my favourite cities, so it was wonderful to be there for a while, even if it was only in my imagination. The atmosphere and imagery Kelly Oliver manages to create is great and it’s obvious she has done her research regarding the historical aspects.

Fiona Figg is not a new character; however, this is a brand-new series featuring her. Although there are references to previous stories, it doesn’t stop you from reading and enjoying this one. It has however made me want to go and read the other books.

There’s not much else I can say without giving things away and I hope that this is a cozy mystery series you discover for yourselves. I loved it. I’m looking forward to the next one.

About Kelly Oliver: 

Kelly Oliver is the award-winning, bestselling author of three mysteries series: The Jessica James Mysteries, The Pet Detective Mysteries, and the historical cozies The Fiona Figg Mysteries, set in WW1.

She is also the Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Vanderbilt University and lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

She is bringing new titles in the Fiona Figg series to Boldwood, the first of which, Chaos in Carnegie Hall, will be published in November 2022.

Say hello to Kelly via Facebook, Twitter and BookBub. 

Chaos at Carnegie Hall is published by Boldwood Books. Click to buy on Amazon and Waterstones. 

by

Laura

I'm Laura. I started Novel Kicks back in 2009 as I wanted a place to discuss books and writing - two loves of my life. As someone who has anxiety, these two things give me, and I am sure countless others, a much needed escape.
There is a monthly book club, writing exercises, prompts, reviews, author interviews, competitions and guest posts. I cover many genres and I hope there is something for everyone.
I grew up by the sea in Dorset and currently live in Poole with my husband, Chris and three cats. I love writing and have a BA (Hons) in Creative Writing from Falmouth University. I am writing my first book. If only I could stop pressing delete. Chris has threatened to stop it from working. Haha.
I have always loved creative writing since I was in first school and would very much like to meet my teacher, Miss Sayers, to say thank you for all the encouragement she gave me then.
When not writing, I love reading, cats, Disney, singing (I can't sing but this doesn't stop me,) and falling into a good TV show or film. If I could step into any fictional world, it would be amongst the characters in ABC's Once Upon a Time.
I love reading many genres and discovering new authors.