Gunpowder Plot

July 17, 2006
At the start of Dunn's diverting 15th Daisy Dalrymple mystery (after 2005's Fall of a Philanderer
), a pregnant Daisy joins her former school chum Gwen Tyndall at Edge Manor in Didmarsh-under-Edge for the Tyndalls' 1924 Guy Fawkes fete, an annual celebration the illustrious family has observed since 1606. As fireworks explode above the manor, Daisy realizes all is not well among the fractious family members, who include Gwen's sisters, Adelaide and Barbara; her prodigal brother, Jack; her fragile mother; and irascible father, Sir Harold. When Jack discovers the bodies of his father and an Australian visitor, Mrs. Gooch, it appears Sir Harold shot Mrs. Gooch and then himself. Daisy's husband, DCI Alec Fletcher, arrives to investigate the case, while Daisy exhibits her usual common sense and charm in solving it.

July 1, 2006
Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher, pregnant but still working as a journalist, travels to the country estate of her friend Gwen Tyndall to see the famous Guy Fawkes celebration that the family hosts each year. Upon arrival, she meets Gwen's father, the viscount, a strict bully who expects everyone to conform to his often-unreasonable expectations. When someone finds the viscount dead on the floor of his study, it looks like a suicide, complicated by the fact that he apparently killed a visiting Australian woman before taking his own life. Daisy's husband, Alec Fletcher, Detective Chief Inspector of Scotland Yard, must untangle the web of family secrets that led to the tragedy. Of course, the feisty, capable Daisy will provide assistance sorting through the clues and the long list of possible suspects. As always, Dunn evokes the life and times of 1920s England while providing a plot that is a cut above the average British cozy. This will delight readers who love -country-house mysteries.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)