A Mirror Murder by Helen Hollick – Review

• Title: A Mirror Murder
• Author: Helen Hollick
• Publisher: Taw River Press on January 13, 2021
• Genre: Mystery
• Pages: 162
• Formats Available: Paperback & Digital
• Rating: 4/5

Trigger Warnings: Murder of Children/Infants, Domestic Abuse

Many thanks to Damppebbles Blog Tours and Helen Hollick for providing me with a digital copy of A Mirror Murder with a request for an honest review.

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A Mirror Murder Blurb

Eighteen-year-old library assistant Jan Christopher’s life is to change on a rainy Friday evening in July 1971, when her legal guardian and uncle, DCI Toby Christopher, gives her a lift home after work. Driving the car, is her uncle’s new Detective Constable, Laurie Walker – and it is love at first sight for the young couple. 

But romance is soon to take a back seat when a baby boy is taken from his pram, a naked man is scaring young ladies in nearby Epping Forest, and an elderly lady is found, brutally murdered… 

Are the events related? How will they affect the staff and public of the local library where Jan works – and will a blossoming romance survive a police investigation into murder?

My Review

I’m not sure there is anything Helen Hollick can’t do. She writes historical Arthurian legends, non-fiction full of real-life pirates, and now a cozy mystery. A Mirror Murder is an excellent mystery, which I loved every minute of. Not only is the intrigue there, but a fledgling romance to boot.

Knowing that I was getting into a mystery, I was nervous through the first bit, waiting to learn who the victim was. Getting there was quite delicious, by the way. I adored the description we got of said victim. The further into the story we got, the more I loved this person. 

But, Hollick didn’t stop there. We also have ourselves a little side mystery regarding some wrongdoing in the park. I will admit that one part of this gave a little comeuppance to a rather dodgy old fool. I laughed a bit at this revelation. 

I will let you all in on a secret I found out. Some of the occurrences are factual! I had no idea until the end of the book, but it stunned me to learn this. If you have been following my reviews, you will know that I adore stories based on historical facts. I will definitely read the rest of the Jan Christopher series as they come out!

I award A Mirror Murder 4 out of 5 stars. This novella was short and well worth the few hours it took me to read it. If you are up for a great little mystery with a few laughs along the way, you should give this one a read.

About the Author – Helen Hollick

First published in 1994, Helen became a USA Today Bestseller with her historical novel, The Forever Queen (titled A Hollow Crown in the UK) with the sequel, Harold the King (US: I Am The Chosen King) being novels that explore the events that led to the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Her Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy is a fifth-century version of the Arthurian legend, and she writes a nautical adventure/fantasy series, The Sea Witch Voyages. She is now branching out into the quick read novella, ‘Cosy Mystery’ genre with her new venture, the Jan Christopher Murder Mysteries, set in the 1970s, with the first in the series, A Mirror Murder (due to be published in early 2021) incorporating her, often hilarious, memories of working as a library assistant.

Her non-fiction books are Pirates: Truth and Tales and Life of A Smuggler. She lives in an eighteenth-century farmhouse in North Devon, runs Discovering Diamonds, a review blog for historical fiction, and occasionally gets time to write…

Author’s Contact Links: Twitter | Facebook | Website | Blog | Amazon

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