Creative genius and chaotic influence: how a society photographer inspired a character

This episode delves into the character of  Sebastian Blakely, a vibrant and unconventional photographer who brings his own unique form of turmoil to the High Society Lady series. Inspired by real-life society photographer Cecil Beaton, Blakely's cheeky wit and penchant for stirring the pot keeps things interesting.

Recent read: A Traitor in Whitehall (Affiliate link) 

Read-alikes: WWII mysteries 

MBP S1 E3 Poppy Redfern and the Midnight Murders by Tessa Arlen

S2 E6 – Olive Bright, Pigeoneer

Next chapters in the next episode! 

If you want the rest of the mystery right now, you can get Murder in Archly Manor in ebook, audio, and print at SaraRosettBooks.com. 

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📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

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🪩 They knew how to throw a killer party in the 1920s!  

Join me as I explore the opulence and extravagance of the themed parties of the Bright Young People and their over-the-top gatherings.

From the circus party with wolves and horses to the bath and bottle parties that drew the attention of the police, the era's lavish soirées inspired the Silver and Gold Party in Murder at Archly Manor, which was an excellent backdrop for murder and mystery.

Recent read: Every Time I Go on Vacation Someone Dies by Catherine Mack (Affiliate link and thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an early review copy. All opinions are my own.)

Read-alikes: Travel mysteries

• Elusive by Sara Rosett
• A Cruise to Die For by Charlotte Elkins
• Hazards in Hampshire by Emma Dakin 
• Death on the Danube by Jennifer S. Alderson 
• (Links above are affiliate links)

Next chapters in the next episode! 

If you want the rest of the mystery right now, you can get Murder in Archly Manor in ebook, audio, and print at SaraRosettBooks.com. 

Links mentioned:

• https://londonist.com/london/features/6-crazy-bright-young-things-parties-we-wish-we-d-been-invited-to
• High Society Lady Detective Book 5: An Old Money Murder in Mayfair (Affiliate link)

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📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.

Why set a book in the 1920s? Because a time of great change makes for an interesting setting. The phrase "may you live in interesting times," certainly applies to the tumultuous post-World War I period.

Find out how motorcars, bobbed hair, short hemlines, and makeup compacts play into the changing social mores in this “Story Behind the Story” of Chapters 5 and 6 of Murder at Archly Manor, a 1920s historical mystery. 

Recent read: The Antique Hunter's Guide to Murder by C.L. Miller (Affiliate link) 

Read-alikes: the Kate Hamilton mystery series. A Dream of Death by Connie Berry (Affiliate link).

Chapters 5 and 6 of Murder at Archly Manor narrated by Elizabeth Klett.

Next chapter in the next episode! 

If you want the rest of the mystery right now, you can get Murder in Archly Manor in ebook, audio, and print at SaraRosettBooks.com. 

Support the show

📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.

⛲️ Love an English stately home? Then come with me on a tour of Chatsworth House and find out how the English country home inspired not one, but two book series in this “Story Behind the Story” of Chapter 4 of Murder at Archly Manor, a 1920s historical mystery. Plus reading recommendations for Sherlock Holmes fans! 🕵️‍♀️

Recent read: The Missing Maid by Holly Hepburn (Affiliate link) and thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for a review copy. All opinions are my own.

Read-alikes: The Baker Street Letters series (Affiliate link).

Murder mystery game: Death by Croquet Mallet. 

Next chapter in the next episode! 

If you want the rest of the mystery right now, you can get Murder in Archly Manor in ebook, audio, and print at SaraRosettBooks.com. 

Support the show

📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.

Family tensions and inspiration from Agatha Christie are the “Story Behind the Story” of Chapter 3 of Murder at Archly Manor, a 1920s historical mystery. 

Recent read: A Report of Murder by F.L. Everett (Affiliate link)

Mentioned: The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie (Affiliate link)

Next chapter in the next episode! 

If you want the rest of the mystery right now, you can get Murder in Archly Manor in ebook, audio, and print at SaraRosettBooks.com. 

Support the show

📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.

We’re traveling back to the 1920s in this season of Mystery Books Podcast with a chapter by chapter deep dive into Murder at Archly Manor, the first book in the High Society Lady Detective series. 

What inspired the location of Murder at Archly Manor? Was I intimidated to write historical fiction? (You bet I was!) How did I take the first step to write about the 1920s, despite my worries about accurately capturing the time between the wars? Find out in the “Story Behind the Story” section of this episode.

Then Elizabeth Klett narrates the first two chapters of Murder at Archly Manor. 

Book recommendation: Your Turn, Mr. Moto by John P. Marquand. (Affiliate link)

Next chapter in the next episode! 

If you want 1920s mystery right now, you can get Murder in Archly Manor in ebook, audio, and print at SaraRosettBooks.com.

Support the show

📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.

🤨 Are you fond of impossible crime mysteries? What about swanky settings for 1920s mysteries? If you answered yes to either question,  join me for a look at the inspiration and research behind Murder in the Alps, a 1920s mystery set in the glamorous winter playground of St. Moritz.

🔎 Olive Belgrave, discreet sleuth for the posh set, and her dashing companion Jasper, travel to the snowy resort for a little holiday, but find themselves mixed up in a mystery.

⚜️In this episode I delve into luxury travel to a winter destination, women’s sports,  couple dynamics, and some other wintery mysteries.

If you enjoy this you might also like:

•  Murder on the Matterhorn by Glyn Carr 
• Crossed Skis by  Carol Carnac (pen name of a pen name of E.C.R. Lorac)
• Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart
• One by One by Ruth Ware 
• Bright and Deadly Things by Lexie Elliott

Buy your copy of Murder in the Alps at SaraRosettBooks.com.

Support the show

📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.

Tis the season for . . . holiday mysteries! 

 Get your holiday reading sorted with this list of mysteries that feature holly, mistletoe, and plenty of murder.

Snowed-in country estates abound with tense family gatherings in these books. Cranky family members, too much food, and a patriarch threatening to change his will are the ingredients of a festive Christmas mystery. 

Mystery book to read at Christmas: 

• Murder on a Midnight Clear by Sara Rosett (Published: 2020; Setting: 1923) Season 1 Bonus episode: Murder on a Midnight Clear: https://www.sararosett.com/mbps1bonus/
• Murder at Midnight by Katharine Schellman (Published 2023; Setting: 1816)
• A Christmas Party by Georgette Heyer (1941)
• Hercule Poirot's Christmas by Agatha Christie (1938)
• The Santa Klaus Murder by Mavis Hay (1936)
• An English Murder by Cyril Hare (1951) 

Support the show

📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.

🕵️‍♀️ 🕵️ Get double the detection with this episode about odd couple crime-solving duos on TV. 

🔎 The mismatched partners span the globe, from small town librarians to big city detectives, grumpy inspectors and sunny caterers. Even though they get off to a rocky start, these teams find their differences make them unstoppable. From ancient Roman Baths to the sun-soaked Australian outback, these crime shows traverse the world.

⭐️ For each show, I'll recommend "book pairings" - crime and mystery books that match up to the settings and themes of the shows. Read a mystery book alongside your show for a double dose of mystery and mayhem.

Crime television shows covered:

MacDonald and Dodds
Bbook pairings: mystery books set in Bath

Mrs Sidhu Investigates
Book pairings: mystery books about caterers

My Life is Murder
Darby and Joan
Book pairings:  Mystery books set in Australia and New Zealand

Links to podcasts with more crime tv shows:
S2 E4 – Mystery in Translation: Foreign Language Mystery TV
https://www.sararosett.com/mbps2ep4/

MBP S1 E7 The Mallorca Files
https://www.sararosett.com/mbps1e7/

Support the show

📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.

⚓️ All aboard for a look at Death on the Isle, an amateur sleuth mystery from M. H. Eccleston with a nautical theme.

🚤 This isle-set mystery takes you to the Isle of Wight during yachting season. When freelance art restorer Astrid takes on a freelance job of appraising the art in an estate on the island, she ends up investigating a suspicious death with help from an artsy crew. A dash of family drama and a peek into luxury lifestyles of the uber rich set this drama apart. 

🏝️ Read-alike suggestions cover other island mysteries. 

Thanks to the publisher for sending a review copy. All opinions are my own.

Support the show

📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.

🍿 If you're in the mood for a mystery with Golden Age overtones combined with a behind-the-scenes look at the film industry, grab your popcorn and settle in for a discussion of The Three Dahlias by Katy Watson. 

🏛️ The modern day mystery is set at Aldermere House, home to the legendary author Lettice Davenport and her fictional 1930s sleuth, Dahlia Lively. 

⭐️ Three rival actresses, connected to Dahlia's adaptations, must collaborate to solve a murder rooted in the stories themselves. 

🔎 Themes discussed include fandom, author legacy, and female friendship, with a modern twist on the classic country house mystery. 

🎥 Read-alike recommendations include mysteries set around filming and Hollywood.

Support the show

📚 Buy Sara's books: SaraRosettBooks.com

🔎 Get more mystery in your life when you sign up for Sara's updates.