Welcome to Litsy!

Well, this was just delightful! I think I am entering into my cozy British mystery era! 🧐🔍

I feel seen 😂♥️📚!

(Ch 1) He was the very last sort of man to be murdered.
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He was the very last sort of man to become an amateur sleuth.
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Looking from the great dark bulk of the library looming in front of him to the green slope leading from the Terrace to the wide expanse of the lawn, he would often murmur to himself the words of the great Roman advocate Cicero: ‘If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.‘

978-1-5266-6871-4
Set in Temple (a legal centre since C14) in May 1901 when CSI methods were in their infancy

This was an enjoyable bit of gentle crime set in 1901 in the inner temple of the English legal system. When the Lord chief justice is found murdered on the steps of Gabriel Ward KC'S Chambers, he is told to investigate the crime. With his forensic intelligence, he is a very readable character who also has to deal with a trial concerning the authorship of a child's mouse story. The crocheted Paddington bookmark is a lovely fathers day present.

A soft pick for me. I enjoyed the slow burn investigative element, and the court room scenes, but something about the writing style niggled me slightly. With the MC “snuffling” and saying things “in his gentle way” I sometimes felt like I was reading a Bagpuss script. I probably will read the second in the series, though.

Picture shows the Inner Temple garden.

Book 49/60 Page 16,327/18,000 #Read2025 @DieAReader

I‘ve never felt more seen! 🤣🤣

I ended up really liking this. There's a deep affection for the Inner Temple and the work of lawyers there, the traditions and rituals of it, which I liked a lot. And surprisingly, I loved the characters: Gabriel Ward seems a bit stuffy at first, but he's gently courteous to all (regardless of station) and finds himself working toward not just law but justice.

I did guess the culprit and the chains of reasoning toward the culprit, which was nice.

I'm finding this one rather charming! I didn't think I'd like Gabriel Ward at first, and then his book-loving ways and pondering/joking about language got rather charming.

I'm reading this slower than I expected though, and I don't know why? I guess it's just denser than it looked. Very curious where it's going.

As 2024 draws to an end, 'A Case of Mice and Murder' will be my most memorable read of the year. It wasn't an exciting story or thrilling. Indeed, at the start i was finding it a bit slow. As the book developed, the characters despite having a cold demeanor became likeable, friendly and warm hearted. Everything pointed to a complicated investigation but in the end it was wonderfully simplistic. A really satisfying story which I enjoyed a lot.

This was a slow burn story with the mystery of the killing as well as the book mystery along the way. The mystery was interesting and i liked how it all came together. The characters are interesting though you don't get to know anyone on a deeper level in this but I believe there may be more to come. The plot was well written and laid the scene for the times really well. The ending was really well put together and tied the story. #Netgalley 3*