The Burning Issue of the Day

In 1910, in England, as in the United States, the eponymous burning issue is votes for women. Former spy Emily, Lady Hardcastle, and her sassy, diminutive sidekick Florence Armstrong are drawn into a case in which a suffragette is accused of arson and inadvertent murder. As always, the mystery was well crafted, and the novel was a quick, funny five-star read.

That said, author T.E. Kinsey also taught me a great deal about suffrage organizations in England and the lengths that opponents took to deny women the vote. Kinsey includes actual quotes from male chauvinists of the day who felt that women were too emotional — and stupid — for politics. An amusing and eye-opening book. Who could ask for more? I can’t wait for the sixth entry show more in this fabulous series.

If you have Kindle Unlimited, you’re in for an additional treat: The Kindle and Audible versions are free for Kindle Unlimited subscribers. As always, narrator Elizabeth Knowelden makes this book! show less

Reading a Lady Hardcastle mystery never fails to brighten my day. And if you think reading a mystery-- and a humorous mystery to boot-- is a waste of time, think again. In The Burning Issue of the Day, I learned quite a bit about the fight for women's suffrage in Bristol, England, as well as the settings for several scenes in the book. (The author's notes at the end of the book are well worth reading.)

For once, a pair of (not-so-amateur) sleuths have a good working relationship with the local detective inspector, and that's something I greatly appreciate. Lady Hardcastle and Florence Armstrong are marvelous characters, and I love their lively banter. Well, to be honest, I love all the humor in the entire series. In this fifth book, we show more get the added bonus of learning a bit more about these two women's escapades before they settled down in a small English village.

Whodunit was rather easy to deduce, but I didn't care because I enjoy the characters, the setting, and the humor too much. If you like historical crime fiction and need to read something that can put a smile on your face, pick up one of T.E. Kinsey's Lady Hardcastle mysteries. You can pick this one up and not feel lost, but don't be surprised if, once you've read this book, you go back to read all the others. They're little gems, and perfect for learning things and for a badly needed pick-me-up. show less

I‘be been a fan of Lady Hardcastle and Florence Armstrong since book one. When I found out the other day that there is a new audiobook out, I immediately purchased it. My current reading list is fairly long, but of course I made time to listen to this latest installment.
I was not disappointed. The story is well written, amusing, and with a lot of historical background, as usual.
Again, I felt as if I was there, trying to unravel the mystery. Here, you have it all: suffragettes, politics, corruption, and other criminal activities. We meet old friends and new ones, old enemies and unlikely alliances. Although I ‘m not usually a fan of long series, I look forward to the next case, because I’d love to return to the countryside with show more Lady H and Flo.
Elizabeth Knowelden once again delighted me with her narration. show less

Lively only slightly improbable characters drive this series nicely. The basic surmise and plot are also suitably improbable and quite entertaining.

I thought this book was a fun read and def a new favorite in the series!! I loved the diffrent mystery!! This book series is a fun time and i loved both the time period and all the characters that build this world!! All the plots sort of blur together!! But it was a fun and quick read!!

January 1910 and a shop in Thomas Street has been set ablaze late one evening. Leaflets and a note point to suffragette Lizzy Worrwel, as guility and whois consequently arrested. Unfortunately the next day a body was discovered inside. This turned out to be Christian Brookfield, a journalist. Therefore the police are treating it as a closed case but Lady Emily Hardcastle is asked to investigate, with the help of her maid Florence Armstrong. Both who have in past lives had many adventures as government spies.
An entertaining well-paced historical cozy mystery, number five in this well-written series.
A NetGalley Book

The Burning Issue Of The Day is the fifth book in the A Lady Hardcastle Mystery series.

It’s Friday morning and Lady Hardcastle and her ladies maid, Florence Hamilton, are reading the Bristol News while partaking of their breakfast they start to discuss an article about arson on Thomas St where a tenant dies and the arrest of a woman, charging her with murder. Later that morning as Lady Hardcastle and Flo are about to head out for lunch at the Dog and Duck the post arrives and Lady H finds a letter written on fine stationery and takes time to read it. The letter is from a Lady Bickle who says she got Lady H’s name from her friend, Dr. Simeon Gosling. She states in her letter that she has learned from Gosling Lady H’s investigative show more skills and would like to meet with Lady H to see if Lady would look into the arson. Lady Bickle is a leader of a local suffragette group, who are part of the WSPU, and they adhere to a non-violence way of getting women’s rights. The young lady arrested for the arson, Lizzie Worell, is a member of Lady Bickle’s group. Lady Bickle feels certain that Worell is innocent.

Lady H decides to take on the investigation and with the victim of fire, a Christian Brookfield, being a reporter with the Bristol News, reluctantly decides to call a truce with reporter Dinah Caudle, who they had a run-in with in the previous book. Soon, Caudle brings a notebook of Brookfield’s to Lady H and Flo that are notes on stories that he had been working on. The notes are written in code and some are easy to decipher and it appears that he was working on the corruption of some high placed businessmen. Some are more difficult to break and these will be the ones to get the investigation to head in the right direction.

I love this series. The stories are all well told and well plotted the characters are well developed very enjoyable. I particularly enjoy Lady Hardcastle and Flo. Even though they Lady and Lady’s Maid they are more than less on an even footing. The dialogue between them is often humorous.

I’m looking forward to reading many more books in this very enjoyable series. show less