Beryl is in court because of a speeding ticket and meets and Irish immigrant who was arrested for drunkenness. She offers him a job as an assistant gardener so he can pay his fine. Beryl and Edwina head to the magistrate’s house and discover him dead. Meanwhile, they’ve been hired by the registrar to find stolen census forms. Because of prejudice against the Irish, Declan’s been arrested for house burglaries and the murder of the magistrate. A lot of questioning of the locals before our odd couple detectives solve the case. ( )

1921 Walmsley Parva. There have been a spate of burglaries in the village with the prime suspect according to Constable Doris Gibbs is the new Irish under-gardener Declan O'Shea of Edwina and Beryl. But then they come across the dead body of the magistrate in his ransacked house. When they are employed to investiage a theft they are pleased to get an official case whereby they then can unofficially investigate the death and the other burglaries. So they join forces with Constable Gibbs.
A well-written enjoyable cozy historical mystery with a cast of interesting people. A good addition to the series.
An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )

While Beryl Helliwell is less than pleased that she has to appear in from of the magistrate on a charge of reckless driving, she is even less pleased when she and her friend Edwina Davenport stumble over the magistrate’s dead body. His house was ransacked and it appears that his death may be connected to a series of burglaries in the Village of Walmsley Parva. The main suspect is Declan O’Shea – an Irishman Beryl recently hired to work in their garden. Beryl is convinced that Declan is innocent and while Edwina isn’t quite so sure, she agrees to investigate the case with Beryl. Add in their search for missing sensitive census papers and their work as Private Inquiry Agents is quite busy!

“Murder Comes to Call” is the nicely done fourth book in Jessica Ellicott’s Beryl and Edina cozy mystery series set after World War I. I am loving the characters and setting more and more with each book and that is especially true with this book. Beryl and Edwina make a great pair even though they are seemingly opposites: Beryl is a World Famous Adventuress who will try anything but finds it surprisingly quite satisfying to be a Private Inquiry Agent in a small town; Edwina is a prim and proper Brit who knows the ins and outs of village life but is also learning to expand her wings – if only a tiny bit. I love reading as the characters grow throughout the series – they really do complement each other. The village setting and historical setting are also well done by Ellicott – especially the census taking which plays an important role in this book. Besides the murder mystery, there are a couple of smaller mysteries – all are well done – the solution to the murder mystery made me a little sad.

“Murder Comes to Call” is a nicely done historical cozy mystery. ( )

Murder Comes To Call is the fourth book in the Beryl and Edwina Mystery series by Jessica Ellicott.

The Beryl and Edwina series is my favorite historical cozy mystery series. I love the main characters, Beryl and Edwina. They have known each other since finishing school, but that is where the similarities end. Beryl is an adventuress but has decided it’s time to settle down to a calmer life; on the other hand, Edwina has returned to Walmsley Parva to help out her parents and be a prim, proper English lady. Although their lifestyles were different, they work amazingly well together. With their Private Inquiragency, Beryl is more suited to interviewing people, whereas Edwina is better at putting the puzzle pieces together.

This story will be looking into a series of petty burglaries that have been happening in Walmsley Parva. They will also be investigating the death of the local magistrate. Beryl recently appeared before the magistrate on a reckless driving charge, and after having been found innocent, Beryl had offered to take the magistrate for a ride in the motorcar. When Beryl and Edwina arrive at the magistrate’s house, they find the front door ajar and find him dead at the staircase’s foot. The district registrar has also asked Edwina and Beryl to look into the theft of census reports stolen from the taker’s bike while visiting the local pub. Once they get into their investigation, they begin to sense that the three are related.

This story is well-plotted and written with plenty of red herrings that kept me guessing until the end. The characters are all well-developed and believable. I would love to visit Walmsley Parva and its’ residents.

I’m anxiously awaiting the next book in this exciting series. ( )

When former celebrity adventuress Beryl Helliwell and local budding novelist Edwina Davenport are hired to investigate a series of burglaries, one with implications of national importance, they find local magistrate’s home burgled and the man himself dead at the bottom of the grand staircase.

Murder Comes to Call is installment 4 out of 4 in A Beryl and Edwina Mystery series by Jessica Ellicott. The story is set in post WW1 English village Walmsley Parva where inquiry agents Beryl and Edwina are hired to investigate the theft of village census reports when they find the local magistrate dead in his home. Under cover of working on the census case, Beryl and Edwina take it upon themselves to investigate all cases of criminal activity in the village. They suspect all are somehow connected and do not shy away from using slightly unorthodox sleuthing methods to find the culprits.

Main character former celebrity adventuress Beryl Helliwell tends to make somewhat rash decisions. She is a people person and relies on her glamorous and charming appearance to get her out of trouble whenever she colors a bit outside the lines. I find her an amusing character who is my favorite of the story.

Second main character is solicitor’s daughter Edwina Davenport who tries to keep secret that she writes a book in-between investigating cases. She is very concerned with her reputation, but I like her reserved and very proper personality. She seems a very good sleuth which makes me wish she would have better self-confidence.

I read it as a standalone and a first by this author, but I found the main characters so well crafted and relatable, I could have wished them to be my friends in real life. I was drawn in by the amusing parts describing Beryl and Edwina’s thought process as they were investigating. It highlighted their unique strengths and friendship which altogether seems to make them such a strong team. These elements I find make this story memorable.
The writing and dialogue conveyed a slightly old- fashioned vibe. The opulent English countryside setting felt reminiscent of Agatha Christie with a bit of Downton Abbey environments thrown in. The best part of this story was the amusing description of when Beryl and Edwina visited the village gossip lady to get information without revealing anything themselves.

Anyone who enjoys a well written historical cozy mystery set in post WW1 rural England would enjoy this story. As will fans of Jessica Ellicott. I am curious what comes next from this author, and will be on the look-out for any other releases from Jessica Ellicott. Similar authors to explore might be Alyssa Maxwell or Andrea Penrose.
Thank you to publisher Kensington Books and NetGalley for this eARC which gave me the opportunity to share my honest review. All opinions in this review are completely my own.

Conclusion: Murder Comes to Call is the captivating, charming and amusing cozy mystery about Beryl and Edwina as they solve murder and theft in post WW1 English countryside. ( )