Murder in Style

August 24, 2015
At the start of Heley’s intricate 16th Ellie Quicke mystery (after 2014’s False Impression), Ellie returns from an extended visit to America to find chaos at her suburban West London home. The house is cold, furniture has been rearranged, and, worst of all, her aging housekeeper, Rose, is much weaker than she was before Ellie left. Claire, the hired woman who was supposed to care for Rose in Ellie’s absence, has overstepped her authority and wants Rose and Ellie to support the Vision, a fundamentalist sect run by a charismatic pastor. In the course of a week, Ellie investigates the Vision, sets Rose’s situation to rights, and helps the police solve a couple of missing persons cases, putting her own life on the line in the process—all while suffering from jet lag. While minor characters aren’t fully developed, Ellie remains a formidable heroine, despite her rather slapdash and impulsive habits. Ellie’s own strong religious convictions, warm heart, and good intentions carry the day.

October 1, 2015
When Ellie Quicke has the opportunity to travel to America with her husband while he attends a conference, she leaps at the chance. The only problem is that she can't leave her elderly housekeeper, Rose, who's nearly a member of the family. Ellie's daughter, Diana, offers a solution: hire her former nanny, Claire, who wants a position as a caregiver. But when Ellie returns from America, Claire has made a number of bold changesmoving furniture, denying Rose the food she loves, discarding some of Ellie's possessions. Ellie is naturally incensed, especially after learning that Claire is a member of a cultlike church called the Vision and is in thrall to its charismatic pastor. But when murder enters the picture, Ellie realizes that she and Rose could be in real danger. The latest in Heley's long-running series again draws its appeal from the mix of suspense, gentle humor, an unpredictable plot, and a brave and engaging amateur sleuth.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)

August 29, 2016
In Heley’s well-plotted 17th Ellie Quick mystery (after 2015’s Murder by Suspicion), Ellie investigates the suspicious death of Poppy Cordover, who ran a prosperous West London boutique, the Magpie, with her twin sister, Juno. The police say that Poppy’s fatal fall down the stairs of the Magpie was accidental, but her father believes otherwise. Ellie, who was recommended to Poppy’s father and stepmother by a policewoman familiar with her instinct for crime solving, focuses on the members of the dysfunctional extended family, in particular Poppy’s husband, Ray, whose gambling habit has gotten him into debt. Another suspect is Poppy and Ray’s daughter, Trixie, who wanted her mother to finance her making of a film. As the case becomes more complicated, distractions and red herrings abound, and readers are hard put to figure out just who and how the “accident” was arranged. A mature woman with keen observational skills and psychological insight into dark human deeds, Ellie is a worthy successor to Agatha Christie’s Jane Marple.