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When Indian Princess Alexandrina is left penniless by the sudden death of her father, the Maharaja of Brindor, Queen Victoria grants her a grace-and-favor home in Hampton Court Palace. Though rumored to be haunted, Alexandrina and her lady's maid, Pooki, have no choice but to take the Queen up on her offer.
Aside from the ghost sightings, Hampton Court doesn't seem so bad. The princess is soon befriended by three eccentric widows who invite her to a picnic with all the palace's inhabitants, for which Pooki bakes a pigeon pie. But when General-Major Bagshot dies after eating said pie, and the coroner finds traces of arsenic in his body, Pooki becomes the #1 suspect in a murder investigation.
Princess Alexandrina isn't about to let her faithful servant hang. She begins an investigation of her own, and discovers that Hampton Court isn't such a safe place to live after all.
With her trademark wit and charm, Julia Stuart introduces us to an outstanding cast of lovable oddballs, from the palace maze-keeper to the unconventional Lady Beatrice (who likes to dress up as a toucan—don't ask), as she guides us through the many delightful twists and turns in this fun and quirky murder mystery. Everyone is hiding a secret of the heart, and even Alexandrina may not realize when she's caught in a maze of love.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
August 7, 2012 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9780449013755
- File size: 306750 KB
- Duration: 10:39:03
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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June 4, 2012
Near the outset of Stuart’s zany first mystery, a late Victorian historical, Princess Alexandrina of Prindur (aka Mink), the daughter of an Indian maharajah, faces eviction from her father’s London house after her debt-ridden parent’s death. Mink staves off the creditors for a year until getting a reprieve from the queen, who offers her a “grace-and-favour residence” on the grounds of Hampton Court Palace. Over the reservations of her maid, Pooki, who believes the palace to be haunted, Mink accepts, only to find herself in the midst of a murder inquiry in which she has a personal investment. During a picnic at the palace’s Pond Gardens, a guest expires after eating an arsenic-laced pigeon pie that Pooki prepared. Fans of Stuart’s novel The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise will find the same wit on display. A noblewoman, for example, praises H.G. Wells’s Martians for sparing Hampton Court “as any right-thinking monsters would.” Agent: Gráinne Fox, Fletcher & Company. -
December 24, 2012
Princess Alexandrina, known as Mink, is the daughter of an Indian Maharaja but was born and raised in Victorian England. When her father dies suddenly amid scandal, she discovers she's penniless. But then Queen Victoria allows her to live in one of the residences at Hampton Court Palace. Mink and her Indian maid, Pooki, start to settle in and make friends. But when the obnoxious General-Major Bagshot dies of arsenic poisoning after eating one of Pooki's pigeon pies at a picnic, Pooki is suspected of murder and Mink must find the true criminal before her loyal maid is hanged. Hannah Curtis narrates with a proper English accent and in a tone befitting the subject matter. She also creates unique voices for the many characters. Among the highlights are the voice of the blustery and lecherous Bagshot, the lower-class English accents of various tradesmen and servants, the voice of the outraged head housekeeper, and that of the visiting paleontologist from America. This is an engaging and downright fun listen for fans of the cozy. A Doubleday hardcover.
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