Hello and welcome to my stop of the Marion Lane And The Midnight Murder 2020 Fall Reads blog tour! A huge thanks to Justine Sha for inviting me to be part of this blog tour. I admit that I was sold as soon as I read the blurb and saw it was a historical mystery… And my instincts turned out to be right, as I absolutely loved my time with this story! Want to know why? Please join me while I share my thoughts…
Title: Marion Lane And The Midnight Murder
Author: T.A. Willberg
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Thriller
First published: December 29th 2020
Publisher: Park Row
Finished reading: December 12th 2020
Pages: 352
“We all have our secrets, Marion. Bill has his, you have yours. It doesn’t mean you don’t trust each other. Some truths are private, and they should remain that way.”
*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Park Row in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***
I admit that I was sold as soon as I read the blurb of Marion Lane And The Midnight Murder and saw that it was a historical mystery. Add the promise of a mysterous detective agency, secret tunnels and gadgets, and there was just no way I was going to be able to resist this story… And I’m glad I didn’t, because I have just found myself a new favorite! The historical setting, the Inquirer world, the characters, the suspense, the murder mystery… I loved it all, and I really do hope T.A. Willberg will turn this is a series as I’m already craving for more. Fans of historical mysteries and detective thrillers alike will have a blast reading this debut!
There is a lot to love in this story, but I guess the first thing that stands out is the historical setting. Marion Lane And The Midnight Murder takes place in 1958 London, a city that still struggles with the aftermath of WWII and of course will always have crimes to solve. The author did a brilliant job developing the historical feel of this story, and it really felt like I was transported back to the 1950s along with the main characters. Connected to this is the development of the Miss Brickett’s Investigations & Inquiries agency and the whole Inquirer world in general, which is once again brilliantly done and really took the story to the next level for me. I loved learning more about this mysterious agency and the inner workings of their organization and those who worked there… This is definitely a world I wouldn’t mind revisiting in the future!
As for the characters… Marion Lane makes for a very strong main character and I was able to connect to her almost immediately. Her personality, her affinity to mechanics, her perseverance while hunting for the truth… There was just something about her that made me like her immediately, and I had a great time seeing her develop during the story. I also liked that she is an Inquirer-In-Training and not a full blown Inquirer, as this way we get to learn so much more about the organization and its training methods alone the way… Marion Lane And The Midnight Murder has a great cast of characters in general, and I had a wonderful time following them along the way.
I was a big fan of both the plot and the writing itself too. The writing style is fluid and super engaging, making me fly through those pages in record time. The plot and its twists did a brilliant job building up the suspense and the whole ‘on the edge of my seat’ cliche most definitely applies here. The investigation was fascinating to follow and I definitely didn’t guess most of the twists either, which is always a bonus for me. And the ending most definitely left me wanting for more!
In short, I had a fantastic time with Marion Lane And The Midnight Murder and I can highly recommend this title to anyone who enjoys a well written detective thriller and/or historical mystery with a twist. It’s a brilliant debut set in a world I wouldn’t mind revisiting in the future! Fingers crossed this will actually become a series, as I’m already hungry for more.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
T.A. Willberg was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and holds a chiropractic masters degree from Durban University of Technology. MARION LANE AND THE MIDNIGHT MURDER is her debut novel and launch of her detective series. She currently lives in Malta with her partner.
SOCIAL LINKS
Author Website // Twitter // Facebook // Instagram
BUY LINKS
Harlequin // Indiebound // Bookshop // Amazon // Barnes & Noble // Indigo // Books-A-Million // Target // Walmart // Google // iBooks // Libro.Fm // Kobo
You can also find me at Goodreads. Twitter. Instagram. Bloglovin’.
Wow amazing review Yvo! I have a feeling you liked this one! 😂 xx
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How can you tell? xD This ended up being one of my absolute favorites of 2020… I’m having a feeling you would love it too! xx
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Wow I’ll have to add it to Goodreads then! xx
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It’s still available for request on NG UK (and with an absolutely gorgeous cover too). 😉
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ooh popping over now! 😀
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Great review! This sounds really fun 🙂
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It’s such a brilliant read! xx
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You definitely convinced me to add it to my TBR! I’m a fan of historical mysteries!
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You will enjoy this one then! xx
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Sounds like the time period and setting came alive in this one. Great review, Yvo.
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Oh yes most definitely! xx
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Wonderful review Yvo. You enjoyed this one a bit more than I did, but I also hope there will be more. I enjoyed the writing and the suspense, but some of the set up was a bit slow for me.
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I’m glad to hear you still mostly enjoyed it despite the slower start though.
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Oh yes, the writing was very good and I like the premise.
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