[Daisy Dalrymple 16] • The Bloody Tower

In early 1925, the Honourable Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher, recent mother of twins, resumes her journalistic career by agreeing to write a piece about the Tower of London - the Bloody Tower - for an American magazine. Invited to observe the centuries old ritual Ceremony of the Keys, she's spending the night (her first time away from her babies) since the complex is locked and guarded, and the high walls are surrounded by a disused moat. Having been given a tour of the Crown Jewels, interviewed and observed the Yeoman Warders, and met the Ravenmaster, Daisy has more than enough material for her article and decides to leave as early as possible the next morning to return to her family. But when walking down the stairs, she almost trips over the dead body of one of the Yeoman Warders. That there's something seriously amiss cannot be denied, due to the pike sticking out of his back. With her husband, Scotland Yard DCI Alec Fletcher assigned to resolve the case, Daisy once again finds herself in the middle of a case of murder most foul.

From Publishers WeeklyIn Dunn's cunning 16th Daisy Dalrymple mystery (after 2007's Gunpowder Plot), the charming Daisy stumbles over the corpse of the Chief Yeoman Warder at the Tower of London. Daisy and her husband, Scotland Yard's DCI Alec Fletcher, team up to unmask the killer. Daisy does all the really clever sleuthing, but she kindly allows her hubby to think he's putting things together himself. Things get tricky when one of the chief suspects, who may also be a blackmailer, disappears. And then there's the curious matter of the manner of death: the autopsy concludes that the Yeoman Warder died of a broken neck, so why was there also a partizan, or Yeoman Warder's halberd, sticking out of his back? Appropriate historical detail and witty dialogue are the finishing touches on this engaging 1920s period piece. (Sept.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From BooklistIt is 1925, and Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher is ready to resume her career in journalism after giving birth to twins. An article about the Tower of London for an American magazine will allow her to work while remaining close to home and children. She does, however, need to spend one night in the Tower to observe the Ceremony of the Keys. Having toured the edifice, seen the Crown Jewels, and interviewed the Yeoman Warders (do not call them Beefeaters!) and the Ravenmaster, Daisy thinks that the assignment should be simple. An eerie night in the thick fog keeps her from seeing much of the ceremony, and she decides to leave early the next morning, but she trips over the body of one of the Warders and finds herself once again working with her husband, DCI Alec Fletcher of Scotland Yard, to solve the case. The odd folk who live in the tower and the tyrannical nanny who feels that parents have no place in the nursery add color to this historical cozy. Daisy's fans will be happy to have her back at work. Bibel, Barbara