GUEST REVIEW by Eleanor and the South Beach Murders by Ellen Yardley

ABOUT THE BOOK

For fans of Colleen Cambridge, S.K. Golden, Jacqueline Winspear, and Ashley Weaver, a brilliant 1950s Cold War historical mystery featuring the former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt’s indispensable assistant as an equally resourceful sleuth. As the duo become entangled in a deadly international mystery connected to famous performer Josephine Baker, can Kay trust her own instincts before it’s too late?

Miami, 1951. With a flurry of UN engagements bringing Mrs. Roosevelt to vibrant South Beach, Kay Thompson is thrilled to escape the post-Christmas blues in Washington, DC—and distance herself from the sting of her recent breakup with private investigator Tim O’Malley. The dizzying sights and sounds of Miami reach their peak at the Copa City Club, where a late-night meeting with singer Josephine Baker reveals that Baker’s bold stand against segregation has made her a target.

Josephine dismisses the threats. But Rosaleen—her cautious young assistant with big dreams—is deeply afraid. That’s why it’s a stunning shock when a dead man turns up in Josephine’s dressing room, and Rosaleen is the one arrested for his murder. Determined to exonerate her new friend, Kay realizes it will mean facing conspiracies and prejudices that reach into the darkest corners of American society still haunted by the horrors of World War II.

Now, tangled in a high-stakes murder case with lives and legacies on the line, Kay joins forces with Mrs. Roosevelt and her former flame to confront the sinister forces lurking just beneath Miami’s glittering Art Deco surface. But when a killer’s scheme comes into sharp focus, Kay must act swiftly in a quest for justice that proves far more dangerous than she ever bargained for . . .

OPENING LINES

“Marilyn Monroe’s candy-cane-striped bikini lay in Kay Thompson’s suitcase, waiting to be worn on Miami’s South Beach.”

Eleanor and the South Beach Murders #2 Eleanor Roosevelt Mystery by Ellen Yardley

GUEST REVIEW by Sophia Rose

The former First Lady and her secretary investigate murder involving the sultry singer, Josephine Baker, in 1950’s Miami.  My first jaunt into Ellen Yardley’s writing was delightful in the decadence of historical detail, engaging characters, and a suspenseful cozy mystery plot.

Eleanor and the South Beach Murders, the second in the series but easily a standalone novel, introduced me to young yet capable Kay, Eleanor Roosevelt's secretary, who is in town for a UN conference. Eleanor Roosevelt chooses not to retire from public life but uses her clout to fight for equality and justice, and Kay is thrilled to be part of it all, if temporarily, particularly when it gets her away from frigid NYC in winter and a recent breakup.  

Not long after their arrival, Eleanor and Kay get invited by the great Josephine Baker herself to a non-segregated (at Josephine’s insistence) nightclub performance and a sit-down between the two great ladies afterward. Kay is much taken with not just Josephine and her amazing past from poverty to fame, fighting against racial injustice, but her equally strong-willed secretary, Rosaleen.

Next thing she knows, Kay is helping Eleanor once again solve a murder. This time a locked-room mystery when a murder happens in Josephine’s dressing room, and Rosaleen is pinned for the crime. Kay’s recent ex, Tim O’Malley, a private detective, is called in to help. Threatening letters, volatile KKK activity, and Miami’s seamier side, Kay is in deadly danger once again.

The novel brings the early 1950’s to life—the era of McCarthyism, segregation and civil rights, women’s struggles, Miami's glamorous beach and night club scenes, and real-life historical figures like Eleanor Roosevelt and Josephine Baker.  

Kay, the central figure, is well written and well placed in this historical setting. I enjoyed seeing her and O’Malley work the case with Eleanor, and I was more focused on the historical backdrop and characters than on the mystery, which was equally good.

Glamorous yet gritty, Eleanor and the South Beach Murders was retro, chic, and clever.

Ellen Yardley, author

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ellen Yardley is the pseudonym of a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author whose previous novels received the National Reader’s Choice Award and the Colorado Award of Excellence. A mother of two, she finds tremendous inspiration in Eleanor Roosevelt. She lives in Ottawa, Canada. You can connect with Ellen via her website.

ABOUT SOPHIA ROSE, Guest reviewer

Sophia is a quiet, curious gal who dabbles in cooking, book reviewing, piano-playing, and gardening. Road trips and campouts, museums and monuments, restaurants, and theaters are her jam. Encouraged and supported by an incredible man and a loving family. A Northern Californian transplant to the Great Lakes region of the US. Lover of Jane Austen, baseball, cats, Scooby Doo, and chocolate. As a lifelong reader, it was inevitable that Sophia would discover book blogs and the joy of blog reviewing. In 2012, she submitted her first book review and is currently an associate reviewer.

Sophia Rose, reviewer

Sophia is a prolific reader and audiobook listener, which allows her to experience many wonderful books, authors, and narrators. Few genres are outside her reading tastes, but her true love is fiction, particularly history, mystery, sci-fi, and romance. Sorry, no horror...or she will run like Shaggy and Scooby. Connect with Sophia via FACEBOOK GOODREADS TWITTER