Snobbery with Violence

An Edwardian Murder Mystery

By: Marion Chesney

Narrated by: Davina Porter

When a marriage proposal appears imminent for the beautiful - if rebellious - Lady Rose Summer, her father wants to know if her suitor's intentions are honorable. He calls on Captain Harry Cathcart, the impoverished younger son of a baron, to do some intelligence work on the would-be fiance, Sir Geoffrey Blandon.

But when Harry is caught between his client's desire for discretion and his suspicion that murder may have been committed, he enlists the help of Superintendent Kerridge of the Scotland Yard and Lady Rose herself.

©2003 Marion Chesney. All rights reserved. (P)2004 BBCA

campy cozy

While I'm not a huge fan of Chesney/Beaton's Hamish MacBeth mysteries, I found this novel charming and look forward to the rest in the seies.

The Edwardian setting, the slighly campy tone (enhanced by the author's selection of period quotes to set the theme for each chapter), and the ALMOST tongue-in-cheek narration by the talented Davina Porter made this a jolly listen. You know that Lady Rose and Capt.Cathcart are going to live happily ever after in some distant future, but till then the lightweight sexual tension between the characters keeps you laughing and believing in "ever after." Meantime there is nothing truly dark in this novel to disturb the present moment, if a relaxing listen is what you're after.

Light and amusing series (Book 1)

If you want a period piece that is essentially a teensy bit of romance, a teensy bit of mystery, and a teensy bit silly, check out this series by Marion Chesney. There are four books in the series - I'm just about to start Book 3, and so far I find them fun to listen to while I'm working. This series is light enough that you can multi-task while listening, unlike some authors (Anne Perry or Tess Gerritsen) that require you to really concentrate on the details. (I do love both Perry and Gerritsen, though)

I will say that Harry's solutions to problems seem to border on the unrealistic and rather slapstick at times, but otherwise it is a nice listen. And I ALWAYS enjoy Davina Porter's reading. That's actually what led me to the series in the first place - she narrated many of Anne Perry's books and I loved her in those as well.

ok story but not best work by author.

Enjoyable but not best story from Chesney. I really enjoyed the suppoorting characters much more than main characters.

Entertaining

Just a fun, clean, cozy mystery. Light hearted entertainment, and I’m looking forward to the next book.

davina porter makes the book

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

i only recommend books that were particularly enjoyable. this was only ok.

Which character – as performed by Davina Porter – was your favorite?

davina is always excellent

Could you see Snobbery with Violence being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

tv maybe