Description (from cover):
‘Traveling secretary Hattie Davish is returning to her once-quiet hometown, where a deluge of deadly secrets leaves her feeling anything but welcome…
When her good friend Virginia Hayward’s father passes away, Hattie Davish rushes to her hometown of St. Joseph, Missouri. She’s looking forward to visiting the place where she grew up, even if the circumstances bringing her there are bleak. But upon her arrival, she learns that all is not well in St. Joe. Virginia is cold and distant, Frank Hayward’s death is shrouded in mystery, and a string of troubling incidents have descended on Hattie’s alma mater, Mrs. Chaplin’s School for Women.
Frank was the school’s bookkeeper, and as Hattie begins investigating the bizarre goings-on, she becomes convinced that someone other than Frank was in the casket–but who? Her search for the truth takes her from the town cemetery, to the home of an infamous outlaw, to the dungeon-like tunnels beneath the State Lunatic Asylum–and brings her face-to-face with a killer bent on the deadliest lesson of all…’
My thoughts:
I have really come to enjoy this series over reading the last couple in this series. I enjoy Hattie’s character as she is professional and determined to do the right thing at no matter the cost. Hattie has returned to St. Joseph, Missouri, where she grew up. This is a place that doesn’t necessarily hold great memories for her, but her friend’s father has died and she wants to attend the funeral and be there for her friend. However, when she arrives she is confronted by her friend who acts nothing like the friend from Hattie’s past. And when Hattie begins questioning her father’s death, well her friend doesn’t take very kindly to that. Hattie must deal with her own past and discover what exactly is going on in her hometown.
Like I stated earlier, I really have enjoyed this series thus far. I like that it is a clean and fun cozy historical mystery series that always promises to deliver. I will say that I did like the previous book A Sense of Entitlement more than this one, but this is most definitely not a bad book. I discovered a lot more about Hattie’s past and how it defined who she is now in this book and that is something that I have been anxiously awaiting for. I think that overall this book was a more of character development book for the series and I am anxious to see how this shapes Hattie in the future installments.
Nothing excites me more in the book world than a good historical mystery series and this is definitely one series at the top of that list. I love how Hattie is independent for the time period and sets out to be a professional, yet handles herself perfectly in the midst of a murder investigation. I can really see that a lot of readers will enjoy Hattie’s adventures and I hope that this series will continue for a long time to come.
Overall Rating: 4
Title: A Deceptive Homecoming
Author: Anna Loan-Wilsey
Series: Hattie Davish Mystery #4
Publisher: Kensington
Publication Date: July 28, 2015
Pages: 304
Genre: Historical Mystery
Get It: Amazon; Barnes & Noble
About the Author:
Anna Loan-Wilsey lives in a Victorian farmhouse in the Iowa countryside with her patient husband, inquisitive six year old daughter and her old yellow dog. She was born and raised in Syracuse, NY but has lived in Finland, Canada and Texas. She has a BA in Biology from Wells College in Aurora, NY and a MLIS from McGill University in Montreal. She is a biologist, librarian, information specialist and now with the Hattie Davish Mysteries Series, a novelist. She is a proud member of Sleuths In Time, Mystery Writers of America and Sisters-in-Crime.
This has been a stop on the A Deceptive Homecoming blog tour hosted by Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours. Make sure that you stop by all the stops for chances to win one of 2 print copies of this book and a Hobby Reads Sewing Kit!
August 1 – Girl Lost In a Book
August 1 – Mallory Heart Reviews
August 2 – Brooke Blogs
August 3 – Melina’s Book Blog
August 3 – The Reading Room
August 4 – Cozy Up With Kathy
August 4 – Girl with Book Lungs
August 5 – Babs Book Bistro
August 6 – StoreyBook Reviews
August 7 – readalot
August 7 – Queen of All She Reads
August 8 – Book Splurge
August 9 – Book Babble
August 10 – LibriAmoriMiei
August 10 – Shelley’s Book Case
Disclaimer: This book was given to me by the publisher, through Netgalley and Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours, in exchange for my honest review. I reviewed this book without compensation of any kind. All thoughts and opinions are solely mine.
Girl Lost In a Book 
Thank you for the thoughtful review, as it definitely makes me want to read this more! Haven't read any of the series yet, but purchased the first first-in-series when I first heard of this book. jeaniedannheim ( at ) ymail ( dot ) com
LikeLike
A new book to add to my “must read” list. Thanks for a great review… kat8762@aol.com
LikeLike
This historical mystery sounds enthralling and captivating. I would enjoy this novel and thanks for this great feature and giveaway. Your review was very concise and thoughtful. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com
LikeLike
Sounds like a great read.
LikeLike