Murder Most Unladylike: A New Middle Grade Series That’s Not Just for Kids
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By Carol Pouliot
I recently discovered Robin Stevens Murder Most Unladylike series. Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong are students in a British boarding school. They’re smart and clever, independent and adventurous. Daisy is more outspoken and excitable, but when Hazel—who plays Watson to her friend’s Sherlock—has something to say, it makes a big impact on their investigation. This new series, set in the 1930s, feels fresh and modern. I loved being transported in time.
In Murder Is Bad Manners (#1), the young sleuths form The Wells & Wong Detective Society when one of their teachers goes missing. They discover the body but, after they report it and drag an adult to the scene, the corpse has disappeared. Daisy and Hazel refuse to give up until they bring the killer to justice. The game is afoot!
Unable to go home to Hong Kong, Hazel spends the Christmas holidays at Daisy’s house in Poison Is Not Polite (#2). During a birthday party, one of the guests is poisoned. Because of a snowstorm, the police cannot reach the manor and no one in the house can escape, leaving sleuths Daisy and Hazel to solve the case. This is a classic English country house murder mystery.
In First Class Murder, (#3), an homage to Agatha Christie’s classic Murder on the Orient Express, Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong tackle their first locked-room mystery aboard the famous train. From the moment they step aboard, mystery, tension, and suspense surround them. During dinner, a blood-curdling scream shatters the quiet of the train, which has been forced to stop while a problem on the line is cleared up. All the passengers rush to the compartment to find a wealthy woman has been murdered and her celebrated ruby necklace has been stolen. Daisy and Hazel are on the case!
There’s trouble at Deepdean School when Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong return for a new semester in Jolly Foul Play (#4). The pecking order has changed, there’s a new Head Girl, and a group of “Big Girls” endlessly bully the younger girls. When a student’s body is discovered the night of the bonfire, Wells and Wong tackle the case, despite battling problems upsetting their own friendship.
Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong are thrilled to be spending the Christmas holidays at Cambridge. They’re even more excited to find their friends Alexander and George, aka The Junior Pinkertons, are also staying at the university. When an older student falls to her death on the staircase of her dormitory, the four young detectives work together to solve what first appeared to be an accident. Can the young sleuths catch the killer before s/he kills again in Mistletoe and Murder (#5)?
A Spoonful of Murder (#6) is my personal favorite—it’s a lively, exciting adventure. Daisy and Hazel travel to Hazel’s home in glittering Hong Kong. At first overjoyed to spend time with her family, Hazel is stunned to learn she has a new baby brother. Struggling with her feelings about this shocking discovery, Hazel soon has a more serious problem to face—someone has framed her for murder. The young detectives travel throughout this bustling Asian city searching for clues, encountering dangerous Hong Kong gangs, as well as a variety of suspicious and fascinating characters.
Daisy and Hazel take to the stage in the 7th installment of the series, Death in the Spotlight. The girls are spending some vacation time with Daisy’s fascinating uncle and his exciting wife in London. Naturally, murder follows the girls to the theater. They get a taste of life behind the curtain—jealousy, dangerous practical jokes, and threatening behavior. The young sleuths must work fast to prevent another member of the cast from becoming victim #2.
In Top Marks for Murder (#8), Daisy and Hazel learn that old sins cast long shadows and secrets might be better off left buried. They’re positive they’ve witnessed a murder, but when they examine the spot, there’s no body. Sure they’re right, the girls delve into the past histories and rivalries of several Deepdean School alumni, who have returned for an anniversary weekend. Can Daisy and Hazel solve the crime before the school closes forever?
Cream Bun and Crime is billed as “Tips, Tricks, and Tales from the Detective Society.” It’s a collection of previously untold investigations from Hazel’s casebook.
Death Sets Sail (#9) is the final book in the Murder Most Unladylike Mysteries. Daisy and Hazel travel to Egypt where they board a boat to cruise down the Nile. A strange group of fellow travelers believe they are ancient Egyptian gods and goddesses reincarnated, leading Daisy and Hazel to undertake their most difficult investigation to date. Danger has never threatened the girls more.
These wonderful books aren’t just for teens. Enjoy!