First Lines: London. January 15, 1933. Weather forecast: showers turning to sleet later. Outlook: Depressing. The Riviera had never looked more inviting.
Winter is so dreary in London that everyone who can afford to is escaping to the south of France. Lady Georgiana Rannoch, thirty-fourth in line to the throne of England, can't afford to make the trip to the land of sun and fun. When she learns that her brother, detested sister-in-law, and other family members are going, it's too much. Fortunately, the Queen throws Georgie a lifeline. She will pay Georgie's fare to the Riviera, and in return, Georgie will locate and rescue the Queen's stolen snuff box.
After a few fits and starts, Georgie is comfortably ensconced in her mother's villa and hobnobbing with the likes of Coco Chanel. In no time at all, Georgie finds herself charged with finding not one but two stolen items... and identifying a murderer.
Will she ever have time to go to the casino?
~
Imbued with the sights and sounds of the French Riviera in the 1930s, Naughty in Nice is just plain fun to read. The Queen must have her necklace and snuff box returned to her. There's a dead man in a swimming pool overlooking the Mediterranean. There's a dashing French aristocrat paying attention to Georgie as well as a very unwelcome pompous police officer. And who can resist a fashion show featuring the creations of Coco Chanel?
Amidst all the fun, there were only two annoying flies buzzing around my head. One was the voice narrator Katherine Kellgren used for Georgie's best friend Belinda. There's only so much of that bored, nasal, upper-class British whine that I can take, so it was a very good thing that Belinda had few scenes in the book. (It was bad enough that I'm considering going back to reading the physical books so I can supply my own voice for this character.)
The second annoyance was Georgie's maid, Queenie. I know she's supposed to be funny, but I would have sacked that woman after the first week and thought I'd been magnanimous in waiting that long to show her the door. (In case you haven't guessed, gross incompetence wrapped in humor does not work for me.)
However, both those annoyances were fleeting, and I really enjoyed the light-hearted fun in Naughty in Nice. I'm looking forward to Georgie's next escapade. It's bound to be a good one.
Naughty in Nice by Rhys Bowen
Narrator: Katherine Kellgren
ASIN: B005LEV0B8
Audible Studios © 2011
Audiobook. 9 hours, 34 minutes.
Historical Mystery, #5 Her Royal Spyness mystery
Rating: B+
Source: Purchased from Audible.
I do like Bowen's work, Cathy, so I'm not surprised you enjoyed this, even if you had those flies buzzing around your head. Bowen has a good mix, I think, of telling a solid mystery but still weaving some 'light' into it. And she has a real sense of place, in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteYes, she's good at everything you mentioned.
DeleteI've not read any of Bowen's books but your reviews of them make me want to. They sound like such fun reads.
ReplyDeleteThey are. Bowen packs a lot into her books.
DeleteGeorgie and this particular escapade do sound like loads of fun. I've read some of Rhys Bowen's Molly Murphy books, but not any in this series yet.
ReplyDeleteIt's a fun one, Lark.
DeleteI have to agree. Queenie needs to find somewhere else to go. By the latest book, she has options, so I don't know why she hasn't been packed off to one of them yet. (Erm, obviously I haven't read the latest book yet, so I can only comment on what I've read to this point.)
ReplyDelete(On a side topic, Blogger seems to be suggesting how I should finish what I'm trying to write, often with words that have nothing to do with what I'm intending to say. Annoying as all get-out. Is it doing that to you?)
I'm glad someone agrees with me about Queenie!
DeleteAs for Blogger, no, it hasn't done that to me. Yet. But... it did vaporize a link round-up that I was over halfway done with, and I couldn't find all the links I used once I'd calmed down and started over.
Hmm...I wonder if it's a Microsoft Edge thing, then? I only notice it here, though, and on my blog.
DeleteSorry it banished your link roundup to the ether. That's a pain in the proverbial, isn't it?
DeleteThat's a head scratcher. Maybe it is a Microsoft Edge thing. And vaporizing the most time-consuming weekly post I write is more than a pain in the proverbial-- at least to me! LOL
Delete