quippe | Entries tagged with elly griffiths

The Blurb On The Back:

Super-smart by day, super-sleuth by night.
Justice Jones is on the case …

An intriguing new girl catches Justice’s attention this year. Letitia has never been to school before and doesn’t care for the rules. Mysteriously, the teachers don’t seem to mind!

Then, after a midnight feast in the barn, and a terrifying ghost-sighting in the garden, one of Justice’s friends disappears. Justice has to investigate. But why are the ransom notes torn from the pages of a crime novel?

Can Justice find the kidnapper - before it’s too late?

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

The third in the A GIRL CALLED JUSTICE mystery series by Elly Griffiths for readers aged 9+ lacked tension and pace partly due to a lot of set up with the introduction of Letitia. As a result I didn’t believe in the peril and despite a good twist, the investigation is quite patchy. That said, I did like Letitia’s attitude and she’ll make an interesting addition to the Barnowls and the tension with Stella and Dorothy would make me read on.

A GIRL CALLED JUSTICE: THE GHOST IN THE GARDEN was released in the United Kingdom on 13th May 2021. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

As soon as she saw the school, Justice Jones knew that it had potential for murder.

She kept this to herself, of course. The taxi driver could easily be a spy.

Meet Justice Jones: super-smart by day, super-sleuth by night, she’s always on the lookout for mystery.

And on her first day at boarding school, it’s clear there is plenty of investigating to do: Why do blondes rule the corridors? Who made the uniform such a charming shade of brown? And do teachers normally hide dangerous secrets about the murder of a chamber maid?

When a deadly snow storm cuts everyone off from the outside world, the body count starts to rise. Can Justice find the killer – before it’s too late?

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Acclaimed crime novelist Elly Griffiths’s first mystery for children aged 9+ (the first in a series) is an entertaining addition to the trend for boarding school detectives but includes characters from less privileged backgrounds and although I thought that the mystery lacked cohesion and pace in parts, Griffiths creates a good sense of menace and anxiety as the girls are snowed in while winking at the conventions of the boarding school genre.

A GIRL CALLED JUSTICE was released in the United Kingdom on 4th May 2019. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Boiled human bones have been found in a tunnel under Norwich. A medieval curiosity? Perhaps, but when Dr Ruth Galloway discovers they were recently buried, DCI Nelson has a murder enquiry on his hands.

Meanwhile, DS Judy Johnson is investigating the disappearance of a local rough sleeper. The only trace of her is a rumour that she’s gone ‘underground’. Both Ruth and the police have heard whispers that the vast network of old chalk-mining tunnels under Norwich is home to a community of rough sleepers. Can the tales of cannibalism in this subterranean society possibly be true?

Then another woman goes missing and the police came under attack. Ruth and Nelson must unravel the dark secrets of the Underground and discover just what gruesome secrets lurk at its heart – before it claims another victim.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

The 9th in Elly Griffiths’ RUTH GALLOWAY MYSTERIES is strong on the relationships between the detectives in Nelson’s team and in his relationship with Galloway but the homelessness storyline didn’t quite gel to me and had a means to an end feel to it while the antagonist’s motivation was so ridiculous and featured so late in the plot that I couldn’t take it seriously.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.