Review: The Body in the Garden

Title: The Body in the Garden

Series: A Lily Adler Mystery #1

Author: Katherine Schellman

Release Date: April 7, 2020

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Find it here: Goodreads

Synopsis from Goodreads: London 1815. Though newly-widowed Lily Adler is returning to a society that frowns on independent women, she is determined to create a meaningful life for herself even without a husband. She's no stranger to the glittering world of London's upper crust. At a ball thrown by her oldest friend, Lady Walter, she expects the scandal, gossip, and secrets. What she doesn't expect is the dead body in Lady Walter's garden.Lily overheard the man just minutes before he was shot: young, desperate, and attempting blackmail. But she's willing to leave the matter to the local constables--until Lord Walter bribes the investigating magistrate to drop the case. Stunned and confused, Lily realizes she's the only one with the key to catching the killer.Aided by a roguish navy captain and a mysterious heiress from the West Indies, Lily sets out to discover whether her friend's husband is mixed up in blackmail and murder. The unlikely team tries to conceal their investigation behind the whirl of London's social season, but the dead man knew secrets about people with power. Secrets that they would kill to keep hidden. Now, Lily will have to uncover the truth, before she becomes the murderer's next target.

My Review: This was a fabulous debut and start to this series. I love books set in regency London and this was a fantastic example of that time period. The author did a fantastic job with the setting, clearly having done plenty of research. The writing was lovely and the plot was well thought out. I really enjoyed trying to guess the bad guy! I knocked off a star for the slow beginning and because the main character was a little bit irritating at parts. Overall though I really enjoyed the story and look forward to book two.

*I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher. All opinions are my own.*