The Evening's Amethyst by M.K Graff

The Evening’s Amethyst by M.K Graff

Release: 21st September 2021
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Bridle Path Press
Source: Zooloos Book Tours
Find it at: Goodreads, Amazon UK, Amazon US

Who is Verity?

That becomes a central question for American Nora Tierney, who has moved to her new Oxford home with her fiancé, DI Declan Barnes, and her young son.

Declan’s new case at Exeter College coincides with a frantic call from Nora’s stepsister, Claire Scott: a fellow graduate student has died in a fall, and Claire begs Nora to help her prove her friend didn’t commit suicide.

The sisters conduct their own snooping, while Declan and his team juggle this death with a cold case that proves to be more surprising than Declan could ever imagine.

About the Author:

Marni Graff is the award-winning author of The Nora Tierney English Mysteries and The Trudy Genova Manhattan Mysteries. The Evening’s Amethyst is the fifth in the Nora Tierney series.

Her short story “Quiche Alain” is in the Agatha-winning Malice Domestic Anthology, Murder Most Edible.

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The Evening’s Amethyst Review:

To begin with, I enjoyed the author’s writing style for the way she developed the mystery. Even though I have not read the earlier books, I liked Nora right from the get-go. Initially, the story had a cozy mystery feel, as Claire pleads with Nora to help solve Bea’s suicide case. However, as the tale progresses, the story gets darker and unpredictable. What starts as a simple mystery turns layered, leading to a bigger picture. I was glued to the tale halfway into the account, especially when Claire remembers Bea and Verity and the autopsy reports.

Secondly, I loved the bond between Nora and Declan. It was fun to see the contrast between Declan’s formal course of investigation versus Nora’s sleuths methods. Some scenes that stood out for me were when Nora noticed Bea’s removal from social media or when Declan met with Denys and Nora’s scenes at Montague House. Similarly, I adored the sisterly bond between Nora and Claire and how protective Nora is towards her.

Also, quite a few suspects like Nicola Martin keep you guessing what happened with Bea. Moreover, side plots added complexity to the book, like Declan and Denys’s conversation many years ago about the child kidnapping case. On a side note, I also enjoyed the English setting in the backdrop, as it gave the story a majestic feel. The author paces the story nicely, building the pace towards a thrilling climax.

While I enjoyed everything about this book, the only minor criticism I had was that, at times, there were a lot of characters with little value on canvas, like Douglas McAfee. Apart from that, I enjoyed reading “The Evening’s Amethyst” because of Nora and Declan and would love to read the series from the beginning.