Artful Antics at St Brides

By Debbie Young

What it’s about?

When English teacher Gemma Lamb’s school flat is wrecked by storms, maverick headmistress
Hairnet insists the girls must fund its repair by setting up their own businesses – the start of a series of hilarious unintended consequences.

Meanwhile Gemma’s worries are compounded by the arrival of bossy new girl Frieda Ehrlich,
sponsored by a mysterious local tycoon whose wealth is of dubious origins. Fearful for the school’sreputation, Gemma recruits an old friend to help investigate the tycoon’s credentials, jeopardisingher romance with sports teacher Joe Spryke.

What is Frieda hiding? Why is her sponsor living in a derelict manor house? Why is his chauffeur sucha crazed driver? And what has become of McPhee, Hairnet’s precious black cat?

With a little help from her friends, Gemma is determined to solve these mysteries, restore her flat and save the school.

What I think:

As an English teacher who grew up wishing she could go to Mallory Towers, this is the perfect mystery series for me!

I love the idea of an expensive and elusive but sometimes slightly bonkers boarding school.

This term starts with a disaster as the roof of the stately home is leaking, and Gemma and Orianna are forced to leave their staff apartments and move into the former scullery maid rooms. With funds ending low, they need to come up with a plan to rebuild the roof.

There’s also a mystery new pupil, Frieda, whose father appears to be a chauffeur/gardener and whose fees are being sponsored by a mysterious millionaire who has bought Torrid Manor, a nearby crumbling mansion.

As the girls create their own businesses, Gemma sets out to unravel the mystery of a millionaire who appears to know little about the world of business and a chauffeur who drives like a learner.

There is so much warmth and good humour in this book. The dialogue is fizzy and genuinely funny – the scenes with the girls will make you smile!

I confess that I did work out some of the ‘what’ of the mystery, but the ‘why’ kept me guessing, and it was fun to see how everything would finally be revealed.

This is a quick cosy read that is perfect for a rainy summer afternoon. St Brides would make a great TV series. This series is on my auto buy list, and I look forward to Gemma and the team’s next adventure.

About the author:

Debbie Young is the much loved author of the Sophie Sayers and St Brides cosy crime mysteries. She lives in a Cotswold village where
she runs the local literary festival, and has worked at Westonbirt School, both of which provide inspiration for her writing. She is bringing both her series to Boldwood in a 13
book contract. They will be publishing several new titles in each series and republishing the
backlist, starting in September 2022.

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Thank you to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me to be a part of this fun blog tour.

Check out the other stops in the tour: