Bridgerton- Season 3, A Review

Even a wallflower can bloom.

Bridgerton Season 1 Review. Season 2 Review. Queen Charlotte Review.

The third season of Bridgerton follows the love story between Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan, Derry Girls), seeing the pair finally get together after years of secret pining on Pen’s part. We see the pair reunited after Colin returns home from travelling the globe, having inadvertently upset Pen the last time he saw her, having boasted that he’d never court her’. Pen has since moved on and is now looking for a husband of her own, having grown sick of living under her Mother’s (Polly Walker, Line of Duty) thumb, especially now that both of her older sisters have been married off.

Colin offers to teach Pen the art of flirting to help her improve her chances, initially matching her with newest catch of the season Lord Debling (Sam Phillips). Colin however realises that his own feelings for Pen have changed, complicating things for her especially with her Lady Whistledown persona and Colin’s own feelings towards the scribe. With so much working against them can these best friends make their romance work and get their own happily ever after or will secrets stand in the way of true happiness and force Pen to choose between her writing and her true love match?

Season 3 had a slightly different set up from previous seasons because this was the first time we were diving into the love story between two already established characters rather than anyone new to the show and family dynamic overall. We’ve known both Colin and Pen since the show’s very first episode and so many fans were excited for their eventual coupling and to see this fan favourite couple finally get together. I will say that personally neither Colin or Pen have ever been my absolute favourite Bridgerton character but I will still excited for their season and to see them get their chance in the sun.

Despite being the starring couple of the season I do feel like Pen and Colin got significantly less screen time than Simon/Daphne and Anthony (Jonathan Bailey)/Kate (Simone Ashley, Sex Education) in their own respective seasons, with other characters and storylines taking up so much of the runtime away from them. On the whole their love story just felt so rushed, which is weird because it’s literally been building for years now, so on paper it should have been the perfect romance. Instead everything felt like it moved too quickly and for me it felt like Colin’s feelings changed from friendship to romance almost overnight, I wanted some more slow burn. Once the pair did then get together we focused so much on the Lady Whistledown drama that we didn’t really get any scenes of them just being a couple and growing together, which I think is a shame because like I said above this has been a romance years in the making.

For me the Featherington family were the breakout stars of the season here and I have truly come to love Portia, Phillipa (Harriet Cains) and Prudence (Bessie Carter) as the wacky and deeply flawed family that they are. The trio are absolutely brilliant together and bring so much of the show’s comedy, the ‘inserts himself where?’ scene still has been in stitches to this day, we truly love an iconic trio. I also really loved the slight softening of the three, especially towards Pen, showing so much growth from the first season where they were little more than ugly-stepsister archetypes. Instead we now see the two sisters happily married in seemingly genuine love matches and it’s just been nice to see their characters grow from background bullies to genuine comedic relief over the last three years.

Eloise (Claudia Jessie, Vanity Fair) definitely had an interesting arc this season, both in herself and with those around her and I continue to love her character and her views on the ton and society. Season two obviously ended with her discovering Lady Whistledown/Pen’s identity, putting her at odds with her former best friend and later with Colin when the romance begins to bloom. I really loved the fractured relationship between the pair, Eloise didn’t necessarily hate Pen but she couldn’t be friends with her any longer and it made for a really interesting shift in dynamic. I also enjoyed her growing friendship with Cressida (Jessica Madsen) this season as well as the attempted humanising of the former bully as we learn more about her dreary home life especially when compared to the loving Bridgertons. I hope we see Cressida again, she definitely didn’t deserve to be shipped off to Wales and there’s more to her story for sure.

Season three reintroduced us to Francesca Bridgerton (Hannah Dodd, Enola Holmes 2), having been recast and given a much bigger role than the previous two seasons, now finding her own love match in John Stirling (Victor Alli) and marrying him towards the end of the season. Now a fully fleshed out character we learn that Francesca much prefers the quiet and alone time from her multiple siblings and I really enjoyed the exploration of a quieter type of love rather than the epic love stories that have come before, even if Violet (Ruth Gemmell) does slightly disapprove. Saying that the finale did then introduce Michaela Stirling (Masali Baduza) in a gender-bent change from the original novels (a choice which is certainly making noise online) and I for one am excited to see what happens next. Season three now confirmed that at least two of the Bridgerton children are among the LGBT community (yay for Benedict (Luke Thompson) as well) and I’m definitely curious to see how the show handles its gay relationships when compared to its straight ones.

We finally saw Lady Whistledown unmasked this season after Pen is forced to step forward and reveal herself, finally spilling the secret to the ton and Queen Charlotte (Golda Rosheuvel) herself. Season three really upped the pressure for Pen as Lady Whistledown with Eloise knowing her secret and threatening to tell Colin at every moment, really forcing her to choose between her new love and her old passions. We also see Cressida attempting to take up the mantle in order to escape a fate worse than death (Wales) and it was fun to see the feuding between the pair. I did like how Pen was finally able to step forward and speak for herself, claiming the Whistledown title and being proud of it. We also see Queen Charlotte accept Pen for who she is, recognising that gossip makes life in the ton more interesting showing that her quest for Lady Whistledown was for the chase and not necessarily the capture. I am curious to see what happens next because I do know in the books the Lady Whistledown storyline does stop after Pen’s story but I hope the show continues for the narration style if nothing else.

Overall I enjoyed this third season of Bridgerton and loved returning to the Ton again, its seriously been too long since we last got the gossip from Lady Whistledown. Colin and Pen’s romance has been so long in the making and it was so satisfying to finally see them get together despite the numerous obstacles along the way. I will say that season three had a lot of moving parts meaning that certain storylines and/or characters felt sidelined (namely the couple of the season) but on the whole we got so much drama here and I just loved seeing everybody again, two years between each season is seriously too long to wait. Going forward I’m definitely excited for season four (we got hints that we’d be focussing on Benedict but nothing concrete yet), the show left a lot of storylines open to explore and I’m especially interested to see where Francesca and John’s romance goes, I just hope we don’t have to wait too long to get it.

Palm Royale, A Review

She will be accepted, whatever it takes.

Palm Royale follows Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons (Kristen Wiig, Barb & Star), a woman who moves to Palm Beach, Florida and strides to be accepted into the local Country Club whatever the cost. Despite her ‘outsider’ status Maxine hopes to impress the society women with her perceived sense of fashion and style, hoping to gain a nomination in order to pass the club’s first hurdle. Setting out to achieve her goals Maxine engineers a road accident with fellow member Dinah (Leslie Bibb), learning of her marital affair in the process and then using this information to blackmail her. From here Maxine then sets out to throw the annual Beach Ball, a tradition usually maintained by her Aunt-in-Law Norma (Carol Burnett) who currently lies in a coma (something Maxine massively uses to her advantage).

Palm Royale made for an absolutely hilarious watch and the sheer over the top nature of everything made for such an entertaining experience. Maxine’s scheming completely controlled the narrative here and I just loved the absolute disaster of it all, these were some seriously messy characters. The 60/70s vibes were also immaculate and everything from the costumes to the set design was perfectly done. This was a show about the ridiculously rich and their costuming was absolutely spot on, everybody looked an absolute wonder.

Maxine was an absolutely incredible character and I cannot applaud Wiig enough in her manic portrayal of her. This was a woman who knew what she wanted and was not above some serious blackmail to get it in the process, leading to some brilliant shenanigans throughout. The entire character was almost like a SNL skit and the constant over-acting and over the top personality was perfectly done, Maxine was an absolute riot. So much of the comedy here came from Wiig and her bouncing off of the other (much saner) characters and as the story went on and things got more and more crazy Maxine only matched in tone and went even more and more bizarre.

One thing I didn’t expect from this show was the slightly darker elements paired with the constant comedy. This wasn’t a crime/drama show by any means but we still got storylines of blackmail, crime cover ups, mistaken identities and even attempted murder. Palm Beach was swimming in the rich and wealthy where the big personas would constantly try and outdo each other, resulting in some seriously shady business. Maxine herself wasn’t even immune to some slight criminal acts and as the show went on it became clear that nobody here was innocent of everything…

Overall I absolutely loved watching Palm Royale, the comedy was top notch and the performances all around were brilliant. Maxine’s climbing to the top of the social scene made for a hilarious disaster from start to finish and the more enemies she made along the way the more wacky her scheming got. The

Mary & George, A Review

Lust. For Power.

Mary & George follows the titular Mother (Julianne Moore, The Woman in the Window) and Son (Nicholas Galitzine, Red, White & Royal Blue) duo as they scheme their way to the top of the social scene, with Mary hoping to use George to seduce King James (Tony Curran) into becoming his latest obsession. The family start off relatively worse for wear after the death of Mary’s husband, she soon remarries however and George is sent off to France to further his education, also exploring his sexuality whilst there. On his return George comes back a much more confident man and Mary decides to use this to push her way into King James’ social circle, enraging the King’s current favourite the Earl of Somerset (Laurie Davidson) who doesn’t want George to take his top spot. Through some clever moves on both parts however Mary and George manage to break into high society and become integral parts of James’ party. With so much at stake however can their new high lives last or will their greed and power end up being the death of them?

Mary & George had such a fun vibe and similar to that of The Great or The Favourite I loved the mix of period drama with the very modern feeling dialogue and characters. Here we really got to see the Mother/Son duo scheme their way to the top and I loved the drama of it all and how we really got to see the sexual exploration of so many of these historical figureheads. I think that generally speaking history is a lot gayer than many would lead you to believe and here we got to see both Mary and George exploring their sexualities and then use this to their own advantages, the whole thing was like a reality show from 17th century.

I liked how this series explored the figure of the historical favourite and how quickly you can fall from the King’s plaything to a nothing at the very bottom of the pile and then vice versa. The idea of these Royal companions, often of a sexual nature, is very interesting and not something you could even fathom happening in today’s times, just imagine if our current Royals still had favourites. The position itself gave you the ultimate power and you can definitely see why Mary pushed so hard to get George on James’ good side, he became his most trusted ally and advisor and that is definitely a position many would kill for.

I think that the show did struggle a little with its pacing towards the end and I definitely preferred the earlier episodes of the series. I feel like once the George/James set up had been established we lost a lot of the scheming vibes and it sort of turned into your generic historical miniseries, focussing on the lives of famous Royals and the likes. The show itself has such a fun setup, exploring the dynamic between George and Mary as they schemed their way to the top but once they actually got there things sort of went downhill and the last couple episodes or so definitely failed to live up to the series’ first half.

Overall Mary & George made for a fun watch and I enjoyed the Mother/Son dynamic as they schemed their way to the top of Royalty. George seducing his way into James’ life and the very sexually adventurous style of the narrative made for a fun spin on the usual historical miniseries and I did enjoy a lot of the characters along the way. I will say the story fell off a bit towards the series end but on the whole this was a fun watch with plenty of drama, schemes and sex to keep viewers entertained.

Feud: Capote vs The Swans, A Review

The original housewives.

Feud: Capote vs The Swans follows famed writer Truman Capote (Tom Hollander, The White Lotus) and his titular ‘Swans’ as Truman’s latest piece of writing hits a real nerve and causes the women to cut him off for good, limiting his appearances in society and sending him down a real spiral. To begin with Truman and his Swans were the hit of every social scene, regularly getting together to gossip and spill secrets but after Truman’s writing then causes the death of one of their own, the rest of the group cut him off for good. Now without his friends Truman turns to drink and finds himself unable to finish the book that started the whole mess in the first place. Before it’s too late can the old friends put aside their differences and reconcile or will this feud be the unfortunate death of all?

This was an overall fun romp and I really liked the classic vibe and very elegant 60s/70s feel. Truman and the Swans were obviously a wealthy bunch and this was massively shown through their costuming and the multiple set designs throughout, the entire series was visually stunning. Large parts of each episode were just spent brunching and it really reflected that higher class of lifestyle, very reminiscent of the Housewives of today (hence the series tagline). Even though the actual storyline wasn’t my favourite (more on that later), Feud Capote vs The Swans looked absolutely stunning and I really enjoyed watching from this visual standpoint.

I also liked the emphasis the show put on friendships and how gossip can very much be a double bladed sword. Truman initially thrived because of all of these stories he had to tell, often making fun of those lower down that him with the Swans and generally showing his worth through who and what he knew. This also ended up being his undoing however when his greed got the better of him and he spilled secrets on those closed to him, ignoring how it would make them feel in the long haul. Telling secrets can be a dangerous thing, especially when friends get involved and I liked how Feud looked at the duality of this and how Truman was only useful when he was spreading information but how this also ended up being his downfall.

I think my main issue with this series is that despite its title we didn’t really see any actual feuding? Unlike the first season with Bette and Joan this was more like a historical miniseries on Capote’s life and most of the actual fighting was minimal and one-sided. Granted we did see the fallout from Capote’s writing in the first episode with Ann’s (Demi Moore) suicide and the Swans vowing to cut him off but really the only one who actually stuck to this was Slim (Diane Lane), with the others going back to him in the next two or three episodes. What’s more I don’t think we ever actually got a scene with all six swans together? Demi Moore’s character was killed off instantly and Molly Ringwald (Dahmer) seemingly had nothing to do with the others despite being on the poster with them. I think going into this I was expecting cat fights and bitchiness and general high drama more it was more like a dramatic interpretation of Truman and his final days and if I’m being honest I wanted a lot more drama.

Despite my issues with some of the writing here I cannot deny that the casting was spot on and Tom Hollander as Truman in particular was brilliantly accurate. I remember back in uni when I studied In Cold Blood we watched a lot of interviews with Capote as well as the 2005 film and I can only describe Capote as annoyingly brilliant. In the same way I think that Hollander captured that very needy aspect of the writer and his desperation to fit in and remain relevant. So much of the supposed drama here hinged on Truman spilling secrets to stay in the papers and the series really captured these negative aspects of his persona. The swans as well were brilliant and whilst I obviously can’t compare these to the real life figures I loved the group chemistry and performances, especially those of Watts (The Watcher) and Lane.

I hate to say it but I wasn’t the biggest fan of this show and I think it’s largely because it wasn’t what I was expecting at all. The first season of Feud was messy and bitchy but this was more like a historical miniseries with no actual fighting. I will admit the performances all around were brilliant but I went in expecting something a lot more fun when really this was akin to a history drama instead of a messy catfight like the title suggested.

Eileen, A Review

Eileen’s life is about to change.

Eileen follows the titular character (Thomasin McKenzie, Last Night in Soho) as she leads a lonely existence, working in a corrections facility for teenage boys and caring for her widowed and alcoholic Father (Shea Whigham). Eileen frequently dreams of killing herself or those around her as well as having fantasies about the male prison guards, all in all longing for something of a more exciting life. Things then change when a new Doctor, Rebecca Saint John (Anne Hathaway, The Witches), arrives at the facility and bonds with Eileen and offers her a more glamourous life. The two begin going out drinking together and Eileen finds herself falling in love and finally looking forward to going into work. Rebecca however has other ideas and she actually has big plans concerning one of the newer patients. Will Eileen go along with her new work crush and change things forever or will she be forced to return to her lonely existence after all?

Eileen made for a interesting kind of watch and the moody vibes throughout and unclear storyline meant that I never quite knew what was going to happen next. We started with this character of Eileen who by all accounts had a pretty lifeless existence, stuck in a dead-end job and caring for her Father when no one else would. Then enter Rebecca and it was like everything changed and suddenly there was this shining light at the end of the tunnel. Being a drama though it was obvious something was going to go wrong down the line, I just didn’t know what and when.

Like I said above I wasn’t always sure where the storyline was going in Eileen and whether we were dealing with a happy lesbian romance, a coming of age drama, a prison thriller or something else entirely. There were so many different directions we could have gone in and that final third act twist really took me by surprise. The reveal that Rebecca had essentially kidnapped Mrs Polk (Marin Ireland, The Umbrella Academy) to get to the truth completely changed the tone of the entire film and the last 30 minutes or so really turned into something else entirely. The rush to get rid of the evidence for a seemingly happy ending together only for it to all fall apart really solidified the moodier and darker themes throughout and I really enjoyed those final shots of Eileen escaping her life for hopefully something better, even if it was alone.

Overall Eileen was an interesting film and I enjoyed the moodier vibes and performances from the main cast. I wasn’t exactly sure where the storyline was going at times but that third act twist really blew me away and completely changed the direction of the whole story. A fun and at times exciting thriller, Eileen made for an interesting watch and I’d definitely be interested in reading the original novel the film was based on.

Miss Scarlet & The Duke- Season 4, A Review

This time Eliza’s in charge.

Seasons 1 2 3 Review.

The fourth series of Miss Scarlet & The Duke sees Eliza (Kate Phillips) this time working as part of Nash’s (Felix Scott) Detective Agency, running his London office and finally being in charge of a team of her own. That is until all the men quit in protest and leave Eliza in charge of exactly no one… Still she carries on, carrying out business as usual and this time investigating a robbery at a ‘gentlemen’s club’, a missing diamond feather and even the murder of a friend. William (Stuart Martin) meanwhile struggles with constant policing cuts as well as his growing feelings for Eliza, causing him to take drastic actions…

The end of season three saw Eliza coming to work for Nash on a more official basis and running his London office, only for season four to then open with all of Nash’s employees having left in protest, which I will say was a bit of a disappointment. The past three seasons have been building up Eliza’s career and getting her ready for something more official so I was really excited to her see finally leading a team and actually being in charge. Having her once again working solo felt a little bit reductive and with the added absence of Moses, Nash and at times William, Eliza felt more alone than ever and almost pre-season one in character. It just felt strange to have her come work for Nash if you weren’t actually going to have her working with Nash and this entire season just finished off where she started, backing running her own agency, the big change almost felt pointless.

The police and their lack of funding seemed to be a recurring plot point this season, showcasing how stretched thin the several officers were and how this ultimately led to William getting shot at and then departing for New York. This meant that Eliza could no longer work alongside William due to lack of funding but it also meant that more people were coming her way for help, sick of waiting for the police to find the time to investigate their issue. We also saw Detective Fitzroy (Evan McCabe)– a character I love- given a lot more agency, ultimately choosing to forge his own path rather than letting his Father cherry pick at his career. It was interesting to see these issues within the period timeframe and how police resources are stretched whatever time in history we happen to be in.

Season four finally took us back to Eliza and William’s first meeting through flashback and I have to say I absolutely loved it! The younger versions of Eliza and William (Laura Marcus and Matt Olsen respectively) were both perfectly cast and it was so satisfying to finally see the pair meet and have that infamous stolen kiss scene that we’ve been hearing about since season one. It was also interesting to see Eliza and William in their younger days, with William fighting to stay off the streets and Eliza kicked out of another ladies college and desperate to prove her worth as a detective. The two worked really well together and I enjoyed seeing the pair’s very first mystery together, it was a really cute addition to the series.

We finally saw some steps forward in the Eliza/William romance this season, with William openly admitting he loved Eliza only for him to then leave for New York and be absent for the rest of the series. It is a shame that his character had to leave after such an admission and I do wonder what’s next for the pair, especially if William cannot remain an officer if he pursues a relationship with Eliza. I almost feel bad saying this but William’s absences (both in this season and the last) and becoming noticeable and I’m not sure if it’s down to the writers or Stuart Martin himself but Eliza does seem to be doing fine without him. Last season touched on how Eliza’s ambition will always outweigh any chance at a real relationship (speaking of I do wish we’d seen Arabella in series four) and I think it’s definitely true, William has literally left the country and it didn’t really make a difference to the show at all.

Overall this was an interesting season of Miss Scarlet & The Duke and whilst I continue to love this show I wasn’t the biggest fan of some of the writing decisions this time around. Having Nash’s employees all quit and have Eliza run solo again effectively erased all of season three’s development and if anything she felt more isolated than ever here. The Eliza/William romance also took a weird turn with William leaving the country and I do question what’s next for the pair, it seems like the show has left no room for them to ever have a real relationship without either majorly compromising on something they love. I do hope we get a season five, mostly to address a lot of the unfinished storylines here, and just to see what happens next for Eliza and her crime-solving adventures.

Velvet was the Night, A Review

Where has Leonora gone?

Mexican Gothic Review.

Velvet was the Night follows Maite, a romance novel loving secretary who would much rather spend her days fantasising about a different life, largely ignoring the growing political climate growing around the city. She is forced to take a more active role however when her neighbour Leonora disappears after leaving Maite her pet cat to look after, sparking a mystery than she can’t help but fall into. Maite then goes looking for Leonora, gaining the attention of several gang members and radicals who are also on her trail, pushing her into a dangerous situation even more exciting than the books she spends her days pouring over. Now potentially in real danger, can Maite find Leonora and live to tell the tale or will the dangerous climate of Mexico City in the 1970s be here untimely undoing?

Having read and absolutely loved Mexican Gothic a few years back I was really excited to return to Garcia’s writing and see what else she could come up with, I do think however that style wise Velvet was the Night was a very different kind of book. Instead of going down the typical thriller route this is more of a political mystery/drama and the vibes are very different, so much so that it is difficult to compare the two. Whilst I did prefer Mexican Gothic overall I do still think this book has a lot going for it and I really enjoyed the 1970s setting, political backdrop and gang themes throughout.

Character wise I really loved Maite and was able to relate to her in a lot of different ways. Despite the book’s setting she wasn’t overly political and instead preferred to stick to her romance novels, wishing for a certain type of life that she was unable to obtain. We then see her getting swept up in the mystery of Leonora’s disappearance and if anything she goes along with it all for lack of anything better to do and the general excitement of it all. We do get to see her grow as a character and gain a lot more independence and I really enjoyed her as the protagonist here, she didn’t exactly fit in with the rest of the book’s style and that’s what made her so interesting to read.

Elvis however wasn’t my favourite and I did struggle with some of his chapters, much preferring Maite’s POV. Don’t get me wrong I liked him as a character but I’m not really a fan of the gang lifestyle in books/film/TV and so I wasn’t as interested in his overall narrative. I did like some of his inner most thoughts and attraction to Maite before they’d even met but if anything this just made me annoyed that they didn’t actually interact until the very last chapter.

Overall this wasn’t my favourite read of all time and it was definitely very different to Mexican Gothic but I did still enjoy the moody vibes, political backdrop and the character of Maite. The mystery was also pretty fun here and I did like the progression of the story, I definitely want to check out more by Garcia in the future.

The Buccaneers, A Review

Lock up your lords.

The Buccaneers follows five young American women- Nan (Kristine Froseth, Sierra Burgess is a Loser) and Jinny St. George (Imogen Waterhouse), Conchita Closson (Alisha Boe, 13 Reasons Why), and Lizzy (Aubri Ibrag) and Mabel Elmsworth (Josie Totah)– as they are sent off to England for the debutante season following Conchita’s marriage to the British Lord Richard Marable (Josh Dylan, Mamma Mia). The ladies are all expected to secure husbands and titles, using their wealth in the hopes of latching on to a noble family. Ginny is particularly anxious about finding a love match but finds that Nan’s outspoken nature gains her all the attention, including that of Guy Thwarte (Matthew Broome), leading to her to be sent away to the country so that all the focus can be on Ginny. In the country however Nan connects with Theo, the Duke of Tintagel (Guy Remmers) who is considered by many the ultimate catch, resulting in your classic romantic love triangle.

Conchita meanwhile struggles to be accepted by her in-laws and finds that Richard is a completely different person in England than he was in America. Mabel and Lizzy also attempt to find matches but a shocking encounter leaves Lizzy traumatised and Mabel finds herself more interested in Richard’s sister Honoria (Mia Threapleton) than anyone else. Despite their American ways can these five women find the happiness they deserve or will sibling rivalry, cold-shouldered relatives and unruly men stunt their growth and sent them running back to the states in tears?

Many people have dubbed this series the American Bridgerton and there definitely are similarities, mostly in the modernised period piece and romanticised era feel. There definitely seems to be a rise in these ‘inaccurate historical pieces’ so to speak (eg Reign, The Great) and I for one really love the vibe of them. Sure, they probably aren’t an accurate representation of life in the 1870s but at the same time they fulfil that secret hope I think many people have of living this period piece dream without having to dive into any of the racism, sexism or other misfortunes of the time (not too much anyway…). Through shows like this we can live vicariously through Nan or Daphne or Catherine and get that romanticised fantasy but still maintain a lot of the modern comforts like the music, dialogue and in this case hair and makeup. I’m all for historical fiction and loved learning about the past in school but at the same time this new genre of semi-accurate history is such a vibe and The Buccaneers perfectly captures the spirit of it all.

You can’t really do the romance genre without your typical love triangle and through Nan we get the warring attentions from both Theo and Guy, who of course are childhood best friends to boot. As your typical period romcom protagonist Nan is not like other girls, she’s opinionated and more lowkey than her image obsessed sister so naturally she gains the attention of every man in the tri-state area, I say this of course with love because I did really like Nan and she’s probably my favourite of the main five (which is actually rare for me to like the protagonist the best?). Regarding the love triangle it is a tough one because I did really like both choices but I think the show very much leans into Guy, promising only heartbreak for Theo. The pair definitely had their chemistry but Nan’s marriage to Theo provides her with protection, something she must later use to save those around her which I think is going to make for a very interesting season two. Moving forward I’d be interested to see how the marriage will work and where Guy will work into all of this, that finale was brilliantly done and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Ginny was a character who was definitely going through a hard time, her marriage to Lord Seadown (Barney Fishwick) soon turned sour in the worst way possible but at the same time it remained incredibly difficult to root for her. Pretty much every single problem in this show (especially where Nan was considered) was down to Ginny and even in her worst state she still managed to cause issues. We definitely saw the negative effects of the period through Ginny and how these instant marriages from the past have nothing on the present day, especially where divorce is considered and how Ginny’s longing for a high class of life essentially trapped her in a prison of her own making. Season two will be interesting for Ginny now that she’s escaped Seadown but I do hope she can make some better choices and reconcile with the girls, she really hit rock bottom here.

Through Mabel we got to explore the period’s attitudes to LGBT relationships and how she never quite fit in to the society world, having no desire for a husband and feeling broken because of it. We got a really nice pairing of her and Honoria, with both able to bring out the best in each other and live a happy if slightly limited life together. I’ll be interested to see how the pair develop moving forward and if the show intends to introduce anymore gay characters, it feels nice to get this representation in any shape, form or time period.

The Buccaneers really explores the divides between the UK and the US and how the five main girls really change things up in their move to London and completely change the status quo of the time. We definitely see the show stereotyping the two countries, using notions that still exist today and I liked how the group brought a much needed spark to the more ‘boring’ Brits, really bringing out some hidden depths in characters like Honoria and Richard. Here the UK is shown to be traditional, stiff and somewhat unchanging and we get to see Nan and her friends completely liven things up and show this alternate way to live, really shocking and horrifying some of the other characters.

Overall I really enjoyed The Buccaneers and loved the modern period piece feel and how the show got to explore the differences between the UK and US of the time. Through Nan and her friends we got some great classic romcom tropes and I loved the romanticised feel of London in the 1870s. This was another great example of the inaccurate historical piece that are definitely trending as of late and in many ways it felt just like a modern day romantic comedy, just with prettier dresses and somewhat more polite men. A real easy-going watch I had such a great time here and already cannot wait for season two!

The Body in the Blitz, A Review

A street full of secrets. A murder only we could solve…

Death in the Spotlight Review. Top Marks for Murder Review. Death Sets Sail Review. The Ministry of Unladylike Activity Review.

The Body in the Blitz follows our crime solving trio May, Nuala and Eric as they this time travel to Hogarth Mews, a seemingly quiet street close to The Ministry where they continue training up as spies, learning mission tactics and coding techniques. After a body is discovered in a recently blown up house however the trio must put their detective hats on once again and work out who, how and why all before the police become too involved and solve the case from under them. At first it is assumed the body belongs to recently missing spy Anna but when the identity comes into question our young detectives must suss out the real victim and once again come up against a series of suspects, this time within their own ranks. Somebody on the street must know something and only through fine observation will our trio be able to work out what. Can May, Nuala and Eric solve another murder in time or will their careers as detectives be over before they’ve even started?

Now two books into this series it feels like we have a much better grasp on the main trio as well as the chemistry and bonds between them. I’d definitely say that Nuala is my favourite and I really love her narration style and how she uses her own love of acting in her detective work, able to make herself loud and proud or invisible depending on what the situation calls for. May on the other hand is a much less subtle character and whilst I like her abrasive nature I will admit she is my least favourite of the three and her tempter tantrums did get a bit annoying here, she definitely feels the youngest in the way that Eric and Nuala do not. Speaking of Eric whilst I also love him I do think it’s difficult to get to know him in the same way because he’s the quietest and the only one we’ve not had a POV from so I do hope we get a lot more Eric moving forward.

Mystery wise I really enjoyed The Body in the Blitz and loved the Mews setup and how the close living quarters meant that everybody had their fair shot at being the killer. In typical Robin Stevens fashion we got this wide range of suspects for our detectives to sort through and I really loved how it felt like this big community all conspiring against the main trio. The initial discovery of the body and then misidentifying of the victim created a real solid mystery right from the start and I enjoyed the misdirection used as we at first assumed Anna was dead, something I think the killer was able to capitalise on.

I also really liked how this second book was set right in the centre of London, really emphasising the causalities of the war unlike the last time which was a lot more secluded. Several times throughout the story we got bomb threats as well as the continuous ministry training and the references to rationing and the very real German threat. This was also tied into the main mystery and I loved the real ethical dilemma at the end, questioning what is really right and wrong in such difficult circumstances. Daisy and Hazel always had pretty straightforward cases with cut and dry villains but here I think that the war and all of the changes made are going to effect the motives going forward, promising some interesting mysteries ahead.

Overall I really enjoyed The Body in the Blitz and as always love continuing on with this series. This time we saw May, Nuala and Eric right in the centre of the titular blitz and I like how his was played into the mystery, exploring the ethics of crime in such a changed world. I can’t wait to see where this series goes next, although I am secretly hoping we get to return to Deepdean at least once, whatever happens though I’m sure it’s going to be brilliant.

The Mitford Secret, A Review

A country at war, a missing maid and one last Christmas.

The Mitford Murders Review. Bright Young Dead Review. The Mitford Scandal Review. The Mitford Trial Review. The Mitford Vanishing Review.

The Mitford Secret follows Private Detective Louisa Cannon as she travels with her Daughter Maisy to Chatsworth House, invited to spend Christmas with the Mitford family she once worked for. With the country at war it’s decided that a holiday season in the countryside will be the safest and the family gather together for what could possibly be the last time. In the build up to the 25th the family are then visited by a woman claiming to be a physic who then reveals a maid was murdered in the house over twenty years ago, leading Louisa to discover a bloody cap hidden in one of the house’s many cabinets. Initially thinking little of it the physic is then found dead herself and Louisa steps forward to take the case, deducing that somebody is trying to keep the original murder quiet. Now stuck with a killer on the loose, Louisa must use all of her wits if she wants to solve this case before the year is up.

Coming to the end of this series has been really bittersweet and I’ve loved following Louisa and the Mitford Sisters across the last six books. First beginning in 1919 and ending in 1941 it really feels like I’ve followed these characters growing up and it genuinely does feel like twenty plus years have gone by. We first met Louisa as a struggling Ladies’ Maid and now she’s a full on Private Detective with a Husband and Daughter and it’s almost like I feel proud of this fictional character? She’s just gone through so much and I’m really happy we finally get this happy ending for her.

Moving on, I really enjoyed The Mitford Secret and this final mystery for Louisa to solve. Going into the book I didn’t realise it was Christmas themed and so it really feels fitting that I decided to read in December, it got me feeling all festive and ready for the holidays! This was your classic manor house mystery and I loved the isolated feel, small group of staff and guests and the cold case aspect of the mystery. Cold cases are difficult enough to solve in the modern day, never mind in the 1940s so Louisa really had her work cut out for her.

I feel like we really got to see Louisa in her element here and for maybe the first time on equal footing with the rest of the Mitfords. Obviously she doesn’t possess the same material wealth they do but we saw her taking charge of the situation and using her knowledge and expertise to really work through this case. No longer the dutiful Ladies’ Maid, Louisa is able to blend between the upstairs/downstairs divide and use both worlds to her advantage when doing her work. Able to talk to the staff but also seen as a guest we really got to see Louisa shine here and like I said above I’m really proud of her!

Overall I really enjoyed this one and it felt like a fitting end to a really fantastic series. The Christmassy vibes and secluded manor house setting were a lot of fun here and I loved the cold case of the missing maid. Louisa and the Mitford family have all come so far since the very first novel and I’ve loved following them over the twenty year period, I’m really going to miss this series and its blending together of fact and fiction, I’ve had such a fun time with the Mitford clan.