Away With the Fairies [Large Print] [Paperback]

Kerry Greenwood (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2005

Searching for the murderer of a famous author, sexy, sassy Phryne goes undercover-and is up to her ears in fashion gossip and office politics....
Phryne Fisher is asked to investigate the puzzling death of a famous author and illustrator of fairy stories. To do so, she takes a job within the women's magazine that employed the victim and finds herself enmeshed in her colleagues' deceptions.
But while Phryne is learning the ins and outs of magazine publishing first hand, her personal life is thrown into chaos. Impatient for her lover Lin Chung's imminent return from a silk-buying expedition to China, she instead receives an unusual summons from Lin Chung's family followed by a series of mysterious assaults and warnings.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

*Starred Review* American fans have been treated to several installments in the beguiling Phryne Fisher series (among them, the recently released Castlemaine Murders [BKL S 15 04]), but this one, originally published in Australia in 2001, may be the best yet. It's 1928, and the globetrotting, glamorous Phryne (rhymes with briny) is at home near Melbourne, missing her lover, Lin Chung, who is on a silk-buying trip in China. When Phryne's detective friend, Jack, asks for her help investigating the murder of Miss Lavender, a well-known author of fairy stories, Phryne is glad of the distraction. The investigation leads to a temporary job as a fashion reporter for Women's Choice magazine, Miss Lavender's former employer. Phryne's encounters with the various magazine staffers add considerable zest to the adventure, as does Lin Chung's possible abduction by pirates. Phryne on the rampage makes for fine entertainment all on its own, but Greenwood effectively combines her inimitable heroine's antics with thought-provoking details about the struggles of women in the 1920s, forced to adjust to the loss of the unprecedented independence they had enjoyed during the war. This series is the best Australian import since Nicole Kidman, and Phryne is the flashiest new female sleuth in the genre. Jenny McLarin
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

"Phryne Fisher isnt really a glossy girl, she's just pretending to be one to solve the suspicious death of an old luvvie who wrote and illustrated fairy stories for a womens magazine. Not exactly riveting reading by todays standards, but this story is set in the 20s when women read articles on how to be virtuous, and never ventured out without a hat or gloves. Greenwood manages to evoke the elegance of the era in this charming tale, which dwells as much on the wardrobe of the heroine as the morbid details of murder and mayhem."  -- Vogue Magazine, June 2001

 

"Greenwood crafts a passable whodunit, but terrific historic color (complete with a three page bibliography) and the blithe proto-feminist heroine are the real highlights here."  -- Kirkus Reviews

 

"This series is the best Australian import since Nicole Kidman, and Phryne is the flashiest new female sleuth in the genre."   -- Booklist

 

"Kerry Greenwood makes it impossible for the audience not to like the charming Phyrne or her investigations."  --Midwest Book Review

 

 

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 394 pages
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (January 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590581679
• ISBN-13: 978-1590581674
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,897,309 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars strong historical who-done-it, November 14, 2004

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Away with the Fairies (Phryne Fisher Mysteries) (Hardcover)

When Marcella Lavender dies, a guilty Detective Inspector Jack Robinson asks private detective Phyrne Fisher to determine whether she died of natural causes or was murdered. Marcella came to him a few weeks ago, showing him threatening letters she received and he told her not to worry because poison pen letter writers usually don't do anything violent. Now he is second guessing himself and wants a second opinion and there is no one he respects more for getting to the bottom of things than Phyrne.

Miss Lavender was a writer who produced many books about fairies and was the advice columnist at a progressive woman's magazine Women's Choice. She also has an unexplained monthly income from the Marshall & Company. Nosing around Ms. Lavender's work place and apartment complex, Phyrne learns that she was not well liked and when the autopsy reports show she died of cyanide poisoning the sleuth dives into the investigation with enthusiasm in part to get her mind off her lover Lin Chung who is in a dangerous China currently wracked by turmoil.

AWAY WITH THE FAIRIES takes place in 1928 Melbourne starring a rich, young independent heroine with an adventurous spirit who doesn't believe that women should be held down because of their gender. She has the respect of the crusty Detective Inspector and mixes with people of all social classes. The brilliant private investigator makes this tale hum as historical who-done-it readers will take delight with her inquiries into an unpopular victim with several individuals having motives and opportunities but without knowing which one would actually kill. Kerry Greenwood makes it impossible for the audience not to like the charming Phyrne or her investigations.

Harriet Klausner

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars mystery, food, fashion and humor, December 26, 2005

By 

E Rice (western ny state) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Away with the Fairies (Phryne Fisher Mysteries) (Hardcover)

_away with the fairies_ is part of one of the most consistently well-written mystery series i know, and i've been reading mysteries for many many years.

the historical facts are always fascinating, the characters are well-drawn individuals, the writing is always first rate, and the mystery here, as in the other titles, won't be solved by the third chapter. the description of the meals phyrne's cook produces are enough to cause weight gain. and the humor can produce anything from a slight smile to a loud guffaw.

i'm thrilled to see that greenwood's current publisher has brought the series back to the states--the first three were published here in paperback in the early 90s. i enjoy them so much i finally ordered all the other ten titles in paperback from australia--in spite of the extortionate postage. now that i can buy hardback editions from amazon, i'm a very happy reader. i think other mystery readers will be equally happy once they try this wonderful series.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun reading, October 12, 2008

By 

Joy Kramer - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Away with the Fairies: A Phryne Fisher Mystery (Phryne Fisher Mysteries (Paperback)) (Paperback)

This was my first introduction to Kerry Greenwood's Phryne (fry-knee) Fisher. It was such fun I've managed to buy more of her books and have read all but one of them--saving it for the ultimate treat. It's light fare with a heroine who lives with inherited wealth now (she was impoverished), but with an unselfish spirit. She is generous as well as naughty but nice, which makes her fun to be around. I highly recommend Kerry Greenwood's books.