Bellfield Hall: Or, The Observations of Miss Dido Kent (Dido Kent Mysteries) [Kindle Edition]

Anna Dean (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Beautifully written.  Characters one cares about immediately and a mystery which becomes more urgent with every page."
--Anne Perry, author of the Thomas Pitt and William Monk series

“Anna Dean has captured the tricky business of presenting a clever and resourceful woman, hedged in by a tight-laced society, who turns those limitations to her own benefit.  Decorative and thoughtful, BELLFIELD HALL is a worthy addition to the historical crime tradition.”
– Laurie R. King, author of TOUCHSTONE

"This wonderful mystery is rich in suspense, period detail, humor and most of all characters. They come alive, and none more than Miss Dido Kent. In her Anna Dean has created a masterpiece of detection, a Miss Marple-esque character both razor sharp and kindly. A totally enjoyable read!"
--Louise Penny, Agatha award–winning author of the Armand Gamache mysteries

"Anna Dean's elegantly-plotted debut is sure to delight Regency lovers and mystery fans alike."
--Deanna Raybourne, author of SILENT IN THE GRAVE

Product Description

1805. An engagement party is taking place for Mr Richard Montague, son of wealthy landowner Sir Edgar Montague, and his fiancee Catherine. During a dance with his beloved, a strange thing happens: a man appears at Richard's shoulder and appears to communicate something to him without saying a word. Instantly breaking off the engagement, he rushes off to speak to his father, never to be seen again. Distraught with worry, Catherine sends for her spinster aunt, Miss Dido Kent, who has a penchant for solving mysteries. Catherine pleads with her to find her fiance and to discover the truth behind his disappearance. It's going to take a lot of logical thinking to untangle the complex threads of this multi-layered mystery, and Miss Dido Kent is just the woman to do it.

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 361 KB
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; 1 edition (April 1, 2010)
• Sold by: Macmillan
• Language: English
• ASIN: B003E8P9GA
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #80,027 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

More About the Author

I live in the English Lake District with a husband and a cat. I write compulsively. It all started with a mistake. When I was taught to read at the age of five I assumed that I must pen books. By the time I realised my mistake and understood that it was not actually compulsory to create stories - the habit was too deeply ingrained to give up.

My other interests include: reading old letters and journals in local archive collections, walking, visiting old houses, reading (or rather compulsively re-reading) Jane Austen, watching Star Trek, spoiling the cat, and canoeing on very, flat water.

The Dido Kent series of mystery novels has grown out of many things including my enjoyment of puzzles and word-play, my love of the English countryside in which I have always lived, my interest in old houses, my time spent reading eighteenth and nineteenth century documents and my affection for the work of Jane Austen. The books are not in any sense continuations or 'spinoffs' of Austen's work. But they are set in the same period and they tend to focus on '3 or 4 families in a country village' - the setting which Jane Austen once described as 'the delight of my life.'

There are also other influences and references, not only to the novels but also Jane Austen's own life. For example, the visit to Lyme in Bellfield Hall is influenced by Persuasion; there are parallels with Emma in A Gentleman of Fortune; and the ruined abbey in A Woman of Consequence owes much to Northanger Abbey. Readers unfamiliar with Austen's work need not worry about all this. These allusions and references are certainly not essential to understanding the stories. Sometimes though, there are extra clues which avid readers of Jane Austen may be able to pick up; but, beware, the references to her life and work are not always pointing you in the right direction...

And just a quick note about names: Bellfield Hall was first published in Britain as A Moment of Silence and, in that version, the name of Edgar Montague's country house is Belsfield, not Bellfield. But the latter name was thought, by my U.S. publishers, to be more comfortable for American pronunciation.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dear Reader, Rejoice!, September 26, 2010

By 

Jennifer "Riverside Reader" (Riverside, CA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Bellfield Hall: Or, The Observations of Miss Dido Kent (Dido Kent Mysteries) (Kindle Edition)

Miss Dido Kent makes a wonderful sleuth in the mystery, Bellfield Hall. The story is told in a restrained voice that echoes Jane Austen. There are plenty of twists and turns in the plot, however the focus remains steady. Settle back in your comfy armchair, pull it a bit closer to the glowing embers, and rejoice in the charming tale.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book - Not too much romance, nice plot twists, January 21, 2012

By 

mtang408 (San Jose, CA United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Bellfield Hall: Or, The Observations of Miss Dido Kent (Dido Kent Mysteries) (Kindle Edition)

I love historical mysteries and have read and enjoyed the Jane Austen series by Stephanie Barron. This is similar in feel - the main character is a "spinster",she has a humorous take on life and wants to fit in her world. One think I really liked (and I hadn't even thought about this when reading the "Jane" series) is that the author does of good job of having her main character think up believable ways for asking questions that keep her in character. Other characters only rarely have to "look at her oddly" when she wants information.

The plot was well-thought out and had interesting twists. I like books where the central story line could have several reasons for occurring and I thought this had that. There is a "romance" sub plot, but it is quite subtle and not intrusive and seems to grow so slowly that it could take many books before it really coalesces. This was definitely not a bodice-ripper.

Give it a try!

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely charming!, January 14, 2012

By 

Calypso007 "myz" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bellfield Hall: Or, The Observations of Miss Dido Kent (Dido Kent Mysteries) (Kindle Edition)

I have only good things to say about this book. The heroine is lovely, clever and insightful. The story interesting but not too dark or complex to take away from the 'cozy' factor of this book. For fans of Jane Austen this will surely entertain:)