Cocaine Blues (Phryne Fisher Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Kerry Greenwood (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 30, 2006 | Series: Phryne Fisher Mysteries

This is where it all started! The first classic Phryne Fisher mystery, featuring our delectable heroine, cocaine, communism and adventure. Phryne leaves the tedium of English high society for Melbourne, Australia, and never looks back.



The London season is in full fling at the end of the 1920s, but the Honorable Phryne Fisher--she of the green-grey eyes, diamant garters and outfits that should not be sprung suddenly on those of nervous dispositions--is rapidly tiring of the tedium of arranging flowers, making polite conversations with retired colonels, and dancing with weak-chinned men. Instead, Phryne decides it might be rather amusing to try her hand at being a lady detective in Melbourne, Australia.



Almost immediately from the time she books into the Windsor Hotel, Phryne is embroiled in mystery: poisoned wives, cocaine smuggling rings, corrupt cops and communism--not to mention erotic encounters with the beautiful Russian dancer, Sasha de Lisse--until her adventure reaches its steamy end in the Turkish baths of Little Lonsdale Street.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The growing American audience for Phryne Fisher, Australian author Greenwood's independent 1920s female sleuth, will be delighted that her diverting first mystery is finally available in the U.S. Fisher's off-the-cuff solving of a high society jewel theft leads her to her first professional engagement when a witness to her brilliance asks her to investigate a possible poisoning-in-progress. The detective's admirable willingness to intervene to help those in distress involves her in a variety of other puzzles, including identifying the King of Snow, who has taken over the Melbourne drug trade. Many of the members of Fisher's entourage familiar from later novels make their debuts as well.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Australian Greenwood has been exporting her outstanding Phryne Fisher series to the U.S. for the past several years, but the books haven't arrived in chronological order. Finally, we have the series debut, which explains how the irrepressible flapper (the series is set in the 1920s) became a detective. Phryne fans will relish the chance to see how beloved characters like Bert, Cec, Dot, and Inspector Robinson wandered into Phryne's life, and newcomers will enjoy getting to know ultrafashionable Phryne, who's wealthy enough to do whatever she wants but whose previous poverty has created a strong empathy for the working class. In Melbourne to investigate the mysterious illness of the daughter of a family friend, Phryne stumbles into a case involving two of the 1920s' signature evils: cocaine and back-alley abortions. Banding together with a crew of colorful local characters, and finding time to indulge in some erotic fun with a sexy Russian dancer, Phryne soon leaves her mark on Melbourne. From beginning to end, Greenwood infuses her series with evocative settings, multidimensional characters, and satisfying mysteries. Jenny McLarin
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 326 pages
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (April 30, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590582365
• ISBN-13: 978-1590582367
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #918,621 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a great start to a fantastic series, January 11, 2006

By 

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

This review is from: Cocaine Blues (Phryne Fisher Mysteries) (Hardcover)

cocaine blues, published first in the country as _death by misadventure_, is the first mystery to feature phyrne fisher, australian born daughter of a remittance man, english educated once her father inherits the title and millions, who is asked by a set of parents to investigate the apparent murder attempts against their daughter, who is in australia.

of course, phyrne accepts and returns to the land of her childhood. it is 1928, and one of the many charms of this series is the picture of australia just after the great war. we also get to enjoy the fashions in dress, food, and cars, and wince at the some of the social mores.

phyrne rapidly solves the mystery in the style of the golden age of mystery writing, fitting for the time this is set.

our heroine is definitely her own woman. she is independent, competent, intelligent, remembers the lessons of childhood poverty and enjoys wielding her adult money and title.

the only drawback to the first three in this series is that they are comparatively short. the plots are first rate, the descriptions well done, the characterizations accurate and even pungent. there is also humor of every kind.

this is a mystery and a series not to be missed by any reader who wants a well-written, exciting read.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely delightful!, June 27, 2005

By 

L. J. Roberts (Oakland, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cocaine Blues - A Phryne Fisher (Paperback)

Phryne, pronounced Fry-knee to rhyme with briny, is a wonderful character. She's independent, smart, talented, stylish, and knows both poverty and wealth. This is someone you'd love to know. The story is both light and humorous but deals with serious subjects. The writing is intelligent, clever and in keeping with the period. There are now 15 books in the series and you can believe I'm going to try to find them all.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Australian Flapper Folly, October 5, 2007

By 

teacher and learner "reader and eater" (Chicago,IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cocaine Blues (Phryne Fisher Mysteries (Paperback)) (Paperback)

I was looking forward to discovering a new voice in the period piece mystery genre; but was disappointed in this one. Reviews that I had read implied that Kerry Greenwood was the Australian Agatha Christie. Not so, her flapper sleuth is just a little too self centered and selfish to be attractive. The improbability of the plot stretches credulity, the shallow characterization is unbelievable; and although set in Melbourne, is so lacking in atmosphere that it could be about Chicago. The only authentic Aussie flavor was in the street names and the obvious reversal of the seasons one encounters when going "down under". I will try one more title before I give this author up as a poor substitute for the real thing.