Book Review - The Prime of Ms Dolly Greene by E V Harte

As a self-confessed chicklit fan, who's never read a crime novel before, I wasn't sure if I was going to like it....turns out I absolutely loved it! This book was definitely a real page-turner, with great characters and lots of twists and turns but at the same time light-hearted and funny. EV Harte is an author and tarot reader, and this is the first in her new tarot detective series.

Many thanks to The Bookbag for giving me the opportunity to read this book direct from the publishers.

First published in the UK: September 2017

In the heart of South West London, just a short stroll from the Thames, lies an enclosed and overgrown bike path and a single row of cottages. Foremost among Tinderbox Lane's hotchpotch of loyal residents is professional Tarot reader, Dolly Greene: divorced and permanently broke, she shares her tiny house with her 21-year-old daughter Pippa.

When, one stiflingly hot summer's day, Dolly reads the cards for the hedonistic Nikki, her usually professional patter is interrupted by a sudden vision - a flash of Nikki's face, covered in blood and bruises.

A few days later, when the body of a battered woman is washed up by Chiswick Bridge, Dolly is haunted by the belief that Nikki's time may have come . . . but can she be sure? And how far is Dolly prepared to go to act on her intuition?

My Review
I love reading full stop so I was excited to have the chance to read the first crime novel from established, well-regarded author Daisy Waugh, writing under a pseudonym. But, as a self-confessed chicklit fan, who's never read a crime novel before, I wasn't sure if I was going to like it....turns out I absolutely loved it!

I've always been put off thinking crime writing would be dark and gritty but this was the complete opposite. It was light-hearted and contemporary with one of the characters (or key witnesses) uploading pictures of the death scene to social media before a death was even confirmed. In fact the tone was very similar to my beloved romcoms, and surprisingly there was actually even a romance as well as a murder. The short chapters made it really easy to read – perfect for a quick five-minute sit-down.

Tinderbox Lane is a heart-warming community of seven teeny-tiny mews houses, located along a bike path in the 'depths of the depths' of outer Southwest London so hard to find that even 'Tesco who say Every Little Helps wouldn't deliver'. But, despite only having seven (eccentric) residents there are a lot of strange goings-on both real and seen in the tarot cards or visions by psychic Dolly Greene, who lives at number two. Smart, warm-hearted and extremely likeable character Dolly turns super sleuth but struggles to convince even her daughter, let alone the local police, that she's not insane.

All of the characters were so realistic and well described from flirtatious, belly-laughing neighbour Maurice to voluptuous Nikki with her turquoise nails and cheap gold bangles or even Professor Filthy that I could vividly picture them all and totally bought into their individual fates. They were also all cleverly and indirectly linked to each other, adding to the book's many twists and turns and subtle clues.

My only very slight criticism was that when the murder mystery was fully revealed the motives and conclusions were somewhat tame and fairly innocent (even for a girl who said she didn't want dark and sinister). But, I enjoyed the suspense and plot twists so much along the way that the ending was pretty inconsequential really in the grand scheme of things. This book was definitely a real page-turner, I just couldn't put it down and am so excited to hear that this was the first in a series featuring Dolly Greene because I literally cannot wait for the next one.

Follow author EV Harte on Twitter @dldwaugh or find out more at e-v-harte.