On the HahaFiction shelf
Murder Takes a Vacation
A Mrs. Blossom Mystery · Book 1 · 2025
A lottery win sends widowed Muriel Blossom on a French river cruise with her friend Elinor. A charming man she met on the flight dies, her stateroom is searched, and another stranger warns her she is in danger. Her experience assisting private investigator Tess Monaghan becomes unexpectedly useful.
From the publisher’s blurb
“Determined to finally see the world, she’s starting with a cruise along the Seine.”Read the full description at Faber publisher description
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What makes it funny?
The opening makes an airline upgrade a momentous event for a woman unused to getting one. Lippman also reverses a familiar romantic-suspense arrangement: Mrs. Blossom is the older woman receiving a younger man’s attention.
The comedy at work
People overlook Mrs. Blossom’s abilities because she does not look like their idea of an investigator. New comforts and unexpected attention make her holiday an awkward place to practice enjoying her independence.
Try this if…
An older heroine’s growing confidence carries this warm travel mystery. Readers who like romantic possibility and personal reinvention alongside the danger may enjoy spending the cruise with her.
Good to know
Bereavement and body image matter to Mrs. Blossom’s experience. The holiday includes a death, a ransacked room and an attempted mugging.
A few distinguishing details
- A former detective’s assistant takes the lead on a French cruise
More funny amateur sleuth
Sources & further reading
- Apple Books lists Murder Takes a Vacation by Laura Lippman at 272 pages, published by William Morrow.
Book information
- Publishers Weekly review
Review
- UK publisher
Publisher
- Associated Press review
Review
- Apple Books publisher description
Book information
- Kirkus author interview
Interview
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