The Stone & Cooke Mysteries by Kyell Gold
- 8 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Topics: Lesbians, Weasels, SFW, Post-WWII Britain, Cooking
Genre: Murder Mystery
Age Rating: PG-13 for some violence and sexual references
You may like this book if you enjoy:
-Agatha Christie-style murder mysteries
-A late 20th century historical setting
-Seeing an author's style evolve over time
-Short books you can read in one or two sittings
-The Great British Bake Off
Review Summary:
The Stone & Cooke mysteries are two short murder mystery books written in the tradition of Agatha Christie. Interestingly, they are written 12 years apart, meaning that you get to see a noticeable evolution in Kyell Gold's writing and mystery plotting abilities. While the mysteries themselves are cozy, meaning they may seem anticlimactic to some readers, lovers of laid back reads, late 20th century history, and Agatha Christie-style mysteries will find a lot to love.
Full Review:
I was sent an advanced eBook copy of Weasel Under the Sun last week, and since it just recently released at Furlandia, and I read The Mysterious Affair of Giles a few years ago, I think it's high time I give them both a review.
I admittedly haven't read many murder mystery books, whether in or outside of furry fiction. Thanks to a certain marten friend of mine I've read And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie (which was excellent), but the only other one I can remember reading is some Mary Kate and Ashley mystery book from when I was like 8, which, for unknown reasons, lacked the "murder" part of the murder mystery. So I'm a bit of a newcomer to this genre, and I expect many other readers might also be jumping into new territory here. So know that if you're new to murder mysteries, you've found a like-minded reviewer!
The Stone & Cooke mysteries are referred to as "cozy mysteries", meaning that they're closer to slice-of-life stories than thrillers. Instead of thrilling chases, we get to explore a sprawling estate in a historical time period. Instead of dark alleyways we get a well-lit mansion with pleasant architecture. And most importantly, instead of a hard-boiled detective with years of experience in the seedy underbelly of society, we get an assistant cook with an inquisitive mind who happens to read a lot of police novels.
Enter Ellie Stone, a weasel who can't seem to get hired anywhere without someone getting murdered in a nearby room. In The Mysterious Affair of Giles, Ellie works as an assistant cook for Giles and Kate St. Clair at Tremontaine manor in post-WWII Britain. She's part of a team of domestic servants, which also includes her secret lesbian partner, Abby. When Giles St. Clair is murdered, Ellie can't help but start putting her own clues together between her cooking duties, hoping to solve the mystery of who killed her employer.
Ellie is a fun character. She just can't seem to stop herself from putting the pieces of a mystery together. Not only will she work to solve the main mystery, but she'll solve a bunch of smaller mysteries in the process of simply letting her mind drift while cooking, chatting, or just walking around. She doesn't slip into detective mode or do that weird deduction thing Benedict Cumberbatch does in Sherlock. She just happens to be an inquisitive person who can't help but solve a puzzle, and who ends up being pretty darn good at it.
Ellie's personality helps a lot with the coziness of the mystery. Yes, someone has been murdered, but the sun is still out and people are even-tempered and nobody is particularly terrified while they seek out the murderer. It makes for a very chill read where you can enjoy the characters and setting just as much as the mystery itself. I've started gaining a great appreciation for these "low-stress" reads lately. They serve as great ways to untangle my emotions after a more intense read.
I think my favorite part of the Stone & Cooke mysteries though, as a prose nerd, is just seeing how Kyell Gold's writing differs between the two books. These books were released 12 years apart. That's 12 years of writing experience differentiating these two mysteries. While The Mysterious Affair of Giles is good, Weasel Under the Sun is even better for showing how Ellie's inquisitiveness is described in more engaging and illustrative ways, and how the plotting of the mystery is more elaborate and methodical. One of my favorite things to see in any artist is how they evolve over time. In that regard, reading these two books back to back was a treat for me.
So if you're looking for a relaxing read with a dab of murder, give these books a go. Especially if you're interested in seeing how one of the fandom's most prolific writers has evolved in this genre over the decade.