Murder most royal

Bennett's witty third Windsor family-focused cozy (following 2021's A Three Dog Problem) finds Queen Elizabeth II entering amateur sleuth mode during a 2016 Christmas gathering at Sandringham Estate. Shortly after the royal family arrives, a severed hand washes up on a nearby beach. With a glance at the police photos, the Queen identifies the victim--based on his distinctive signet ring--as Edward St. Cyr, a boyhood friend of Prince Charles. The personal connection draws her into the investigation, assisted by her faithful secretary, former army officer Rozie Oshodi. As Rozie and the Queen dig deeper, they stumble on long-buried family secrets they'll have to bring to light if they want to catch a killer. True to cozy form, Bennett tosses a number of frothy detours into the mix--organic farming tips, a fox hunt, and a trip to the Royal stables among them--but none detract from the sturdiness of the core mystery. Bennett is excellent at capturing the Queen's poise and patience as she sifts through layers of protocol, and there's plenty of fun to be had in eavesdropping on imagined conversations among the real-life royals--particularly Prince Philip, who was not one to mince words. Anglophiles will be in heaven. Agent: Grainne Fox, Fletcher & Company. (Sept.)

Residing at Sandringham House for the Christmas season, the Queen of England is pulled into another case when a disembodied hand washes up on the Norfolk coast near her estate. Aided once more by her redoubtable assistant private secretary Rozie Oshodi, she calmly but relentlessly picks the case apart in Bennett's third "Her Majesty the Queen Investigates" series (following All the Queen's Men). While the mystery is deftly plotted, its delights rest in the ways Bennett evokes character. Elizabeth has a sharply observant mind and an unflappable, stalwart demeanor, which is showcased wonderfully through interior and direct dialogue, as well as multiple interactions with a range of characters, from Philip to a stable hand, and, of course, with Rozie, who is new enough to be aware of royal life but is also very much her own self. Additional charms come through the pacing, which is at once brisk and sedate, as it unspools both through Elizabeth's thoughts and the case's developments on the ground. The settings are superb too, as is the pitch-perfect positioning of the novel as just on the other side of cozy. VERDICT Bennett's newest is marvelous, as is her crackerjack royal detective.--Neal Wyatt