Who: The inimitable Phyrne Fisher, a lady detective whose reputation precedes her.
What: A short story collection filled with mystery, intrigue, capers, and some common sense investigations.
When: 1920’s
Where: Australia
How: Miss Fisher is asked by friends and strangers alike to assist in all sorts of unusual situations.
What I Thought:
This book is an absolute treat. A series of short stories featuring Miss Fisher, her keen fashion sense and her eye for details, The Lady With The Gun Asks the Questions is the perfect introduction for newbies like me. No sooner did I get a few stories into this book than I googled Phyrne Fisher and discovered that Kerry Greenwood has written multiple series featuring Miss Fisher that I can dive into with gusto!
Phyrne Fisher is an independently wealthy British woman who, after tiring of high society in the United Kingdom, travels to Melbourne and decides to make it her new home. She has a loyal assistant, named Dot, and a few other recurring characters make regular appearances in her stories, such as a police detective.
What sets these stories apart? Everything. Greenwood’s descriptions of scenes, people, and Fisher’s musings are wry and amusing, the plots are unusual and sometimes hilarious. Most of all, Phyrne herself stands out as a delectably independent, unapologetic thriving single woman in an era when unmarried women were looked down upon in society. Phyrne treasures her alone time and her own company, she does not suffer fools, and she even refuses a marriage proposal, because her would-be spouse wants her to stop working. Phyrne Fisher is no sad, lonely cat lady. She buys what she wants, she won’t let men drive her sports car, and she pampers herself without apologizing.
The stories are wonderful as they’re brief nuggets—some are a tad longer than others, but they’re all relatively quick reads – with clever endings and well-drawn characters. This compilation does include some short stories that were previously published, but four of the stories are brand new.
The collection is really enjoyable, with a strong female lead and an assortment of fantastic supporting characters.
My thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book.