Mrs. Jeffries Demands Justice - Historical Mystery Review

Goodreads:  Mrs. Jeffries Demands Justice (Mrs. Jeffries #39) by Emily Brightwell

Rating: Liked It!
Source: Publisher

Description:  Former Inspector Nigel Nivens is desperate to get away from his current assignment in the East End of London but even his powerful family can't help him after he maliciously tried to hobble Witherspoon's last homicide investigation. But Nivens has a plan. After a particularly audacious robbery in Mayfair, Nivens arrests three members of a gang of robbers. He's made sure the charges against the three will stick as he's paid an informer to testify against the brothers when the case comes to court. The snitch, a nasty little fellow, lies his head off in court and the brothers are convicted. Unfortunately for Nivens, the snitch is murdered with a gun from the Niven's family home and there are witnesses who overheard Nivens threatening him (apparently, he wanted more than the few pounds Nivens paid him to lie). But the most damning evidence is that a pillow used to silence the shot is found in Niven's home. This time, Nivens knows he's in real trouble. The investigating officer as well as the rank and file constables working the case hate him and he's fairly sure they're not overly concerned with proving his innocence. Desperate and terrified, he does the only thing he can to save himself-he begs Inspector Witherspoon and Mrs. Jeffries for help.

Genre: Mystery - Historical

Why I Picked This Book:  I really enjoy this series and couldn't resist picking up the next book in the series.

My Impression:  I've only been reading this series for a year or two but it has quickly become one of my favorites and while this one wasn't one of my favorites I still very much enjoyed it.  There's a team aspect about the series that really appeals to me.  I love that there's a whole above board investigation with Inspector Witherspoon and Constable Barnes but at the same time there's a whole amateur team effort run by the housekeeper, Mrs. Jeffries and a whole assortment of maids, footman, neighbors and friends.  All the characters (with the exception of Nivens who is the worst but thankfully doesn't take up too much page time) are likable and each has their strengths as well as their own personalities.  

While I did very much enjoy seeing the awful Inspector Nivens in some serious hot water this is probably my least favorite of the series that I've read so far.  The East End of London is way outside of the usual investigation grounds of the downstairs crew and it felt like it slowed down the pace quite a bit as they hit dead end after dead end.  That's not to say this is a bad read.  It's still a fun read with a solid mystery and likable characters it just felt a bit slower then I usually expect from this series.

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Definitely!  This is a series I really enjoy and would like to start from the beginning of this one.

Would I Recommend this Book?  I would definitely recommend this series though this might not be the book to start with.  Really any of the earlier books would be a great choice.

* I received this book in exchange for an honest review.  As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *