Unnatural Habits (Phryne Fisher, #19) by Kerry Greenwood Published by Allen & Unwin on October 1st 2012
Genres: Mystery
Pages: 348
Source: Netgalley
I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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1929: Girls are going missing in Melbourne. Little, pretty golden-haired girls. And not just pretty. Three of them are pregnant, poor girls from the harsh confines of the Magdalene Laundry. People are getting nervous. Polly Kettle, a pushy, self-important Girl Reporter with ambition and no sense of self preservation, decides to investigate - and promptly goes missing herself.It's time for Phryne and Dot to put a stop to this and find Polly Kettle before something quite irreparable happens to all of them. It's all piracy and dark cellars, convents and plots, murder and mystery .... and Phryne finally finds out if it's true that blondes have more fun.
In ” an Oyster Shell – An enthralling multi-layered mystery that keeps you engaged.
The Pearls – I love Phryne Fisher as a character. She is flamboyant. She is way ahead of her time but she makes it work. Phryne is a force to be reckoned with. She has lots of resources that she is not afraid to use to get to the bottom of the mystery she is exploring. It’s really fun. I first heard of this series from the tv series. I am sad that it ended and so now I get to continue it with the books.
There were a plethora of characters that made this story fun to read. Phryne was a stand-up character. There was Dot who was my favorite in the tv series and I liked her even more in the books. There was the detective, who was a great supporting character. Not the same as the tv series but it worked all the same.
The setting of Australia was nice. I saw a post on Facebook about stating what setting you were in the current book. I was glad it was someplace that was exotic to me. I like that books can take you away and this book definitely does that.
The Sand – It was a good book. A little on the lengthy side.
4 pearls!
About Kerry Greenwood
Kerry Greenwood was born in the Melbourne suburb of Footscray and after wandering far and wide, she returned to live there. She has a degree in English and Law from Melbourne University and was admitted to the legal profession on the 1st April 1982, a day which she finds both soothing and significant.
Kerry has written twenty novels, a number of plays, including The Troubadours with Stephen D’Arcy, is an award-winning children’s writer and has edited and contributed to several anthologies. In 1996 she published a book of essays on female murderers called Things She Loves: Why women Kill.
The Phryne Fisher series (pronounced Fry-knee, to rhyme with briny) began in 1989 with Cocaine Blues which was a great success. Kerry has written thirteen books in this series with no sign yet of Miss Fisher hanging up her pearl-handled pistol. Kerry says that as long as people want to read them, she can keep writing them.
Kerry Greenwood has worked as a folk singer, factory hand, director, producer, translator, costume-maker, cook and is currently a solicitor. When she is not writing, she works as a locum solicitor for the Victorian Legal Aid. She is also the unpaid curator of seven thousand books, three cats (Attila, Belladonna and Ashe) and a computer called Apple (which squeaks). She embroiders very well but cannot knit. She has flown planes and leapt out of them (with a parachute) in an attempt to cure her fear of heights (she is now terrified of jumping out of planes but can climb ladders without fear). She can detect second-hand bookshops from blocks away and is often found within them.
For fun Kerry reads science fiction/fantasy and detective stories. She is not married, has no children and lives with a registered wizard. When she is not doing any of the above she stares blankly out of the window.
I am one of Kerry Greenwood’s avid fans. Super enjoying her crime novels and the ABC 1 television adaptations. This particular novel definitely met my expectations of an excellent read from the library. Kudos!