Book Review: 'Ten Lords A-Leaping' by C. C. Benison

✰✰✰ The Leaping Lords have agreed to perform in a skydiving event to benefit a church in Thornford Regis. When the vicar, Tom Christmas, is injured during a jump, he and his daughter become reluctant guests at Eggescombe Park along with several members of the Allan and fforde-Beckett families. In the very early hours of the next morning, a body is discovered on the expansive grounds. Father Christmas is once again called upon to put on his sleuthing hat and help solve the crime. Despite his injury, Father Christmas follows the many twists and turns of this case to the very end. With a cast of inter-related family members, there is no shortage of suspects and plenty of motives. Author C. C. Benison keeps the reader guessing until the very end. The conclusion will surprise you.

The Bottom Line: This is the third book in the series, but it was the first one that I have read. While there was plenty of backstory included in this installment, it might be best to read the books in order. This installment included so many suspects that I had to take notes at times just to keep up. Add a confusing family tree into the mix, nicknames, and titles and you have a very complicated mystery. Set in the British countryside, this cozy mystery was slow to start; however, the last one hundred pages were engaging. Finally, although the main character is named Tom Christmas and the title of the book reminds me of a Christmas song, this is not a holiday book by any means. Recommended for those who enjoy house party murder mysteries and for viewers who enjoy Masterpiece Mystery! A family tree is included in the front of the book.

Details: Ten Lords A-Leaping: A Mystery by C. C. Benison. Hardcover published by Delacorte Press in 2013. 512 p. ISBN: 978-0-385-34447-0 NOTE: I received a free review copy from Delacorte Press in exchange for an honest review. This was made possible by the Early Reviewers program at LibraryThing.