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jmj697mn's review against another edition
4.0
Loved this one. Sheila Connolly is fast becoming one of my favorite authors.
rynflynn12's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
littletaiko's review against another edition
4.0
Love it when I find the perfect book for me at a point in time. I picked this up last year on a book buying binge since it was on my wishlist for some reason. Finally picked it up since I was in the mood for a cozy mystery and needed something with a brown cover for a color challenge that I'm participating in.
From the very beginning I was hooked on this mystery set in a Philadelphia museum. Nell is in charge of development which basically means she is a fundraiser. Now that I work for a non-profit I understand how important that role is. In fact part of why I loved this book so much is the behind the scenes working of the non-profit world rang so true. It made it quite fun to immerse myself in her world. The mystery revolves around collection pieces that might have gone missing and comes to a head when a museum employee is found dead the day after the big gala.
This wasn't a conventional mystery in that the perpetrator is know about halfway through and the story becomes more of a how to prove it case.
From the very beginning I was hooked on this mystery set in a Philadelphia museum. Nell is in charge of development which basically means she is a fundraiser. Now that I work for a non-profit I understand how important that role is. In fact part of why I loved this book so much is the behind the scenes working of the non-profit world rang so true. It made it quite fun to immerse myself in her world. The mystery revolves around collection pieces that might have gone missing and comes to a head when a museum employee is found dead the day after the big gala.
This wasn't a conventional mystery in that the perpetrator is know about halfway through and the story becomes more of a how to prove it case.
mezzosherri's review against another edition
2.0
I don't like mysteries, but I decided to read this as an attempt to expand my limits (thank you PopSugar challenge!), in hopes that the autobiographical overlap--Philadelphia setting, protagonist working as a non-profit fundraiser--with my own life would make it more palatable.
Eh, not really. Some of the Philadelphia and "backstage at the museum" details were charming, but the plot did not sustain my interest. Of the two crimes featured, one had barely any mystery about it: the audience, the narrators, and half the characters all knew whodunnit super-quick, turning the book less into a mystery and more into a procedural "how are we gonna trap the villain?" yawnfest. The second crime, where the mystery of "whodunnit" was sustained, was also pretty much ignored, so when it gets solved at the end in deus ex machine style, that conclusion felt incredibly unearned and underwhelming.
Here's hoping the 2017 reading challenge doesn't have another mystery category on it....
Eh, not really. Some of the Philadelphia and "backstage at the museum" details were charming, but the plot did not sustain my interest. Of the two crimes featured, one had barely any mystery about it: the audience, the narrators, and half the characters all knew whodunnit super-quick, turning the book less into a mystery and more into a procedural "how are we gonna trap the villain?" yawnfest. The second crime, where the mystery of "whodunnit" was sustained, was also pretty much ignored, so when it gets solved at the end in deus ex machine style, that conclusion felt incredibly unearned and underwhelming.
Here's hoping the 2017 reading challenge doesn't have another mystery category on it....
cozydormouse's review against another edition
2.0
I gave up on this one fairly early. The protagonist is unlikable, the story is not compelling, and everyone seems so stilted that I couldn't get involved with anything I read.
marlynb's review against another edition
4.0
The first book in a new series introduces us to Eleanor (Nell) Pratt, Director of Development for the Pennsylvania Antiquarian Society in Philadelphia. Nell's fancy title just means that she's in charge of fundraising for the non-profit organization.
On the morning of the gala celebration of the Society's 125th anniversary, Nell is visited by Marty Terwilliger, who voices her concerns that items from her family's Collection have disappeared. Surprised that Marty chose to confide in her rather than the Society's librarian or collections manager (as well as a little annoyed by her timing), Marty placates her by promising to meet with her the following day.
Nell checks with the Alfred Findley, in charge of cataloguing and recording the collections, who admits that he'd noticed a few items "not where they were supposed to be". Although he had reported the discrepancies to Latoya Anderson, the vice president of collections, she had also assumed that the items were merely misplaced, a reasonable deduction considering the volume of uncatalogued materials they had.
The next morning, Nell arrives at the Society early, to prepare for the usual "morning-after" staff meeting, and discovers Alfred's body in the stacks. The initial conclusion is that he'd fallen from a high stool and hit his head on the edge of the metal shelving unit. Nell is content with that until she finds a list of missing items that Alfred left on her desk, realizes that all of them would be valuable to certain collectors, and decides to do a little investigating on her own.
Library/museum/archive mysteries seem to be popping up a lot recently, and this is one of the better ones. Nell is intelligent and behaves prudently. She checks her sources, doesn't jump to conclusions, and doesn't enter recklessly into dangerous situations. There's even a little comedy in the way that she and Marty attempt to entrap their suspect.
Connolly has come up with a great team in Nell and Marty, I look forward to getting to know them better.
On the morning of the gala celebration of the Society's 125th anniversary, Nell is visited by Marty Terwilliger, who voices her concerns that items from her family's Collection have disappeared. Surprised that Marty chose to confide in her rather than the Society's librarian or collections manager (as well as a little annoyed by her timing), Marty placates her by promising to meet with her the following day.
Nell checks with the Alfred Findley, in charge of cataloguing and recording the collections, who admits that he'd noticed a few items "not where they were supposed to be". Although he had reported the discrepancies to Latoya Anderson, the vice president of collections, she had also assumed that the items were merely misplaced, a reasonable deduction considering the volume of uncatalogued materials they had.
The next morning, Nell arrives at the Society early, to prepare for the usual "morning-after" staff meeting, and discovers Alfred's body in the stacks. The initial conclusion is that he'd fallen from a high stool and hit his head on the edge of the metal shelving unit. Nell is content with that until she finds a list of missing items that Alfred left on her desk, realizes that all of them would be valuable to certain collectors, and decides to do a little investigating on her own.
Library/museum/archive mysteries seem to be popping up a lot recently, and this is one of the better ones. Nell is intelligent and behaves prudently. She checks her sources, doesn't jump to conclusions, and doesn't enter recklessly into dangerous situations. There's even a little comedy in the way that she and Marty attempt to entrap their suspect.
Connolly has come up with a great team in Nell and Marty, I look forward to getting to know them better.
gaderianne's review against another edition
4.0
If you have ever worked in a museum, if you have ever wanted to work in a museum, if you want to know what goes on behind the scenes at a museum....you have to read this book!
Having worked for two different historical societies (and now at a historic site), this book was so familiar to me it was eerie. In fact, at one point I asked the person who lent me the book if the author had ever worked (or knew someone who worked) for the historical societies I worked for. I am amazed by how realistic this book truly is. From the details about collections managements, directors, and board members - the details are phenomenal! In addition, having lived through a theft at one place where I worked (thankfully not internal like it was in this book), I felt like I was reliving the horror of that situation. The only criticism in realism that I would have is even with all the mundane...it still seemed more glamorous than it actually is to work for a museum. And...how can the main character afford a house on the main line...even a small one???
I thought that Connolly wrote a unique main character in Nell Pratt. It isn't often that development and fundraising folks are featured in museums. Typically it is the curators or librarians (although the collections folk did have a prominent role.
The mystery portion was a little weak. I guessed who the thief was by the third chapter and it was revealed early on in the book. Part of this book's plot was not so much the who-done-it, but the how to catch the guy. The murder part of it dragged on until the end and I thought it was a bit rushed/didn't fall completely in place with the rest of the book. I would have liked a bit more action and a bit more suspicion played out amongst the rest of the staff.
Still, overall highly enjoyable. I can't wait to read the second in the series!
Having worked for two different historical societies (and now at a historic site), this book was so familiar to me it was eerie. In fact, at one point I asked the person who lent me the book if the author had ever worked (or knew someone who worked) for the historical societies I worked for. I am amazed by how realistic this book truly is. From the details about collections managements, directors, and board members - the details are phenomenal! In addition, having lived through a theft at one place where I worked (thankfully not internal like it was in this book), I felt like I was reliving the horror of that situation. The only criticism in realism that I would have is even with all the mundane...it still seemed more glamorous than it actually is to work for a museum. And...how can the main character afford a house on the main line...even a small one???
I thought that Connolly wrote a unique main character in Nell Pratt. It isn't often that development and fundraising folks are featured in museums. Typically it is the curators or librarians (although the collections folk did have a prominent role.
The mystery portion was a little weak. I guessed who the thief was by the third chapter and it was revealed early on in the book. Part of this book's plot was not so much the who-done-it, but the how to catch the guy. The murder part of it dragged on until the end and I thought it was a bit rushed/didn't fall completely in place with the rest of the book. I would have liked a bit more action and a bit more suspicion played out amongst the rest of the staff.
Still, overall highly enjoyable. I can't wait to read the second in the series!
amalies's review against another edition
3.0
Really enjoyed the setting. I love old museum and library collections and it was an interesting place to have a murder and investigation.
ellelainey's review against another edition
5.0
Started a bit slow but about halfway through it got really, really good. I laughed out loud, wanted to cry and thoroughly enjoyed it. Now only book 2.
misajane79's review against another edition
4.0
If I was being objective, this would be 2.5 stars. But it's about a murder in a museum! How can I be objective about that?
I don't read a lot of cozy mysteries, so not sure how to judge based on that, but for the museum nerd in me, I loved:
--the very frank discussion of how hard it is to raise money
--the extreme backlog of cataloging and keeping track of things
--the smarmy director
--the aggravating until you love her board member
--the nerdy archivist (who is the one that gets killed)
--the museum gossip chain
Lots and lots of inside jokes that I found hysterical, though I don't know if non-museum folks would. However, this book will totally make the rounds among my Dallas museum friends. She gets an amazing number of things right about working in museums, other than the whole murder/theft scam thing. . .
Is it a great book? Not really. But it was fun! Will definitely keep an eye out for the rest of the series. The only thing missing was a charming, fabulous director of education. . .
I don't read a lot of cozy mysteries, so not sure how to judge based on that, but for the museum nerd in me, I loved:
--the very frank discussion of how hard it is to raise money
--the extreme backlog of cataloging and keeping track of things
--the smarmy director
--the aggravating until you love her board member
--the nerdy archivist (who is the one that gets killed)
--the museum gossip chain
Lots and lots of inside jokes that I found hysterical, though I don't know if non-museum folks would. However, this book will totally make the rounds among my Dallas museum friends. She gets an amazing number of things right about working in museums, other than the whole murder/theft scam thing. . .
Is it a great book? Not really. But it was fun! Will definitely keep an eye out for the rest of the series. The only thing missing was a charming, fabulous director of education. . .