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A Youthful Indiscretion
(A Very English Mystery #1.5)
by
A Youthful Indiscretion A Novella
From the bestselling author of A Man of Some Repute comes a story of intrigue and deceit, as a love affair from the past reaches out to touch the present.
1953, and Freya Wryton is determined to discover the truth of murdered Lord Selchester’s youthful passion for the mysterious Marie Louise.
Her family and his colleagues want her lat ...more
From the bestselling author of A Man of Some Repute comes a story of intrigue and deceit, as a love affair from the past reaches out to touch the present.
1953, and Freya Wryton is determined to discover the truth of murdered Lord Selchester’s youthful passion for the mysterious Marie Louise.
Her family and his colleagues want her lat ...more
Kindle Edition, 60 pages
Published
October 8th 2015
by Belsyre Books
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Start your review of A Youthful Indiscretion (A Very English Mystery #1.5)
If you read A Man of Some Repute - you should read this before you read A Question of Inheritance. Although it should be an epilogue after the former or an introduction to the latter and not a stand alone novella.
Author Elizabeth Edmondson’s series featuring with the shadowy but scrupulous British government agent Hugo Hawksworth and the headstrong Lady Freya Wryton always proves delightful. A Youthful Indiscretion: A Novella takes place in between the first novel in the series, A Man of Some Repute, and its sequel, A Question of Inheritance. I’m certain that if I had read the books in order, I would have loved A Youthful Indiscretion, which, like the other books, ends with a cliff hanger. Unfortunately,
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I started to read book two in the A Very English Mystery series and realized it had jumped ahead in the story line. It made me wonder if I'd missed something. Sure enough there was this short tweeny story covering Freya and Hugo's investigation of a mysterious letter that turned up and had the potential to upset the family apple cart.
Freya won't be turned off her investigation into her uncle's past during an idyllic summer in Oxford and Hugo acts as her support. It's a quick story, but I enjoyed ...more
Freya won't be turned off her investigation into her uncle's past during an idyllic summer in Oxford and Hugo acts as her support. It's a quick story, but I enjoyed ...more
This novella is part of the author's 'A Very English Mystery' series and follows on from the novel 'A Man of Some Repute'. Freya is puzzled by a letter to her late Uncle which was found in a Missal and which appears to be from a young woman he could have married when he was at Oxford. She asks her Aunt if it was true he married someone before her married her Aunt Hermione. Her speculations are dismissed but her curiosity is aroused especially when several people warn her against taking the matte
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Sadly Lacking
What a disappointment to read this after reading 'A Man of Some Repute'. It isn't a novella, it is an unfinished manuscript, and a poorly edited one. I was so looking forward to reading this, and I suppose it could be considered a 'bridge' between the two novels, but it actually hasn't added anything to the main story that I hadn't already thought of. I am sorry if this is a bit harsh but I do think the author could have done herself a favour and left this one out. All the main char ...more
What a disappointment to read this after reading 'A Man of Some Repute'. It isn't a novella, it is an unfinished manuscript, and a poorly edited one. I was so looking forward to reading this, and I suppose it could be considered a 'bridge' between the two novels, but it actually hasn't added anything to the main story that I hadn't already thought of. I am sorry if this is a bit harsh but I do think the author could have done herself a favour and left this one out. All the main char ...more
This is a review of A Very English Mystery series by Elizabeth Edmondson. It includes A Man of Some Repute, A Youthful Indiscretion (a novella), A Question of Inheritance, and A Matter of Loyalty. The author died before finishing the final book, which was completed by her son, Anselm Audley, in a pretty seamless transition. I listened to the audible version of each and enjoyed them as light reading. I would recommend the series to mid-century British mystery lovers but with a caveat that they do
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This novella is the prequel to book #2 - A Question of Inheritance.
Not all secrets from the past stay buried!
From the end of book #1- A Man of Some Repute. Freya and Hugo's discovered a letter from a mysterious Mary Louise to the late Lord Selchester, stating "My Dearest Husband".
Had Lord Selchester married this Mary (Marie) Louise? And if so, was it legal? Was his marriage to Freya's aunt bigamous? And will this put a stop to Lady Sonia being able to sell the castle to a Swiss Hotel Consortium? ...more
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This rest of the Very English Mystery series was fantastic, but this just wasn't. Has no plot, no real conflict, no real mystery, no climax, and an utterly predictable conclusion. If you're reading the Very English Mystery series, which I highly recommend, you should read #1, then #2, and skip #1.5 (this book). You won't miss anything.
If you (like me) like the characters in the Very English Mystery series, then maybe you want to read this book, just to visit them again. But honestly, they don't ...more
If you (like me) like the characters in the Very English Mystery series, then maybe you want to read this book, just to visit them again. But honestly, they don't ...more
Lord Selchester’s murder has been solved and now his daughter Lady Sonia is set to inherit everything. Her plan is to sell the castle to a Swiss consortium for development into a hotel and golf course. The consortium also plans to take over the leaseholds in the village for development. The villagers expect Selchester’s cousin Freya to stop Lady Sonia, but what can she do? This author has quite a gift for bringing her characters to life but the novella has only a slight bit of resolution, so don
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Jun 18, 2018
Hilary (A Wytch's Book Review)
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
cozy-history,
cozy-british-isles
This Novella links the first two books nicely together, at the end of A Man of Some Repute a letter had been found from a Mary Louise (otherwise known at Marie Louise as she was French), the letter seems to be plaintive and Freya wants to find out more about the lady who wrote it. What she and Hugo find out will have a rather nasty surprise for Freya's cousin Sonja and will shake the family out of the doldrums!
...more
Short story entry in the series . . . provides some back story -- or rather, 'in between' story -- to explain what happened between the end of the first book and the beginning of the second. There's no real 'mystery', just a brief investigation into an old letter that had been found and what it ultimately means. I suspect the 2nd book can be enjoyed without having read this.
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The 1.5 is a hint that the author wanted to tie up some loose ends. And does so very well. Unfortunately, I had read #2 (A QUESTION OF INHERITANCE) first, so it was a bit of a let-down. Nonetheless, if you want the read the entire series (3.5 books), I would recommend reading them in order.
SPOILER: The series ends at #3, as explained at the end of that book.
SPOILER: The series ends at #3, as explained at the end of that book.
This is a novella, a brief in-between story in the series, best read between the first book in the series, A Man of Some Repute and the second in the series, A Question of Inheritance. It explains how the second book's story comes to be.
...more
This was a bittersweet little novella, I had already read all the books in this series and even though I knew there would be no more for this series or from this author I couldn't resist another glimpse into this world. Love it and was so happy to see these characters again, they will be missed.
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Eh. It was ok but seemed unnecessary to the series. Not only does it leave a cliffhanger, most of the details in this novella were explained in the first few chapters of the next book in the series so it didn’t add much to the story, in my opinion.
This story felt as if it had been written by someone else after the charming characters in the 3 other books about Selchester. I know it’s not part of the Trilogy but it explains certain things which happened in the Trilogy. There was no warmth in this one. What a shame.
This is basically the story in between books 1 and 2 in the series. It's really short and not at all required, but nice none the less.
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The missing link
This is a strange book .It tells the story that links book 1 and 2 in A Very English Mystery series.
So pleased I found it as now book 2 makes sense
This is a strange book .It tells the story that links book 1 and 2 in A Very English Mystery series.
So pleased I found it as now book 2 makes sense
A weirdly incomplete, off-tone novella to "fix up" the disconnect between the end of the first novel and the beginning of the second.
...more
Brief but interesting
Mystery meets history
A good read, packed with vivid characters and mystery. Even the horse is a powerful personality. Ms Edmondson excels at her craft, and leaves us wanting more.
A good read, packed with vivid characters and mystery. Even the horse is a powerful personality. Ms Edmondson excels at her craft, and leaves us wanting more.
Such a tease
This goes best between the first and second novel. There’s just enough information to give you the basic information as the second novel is introduced.
This goes best between the first and second novel. There’s just enough information to give you the basic information as the second novel is introduced.
OK - that filled in some missing pieces (although a 1.75 novella would bridge a fairly large gap...hence the 4 stars)
A short book set in 1953 which continues the Selchester saga
Fills in a useful gap between books one and two of the series.
I don't care for the title of this book, it gives the impression of a cheap, racy romance novel, which is not at all the case. This is a super short novella that spans be space between A Man of Some Repute and A Question of Inheritance, two historical mysteries. I enjoyed A Man of Some Repute very much, and am looking forward to reading "A Question of Inheritance, which is why I read this little book. But I felt that the quality of the writing was nothing like A Man of Some Repute. The story and
...more
AAARGH! This actually fits in between the two novels featuring Hugo and Freya and begins to explain the opening chapters of 'A Question of Inheritance' - but it stops almost in mid-chapter!
As I know that, sadly, the author died I would have presumed that this is a fragment that was not completed but published anyway - except that it so clearly fits between the other two.
It really asks more questions than it answers, I feel.
My advice would be that if you are likely to be frustrated to find you ...more
As I know that, sadly, the author died I would have presumed that this is a fragment that was not completed but published anyway - except that it so clearly fits between the other two.
It really asks more questions than it answers, I feel.
My advice would be that if you are likely to be frustrated to find you ...more
Reading any of these Selchester novels instantly draws one in and absorbs one in time, place and characters. This might only be a short novel, or novella if you will, but once again reading it is a completely immersive experience. There are plenty of novels set during the second world war and plenty set in the 1960s but the 1950s, when this is set seems a relatively un-mined territory yet with the war still looming like a shadow from the recent past and the emotional scarring of those who went t
...more
Nice interlude and set up for the second novel in the series (A Question of Inheritance). I read it after, not realizing it was meant to be 1.5, but it simply read as a sort of flashback instead. Four stars only because it was over far too quickly (so short! Read it in less than 90 minutes) and suddenly (just before the investigation hit its denouement). I appreciate the cliffhanger element, but only because Book 2 is already out (and I'd just read it).
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Born in Chile, and educated in Calcutta and London before going to Oxford University, Elizabeth Edmondson divided her time between the countryside north of Rome and the spires of Oxford. She was married to an art historian and had two children.
In Edmondson's words: "I write historical mysteries about love, marriage families and friendship, where the loyalties, feuds, secrets and betrayals of the p ...more
In Edmondson's words: "I write historical mysteries about love, marriage families and friendship, where the loyalties, feuds, secrets and betrayals of the p ...more
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“Freya took a biscuit and dunked it in her coffee. Lady Priscilla winced. “That’s a disgusting habit. I suppose you picked it up in the war.”
—
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