[review] A Trace of Poison by Colleen Cambridge

A Trace of Poison is the second book in the Phyllida Bright Mystery series by Colleen Cambridge. This is fast becoming one of my favourite mystery series – I just love the the Agatha Christie-adjacent characters – it’s a unique look at the Christie household without directly having the famous author involved.

Title: A Trace of Poison
Author: Colleen Cambridge
Series: Phyllida Bright #2
First Published: October 25, 2022
Publisher: Kensington Books
Genres: Mystery
Acquired: from the publisher via Netgalley

*** Thank you to the publisher, Kensington Books, for providing me with an e-copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review. ***

In England’s stately manor houses, murder is not generally a topic for polite conversation. Mallowan Hall, home to Agatha Christie and her husband, Max, is the exception. And housekeeper Phyllida Bright delights in discussing gory plot details with her friend and employer . . .

The neighboring village of Listleigh has also become a hub of grisly goings-on, thanks to a Murder Fête organized to benefit a local orphanage. Members of The Detection Club—a group of celebrated authors such as G.K. Chesterton, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Agatha herself—will congregate for charitable events, including a writing contest for aspiring authors. The winner gets an international publishing contract, and entrants have gathered for a cocktail party—managed by the inimitable Phyllida—when murder strikes too close even for her comfort.

It’s a mystery too intriguing for Phyllida to resist, but one fraught with duplicity and danger, for every guest is an expert in murder—and how to get away with it.

A gathering of murder experts

One of the things that drew me to this series in the first place was the mention of Agatha Christie. I loved the interesting premise of the series – Christie is part of the supporting characters, but not really a main part of the action. The first book in the series was fantastic (you can read my review of Murder at Mallowan Hall here), and this sequel raises the stakes by including not just Christie, but a slew of other famous, real-life mystery authors: the famous collective known as The Detection Club. They’re only seen in minor roles, but it was interesting to get a fictional taste of their different personalities and what set their books apart.

The early murder focuses a lot on poisons, a weapon that Christie herself employed in many of her books and it was fun to see the gathered authors and mystery lovers debate on the different poison (everyone’s an expert, right?)

It was a great idea to set a murder amongst a crowd of mystery writers and readers – everyone has an opinion, and everyone things they can solve the crime. The mystery itself is very well done and I liked that there were clues and red herrings throughout the story. It’s a really fun read and I zipped through it, not wanting the story to end. I love this fictional version of Christie and feel like we get the perfect glimpse into her private life without her taking over the story too much.

So many characters, but in the best way

As with the first book, there are a large number of characters. Along with the household staff, there are the attending authors, the townsfolk and festival goers as well. There is a list of characters at the start to help readers keep track, and I did find myself referring to the list more than once, but most of the time it was fairly easy to keep track of who everyone was.

I really like the way the character Phyllida Bright is developing, and I found that many of the characters that we were introduced to in the first book (especially the household staff) are further developed in this book as well. It’s like getting to know a small community. There is still intrigue surrounding Phyllida’s background, but she is as competent and efficient as ever. I liked her better in this book than in the last and honestly can’t wait to get to know her better in future stories.

I previously said the series was like “Agatha Christie meets Gosford Park” and the feeling still holds – it will be most enjoyable to fans of either, plus those that love classic, traditional mysteries in general.

Quote from A Trace of Poison