Murder on a Midsummer Night: A Phryne Fisher Mystery

Kerry Greenwood
Poisoned Pen Press (2009)
ISBN 9781590586327
Reviewed by Cherie Fisher for Reader Views (4/09)


This was the first Phryne Fisher Mystery that I have read in Kerry Greenwood’s series and it left me wanting to read all the ones that I have missed.  This fast-paced novel is full of twists and turns and is the perfect book to take on vacation or to the beach this summer. 

The Honorable Phryne Fisher is a wealthy socialite who lives in Melbourne, Australia in 1929.  Phryne’s life definitely does not fit the description of a classic upper-crust person.  She is turning 29, happily single, a detective, has a Chinese lover and can drink beer and apparently every other alcoholic beverage as easily as she sips tea.  Her colorful household includes very opinionated and supportive servants, two adopted daughters (I am assuming they were part of an earlier mystery) and a smart, pampered cat.  Her sister and life partner, Lady Alice, live nearby and are frequently involved in Phryne’s mysteries. 

“Murder on a Midsummer Night” includes two mysteries for Phryne to solve.  The first one appears when Augustine Manifold, a proprietor drowns and it is assumed that he committed suicide.  His mother does not believe this and engages Phryne to look into the matter.  Phryne finds herself embroiled in a situation that leads to murder, mediums, kif smoking and lots of drinking.  As if this isn’t enough she is also retained by a wealthy family to find out if their deceased mother had an illegitimate child.  This family can’t seem to get along at all and the outcome to this case may even be crazier than the first mystery she is investigating. 

With the help of her family, her boyfriend LinChung and friends, Phryne is finally able to solve both mysteries amid often humorous chaos.  There is one mystery that happens at a séance that she is not able to figure out, but that solution may not be of this world.  That’s all I will say about this matter, so I won’t give anything away. 

I found the novel to be very entertaining and well thought out.   Usually I can figure out what the solution is well before I reach it and I was way off in both cases.  I highly recommend “Murder on a Midsummer Night” by Kerry Greenwood to mystery buffs.

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