The first instalment of the hugely popular Wells and Wong detective stories for children, Stevens’s note-perfect pastiche of Golden Age crime mysteries is a brilliantly realised and compelling boarding school adventure.
The first marvellous murder mystery in the bestselling Murder Most Unladylike series!
'Ripping good fun' The Times
'Plotting is what sets this book apart' Telegraph
At Deepdean School for Girls, Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong have set up their own detective agency. But they are struggling to find any real crimes to investigate. (Unless you count the case of Lavinia's missing tie. Which they don't.)
Then Hazel discovers the Science Mistress, Miss Bell, lying dead in the Gym. To add to the mystery, when she and Daisy return five minutes later, the body has disappeared. Now Hazel and Daisy not only have a murder to solve: they have to prove one happened in the first place.
'Enormous fun' Irish Times
'A skilful blend of golden era crime novel and boarding school romp . . . Top class' Financial Times
'I absolutely loved it' Susie Day
Publisher: Penguin Random House Children's UK
ISBN: 9780141369761
Number of pages: 352
Weight: 251 g
Dimensions: 197 x 129 x 22 mm
Ripping good fun - The Times
A skilful blend of golden era crime novel and boarding school romp . . . The novel works both as an affectionate satire and an effective murder mystery, and Stevens can go places Enid Blyton never dreamt of . . . Top class - Financial Times
Friendship, boarding school and a murder worthy of Agatha Christie - The Bookseller
Plotting is what sets this book apart; this is about who was where at the time of the murder, and it's about finding the chink in the alibi - Telegraph
An addictive debut, full of wit, panache and iced-bun breaks - Metro
Enormous fun - Irish Times
Part murder mystery, part diary, and a pitch-perfect snapshot of adolescent friendship . . . A sharp-witted debut for Stevens, one that will leave readers eagerly awaiting subsequent instalments - Publishers Weekly
Angela Brazil meets Agatha Christie all mixed up with some Sherlockian tips and winks that made me snuggle down and read with a contented smile. It is a jacket potato on a winter's day book; warm, satisfying, filling . . . This is such a glorious book and it is one which has reinterpreted the school story for the contemporary reader and opened it up with a swift moving and accessible plot line. In Star Trek terms, it is the next generation as compared to the original series. It is very, very gorgeous. Daisy is glorious. Hazel is awesome. I want more, please. It's as simple as that - Did You Ever Stop to Think
Irresistible . . . It feels both delightfully old-fashioned and current - a difficult balance to pull off, but it's been done with style here. Imagine Agatha Christie visiting Malory Towers and add in some modern sensibilities and you are about there. The plot twists and turns like nobody's business and I didn't guess the real culprit for a very long time, but the real draw is the relationship between the two main characters. Daisy and Hazel are like chalk and cheese but they are perfect foils for one another and together, they make a brilliant detective duo - The Bookbag
I absolutely loved it - it's charming and witty and there's so much in terms of in-jokes and she really grabs hold of all the traditions of this type of story and runs with them. You've got bunbreak, squashed fly biscuits and dormitories . . . but at the same time as this thrilling murder mystery
Murder Most Unladylike is written from the point of view of Hong Kong-born Hazel Wong, who along with her friend Daisy Wells forms the Wells & Wong Detective Society at the quintessentially English ‘Deepdean... More
Hazel Wong is a very distinct character, being Asian and at an Deepdean School for girls in the 1930s is not easy so luckily her best friend is blue eyed blonde English Rose Daisy Wells.
Together they are a detective...
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The first of a great new detective series, set in a 1930's girls school. However, this is far from being behind the times. In fact it is really imaginative and fast paced. Suitable for any age. I know the... More
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