I’m fairly terrible at following series, so I didn’t realise that there was another Below Stairs mystery out until Wendy talked about it on her blog, Musings of a Bookish Kitty and I decided to borrow the book before I forgot about it again. Well, on the train back from Nice, I did a bit of work until I couldn’t focus on the computer because I was getting dizzy, picked up Death at the Crystal Palace because I thought I’d read a little before switching to podcasts and… couldn’t put down the book until I was finished.

Death at Crystal Palace starts with proof that Kat’s reputation is spreading because it starts with a Lady Covington coming to Kat for help. She’s convinced she’s being poisoned and she wants Kat to help her. Unfortunately, Daniel can’t do much, since he’s embroiled in a case of his own, but when a member of Lady Covington’s family dies, Kat has to investigate. To complicate matters, Lady Cynthia’s parents are here and they’re up to their own schemes.

As you can guess from my summary, this is probably not the best book to begin the series with. The characters are all pretty established by now, and if you don’t know who Cynthia is, who Tess is, or the history between Daniel and Kat, things might be a bit confusing. For me, it was like stepping back into a familiar world and I loved seeing their teamwork in action. It sounds weird to have them all work together, but knowing their history, it makes sense and is so enjoyable.

I’ve got a soft spot for Kat and Daniel’s relationship, so I’m really chuffed to see how far things have progressed between them. I’m not too sure how this is going to impact future books going forward, but I’m hoping we start to see more of Daniel’s past and that it can finally be resolved.

If you’re into mystery, heartwarming friendships (and romance), and a heroine who knows how to take care of herself and come up with an amazing lemon cake recipe at a moment’s notice, you have to read this series! I’d just suggest you start with book one, so you can appreciate how far all the characters have come.