【 MURDER MOST BRITISH 】

book #3 in the Secret Detective Agency series

Genre: Cosy Crime (WWII)
Audience: Adult
Author: Helena Dixon
Published: November 2025
Publisher: Bookouture
Pages: 262 (paperback)

Another great addition to this series! I just love how cute and cosy this crime series is. Once again, we are following our main cast of characters, and Murder Most British takes us to the heart of wartime London thick with smog and chock-block full of action.

To me, this series is hitting all the right notes of cosy crime. Despite the murders, drama and general stress of the situation, there’s something … comforting and soothing about these books? Call me crazy, but nothing soothes the soul quite like a secret mission with Jane and Arthur. Plus, the quaint friendship that is so totally slowly turning into a cute romance between Jane and Arthur gives you all the good vibes as they solve crime.

It was really nice to take this series into the heart of London this time, as we’ve actually not been there yet. It was fun to see how the characters would navigate going undercover in such a difficult circumstance all while navigating things like buses running chronically late, air raids and blackouts. Not to mention having to put up with Jane’s mum, who is hilariously insufferable.

The different themes and aspects of the war that Dixon explores in each instalment is one of the great things about this series. We’ve looked at undercover agents going rogue, at wartime scams executed under the cover of an air raid, and now we get to see some razzle and dazzle in the radio broadcasts that Jane’s mum is involved with to boost morale. And Arthur gets to stretch his code-breaking muscles properly in this one, which is always a good thing.

The best part of this adventure is that Benson gets his own undercover role too. And we all love Benson – let’s be honest, he’s the true hero of every single one of these adventures. This was fun, light-hearted reading that will tickle any cosy-crime reader pink.

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Title: Murder Most British
Series: The Secret Detective Agency
Author: Helena Dixon
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Big Ben chiming in the distance, chilly walks along the river Thames, cocktails at the Ritz… and a government secretary dead? Only Jane Treen can solve the case!

London, 1941. Miss Jane Treen is faced with another mysterious disappearance within her Secret Detective Agency’s team. Tabitha Moore, a government typist, was on her way to meet Jane with vital information about some secret codes. But she didn’t turn up for work and has seemingly vanished without trace. Then Jane and her colleague, handsome codebreaker Arthur Cilento, receive a call: a body has been found, and it matches Tabitha’s description…

It quickly becomes clear that Tabitha’s death was not due to ongoing air raids on the the silk scarf tied tightly around her neck suggests otherwise. The prime suspect is Tabitha’s fiancé Leo Cavendish, a dashing government official, but there are plenty of others with a motive too. Jane and Arthur scrutinise those around Tabitha at work and at home, including a charming newsreader reporting on government affairs, a jealous pianist in love with Leo, and a known womaniser and gambler fond of causing trouble.

Together, Jane, Arthur and her fluffy ginger cat Marmaduke hole up in her London townhouse, with black coffee in plentiful supply and a roaring fire in the grate. But just as they begin to piece together the puzzle, someone else is found dead. It’s clear they need to step up and catch the killer on the loose in the big smoke, before it’s their turn next…

If you love twisty crime novels, top-secret intrigue and the very best of Golden Age mysteries, then you will adore Helena Dixon’s totally gripping cozy novel, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Verity Bright!