ARC AUDIO BOOK REVIEW: The Enchanted Hill by Emily Bain Murphy

Publication Date: November 7, 2023 Format: Audio Genre:  Historical Mystery   Narrator: Jennifer Jill Araya

Publisher: Dreamscape Media Length:  12 Hours 26 minutes Buy: Kindle | Audio

Synopsis

The year is 1930 and Cora McCavanagh is posing as a maid at Hollywood magnate Truman Byrd’s legendary estate. She’s closing in on the damning evidence she needs for a high-profile client. 
 
An aspiring PI, Cora was trained by her father, a former prison guard at the notorious Pelican Island, where Cora grew up surrounded by hardened criminals.
 
Which is why she recognizes Jack Yates as soon as he walks through the door. The last time she saw him was on an ill-fated night that changed the course of her life and still haunts her more than a decade later. Cora never expected to see Jack again—and now a single misstep could cause both their secret identities to come crashing down.
 
They strike a tentative truce to help each other during a week of parties overflowing with champagne and caviar. But there are puzzles hidden in every corner of Truman Byrd’s labyrinthine estate, and if Cora is to finally learn the truth about Jack Yates, she must unravel a sinister history that the rich and powerful will do anything to keep concealed.

Review:

I received a free copy of this book from Dreamscape Media through netgalley.com. I am leaving this review voluntarily. 

I don't believe there were many female PI's back in the 30's but Cora is determined to be one.  Working on a case that can make or break her career, she is tasked with getting indisputable proof that a big wig in Hollywood is having an affair. 

Jack Yates escaped from prison on Pelican Island when he was a teenager.  He has spent his life trying to gain proof that he and his brother were set up and to clear their names. 

Cora knows Jack from when her father was the prison warden on Pelican Island.  As a child she met Jack and the formed a connection.  It was Cora's information about the prison that helped Jack escape and lead to the death of one of her family friends.  Cora has always blamed herself. Jack was always drawn to Cora, and now she is a woman.  He feels bad that she thinks he only spoke to her to get information when deep down he really cared. 

This is a beautifully spun mystery that delves into the haves and the have nots.  The boredom of privilege and how the less fortunate are often left as patsy to pick up the broken pieces. Filled with the opulence and splendor of old Hollywood it is also a story of 2nd chances and things not always being what they seem. 

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