Queen Elizabeth II... a super-sleuth?
In the vivid imagination of British author SJ Bennett (aka YA author Sophia Bennett), Her Royal Majesty becomes swept up in a possible murder investigation
at Windsor Castle. This clever fictional premise humorously plays out with
grand appeal.
The first in a proposed series, The Windsor Knot commences in April 2016, as 89-year-old Queen Elizabeth
II takes in "an almost perfect spring day" in the bucolic countryside
on the grounds of Windsor Castle. The night before, Prince Charles had gathered
a who's who of high-profile overnight guests to "curry favor with some
rich Russians for one of his pet projects." At the soiree, a performer--a
good-looking Russian pianist in his early 20s--"played Rachmaninoff like a
dream" and even danced with the Queen. The next morning, however, the
young musician is found dead in his bedroom. At first, it appears that he died
in his sleep. But at breakfast, banter among the guests sheds new light.
There's talk that ladies' underwear and lipstick were found near the man's nude
corpse, "strung up like a Tory MP" near his bedside. Foul play?
Suicide?
While professional detectives work
the case, Queen Elizabeth enlists the help of her loyal private secretary,
Rozie Oshodi, who assists as the tenacious, resolute Queen secretly
investigates the murder on her own. Bennett portrays the perceptive,
resourceful Queen with great wit and affection, and a well-drawn supporting
cast further enlivens a fast-moving, spirited and suspenseful plot.
The Windsor Knot: A Novel (Her Majesty the Queen Investigates; Book One) by SJ Bennett
William Morrow, $27.99 Hardcover,
288 pp, 97800630500006
Publication Date: March
9, 2021
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