Book 1 in Her Majesty The Queen Investigates series:
“A triumph”
“Full of authentic details, the plot is smart and twisty and the whole thing is wonderfully (oddly) believable. Absolute perfection!”
“A delightful and respectful tribute to Windsor’s canniest — and most discreet — amateur sleuth”
On a perfect Spring morning at Windsor Castle, Queen Elizabeth II will go for a ride, carry out all her royal duties... and solve a murder.
The morning after a ‘dine and sleep’ at Windsor Castle, eighty-nine-year-old Queen Elizabeth is shocked to discover that one of her guests has been found murdered in his room, with a dressing-gown cord around his neck. When the police and MI5 begin to suspect her loyal servants, Her Majesty is certain they are looking in the wrong place. For the Queen has been living an extraordinary double life ever since her teenage years. Away from the public eye, she has a brilliant, secret knack for solving crimes. With her household's happiness on the line, can she and her trusted assistant private secretary, Rozie, catch the killer, without getting caught themselves?
Buy Here
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LoveReading
As with all the books in the series so far, The Windsor Knot gets a wonderful writeup from Liz Robinson at LoveReading.co.uk. She says more than I can, and puts it better, so here it is:
“A glorious start to a new murder mystery series with this brilliantly unique and rather special novel. Over the years the Queen has become adept at solving mysteries. Aided and abetted by her new assistant private secretary Rozie, and with the Queen due to step into her 90’s, they find themselves investigating a particularly tricky crime that was committed at Windsor Castle. I always feel a certain reluctance to attach the word cosy to crime, but can reveal that SJ Bennett ensures that while a murder is committed, a decided warmth and joy accompanies the story. The actual calendar of events surrounding the Royals is included, so it all feels as though it could be deliciously real. The plot makes the most perfect sense, of course the Queen could rival Sherlock Holmes, she is just as you would imagine her to be. The writing is smart, and compassionate, and carries the dignity of the occasions with a light touch. I adore the relationship that develops between the Queen and Rozie. Rozie is the perfect addition, navigating her way around the maze of customs and etiquette that attempt to block her fact-finding missions. The Windsor Knot joins our LoveReading Star Books collection, if you are on the hunt for a new series, I can highly recommend putting this one to the top of the your to-be-read pile, it’s just gorgeous! “
Resources
Interactive Map of Windsor Castle
Book club guide
Gallery & drop scone recipe …
Samantha Bond discusses reading the UK audiobook
Reviews
“Sheer entertainment… Bennett infuses wit and an arch sensibility into her prose… This is not mere froth, it is pure confection.”
“Like an episode of The Crown - but with a spicy dish of murder on the side”
“The plot is well thought out, masterfully observed, and paced to perfection ... Grab a cup of tea and curl up to one of the best mysteries I have had the pleasure to read this year! ”
“Gently hilarious, discreetly compelling and utterly charming, The Windsor Knot adds detection to the mystique of monarchy”
“I loved every page of this book … I do hope that Her Majesty has a few more cases which she’s been keeping under her crown”
“Hilarious, affectionate, and so well observed... I loved it”
“A great idea and a very clever and intricate story which I enjoyed from start to finish, more please!”
“Bracingly fresh yet endearingly familiar, The Windsor Knot is a dead cert for the winner’s enclosure. It gallops along at a cracking pace, is laugh-out-loud funny and completely convincing, peppered with delicious royal detail and in-jokes. Priceless and charming - a jewel in the crown”
