Doctors, dowagers, danger

At the ripe old age of 27, Anne Loveday faces marriage to a much older man. She would prefer to practice medicine like her father, but society frowns upon such an unladylike profession. This is the setup for Julie Klassen’s Christian mystery novel Whispers at Painswick Court (Bethany House, 368 pp.).

To avoid the tragic fate of “marriage, babies, and death,” Anne accepts an invitation to stay with Miss Lotty, a family friend who lives near Painswick Court, the site of many of Anne’s childhood memories.

Upon her arrival, the town’s doctor asks her to serve as a nurse to Lady Celia Fitzjohn, a crotchety old widow who allegedly prevented a marriage between her nephew and Anne’s sister.

Despite her longstanding grudge, Anne agrees to stay at Painswick Court and look after Lady Celia. Anna isn’t the only person who has a bone to pick with the old woman. As Anne becomes reacquainted with the family and staff of Painswick, she realizes someone is trying to murder the elderly invalid. Motives abound.

For Anne, the stakes are especially high: It wouldn’t be the first time someone died in her care. And on top of everything else, the ghost of King Charles I supposedly haunts the house.

During her stay, Anne catches the eye of the town’s new doctor, though she suspects she’s not the only woman he aims to woo. Anne eventually learns she had misjudged several people. She even comes to recognize the value of marriage and motherhood.

The book isn’t preachy or, despite plenty of romantic interludes, sensual. Although (mild spoiler), one character does have a child out of wedlock, and that same character nearly gets exploited by a man of low morals.

Anne utters a few prayers throughout her adventure, but there isn’t much that defines the book as belonging in the category of Christian fiction.

“The hope is,” author Julie Klassen told me, “That some people will pick up my books and read them because it’s a mystery, and who aren’t necessarily looking for that faith element.”

The book’s mystery element probably won’t blow your mind. But Klassen took pains to think through each detail. Anyone who remembers reading Nancy Drew books or American Girl mysteries with fond nostalgia will probably enjoy Whispers at Painswick Court.

This book is more “mature” but not in the negative sense of the word. Reading mysteries can be an uncomfortable experience when they’re laced with foul language and sexual innuendo. True to its genre, Whispers at Painswick Court has no language and no graphic elements to the romance, leaving readers with a cozy mystery that remains pleasant from start to finish.