Book Review: Just Murdered by Katherine Kovacic

Peregrine Fisher is doing the best she can eking out a living in 1960s Australia. Having led a wandering life with her now deceased mother, the young woman is trying her hand at hairdressing in a beachside town and, admittedly, not doing the best job of it. So when she gets a letter informing her of an inheritance waiting for her in Melbourne, she decides to pack up her few belongings and head out to investigate.

Gaining access to the Adventuresses’ Club that initially summoned her proves to be a daunting task, not helped by their leader’s inexplicable hostility towards her. But the other members soon embrace her, especially after the pluck she shows in getting in to see them. One of them, fashion designer Florence Astor, even exclaims:

‘Oh! You are so much like your aunt! I wish she was still here: God knows I could use a good detective right now!’

 

‘A detective! Is that what she was?’ Peregrine’s eyes lit up at the thought of her aunt wielding a large magnifying glass.

 

‘I don’t suppose it runs in the family, does it?’ Florence’s tone was light, but her grip on Peregrine’s hands told a different story.

 

‘I don’t know.’ Peregrine shrugged. ‘But I’m happy to give it a red-hot go!’

For Peregrine is the niece of famed detective Phryne Fisher, who has recently gone missing in New Guinea. In case of such unfortunate circumstances, she’s charged the Adventuresses’ Club with finding her heir and handing Peregrine the keys to her luxurious house and car, as well as a great big wad of cash. Peregrine is unsurprisingly thrilled at going from near penury to being fabulously wealthy. When she innocently suggests that she’s happy to help the Adventuresses with their detecting needs as well, she’s flattered by how eagerly Florence accepts her offer. She’s only a little taken aback to discover that Florence has very recently been accused of murder, an accusation that the famous fashion designer strongly denies.

The very day of Peregrine’s arrival in town, the body of model Barbie Jones had been discovered at a runway show Florence was holding in Blair’s Emporium, Melbourne’s premier department store. After word gets out that Florence had had a very public altercation with the model just a day or two earlier, the designer quickly becomes the police’s prime suspect. Phryne would probably have been able to clear Florence’s name instantly, but Peregrine needs a little more time to adjust to this new, to her, business of detecting.

It doesn’t help that she’s constantly impeded by the corrupt Chief Inspector Sparrow. With Phryne missing, the inspector has no qualms in attempting to intimidate her heir into giving up the incriminating evidence Phryne had on him. Peregrine, however, inherited quite a bit of her aunt’s spiritual steel, and isn’t to be cowed. Alas that the same can’t be said of the detective actually in charge of the Jones murder case:

Now, though, with the evidence right in front of him, Detective Steed was angered by his own inability to act, and for the first time he was ashamed of being part of the police force. He hadn’t meant to take that out on Peregrine either, but perhaps his strong reaction would make her back off. Of course, if Peregrine Fisher was anything like her aunt, his outburst had probably made her more determined than ever to get to the bottom of things.

Detective James Steed is a fairly by-the-book detective, so he finds Peregrine’s cheerful interference quite aggravating at first. But the more he interacts with her, and the more obvious his boss’ perfidy becomes, the more accepting he is of her help. Will he be able to return the favor, though, when she finds herself at the mercies of a hardened killer?

Of course, Peregrine is a Fisher, and hardly needs a man to rescue her as she races to outwit a murderer. It’s always nice to have allies, though, as she steps into her missing aunt’s role and begins the business of detection. Peregrine is just as charming and headstrong as Phryne, with any lack of experience being made up for in sheer physical pluck.

Just Murdered is based on a screenplay by Deb Cox from the hit TV series Miss Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries, a 60s spinoff of the wildly popular show based on Kerry Greenwood’s original novels. It isn’t quite as clever as Miss Greenwood’s works, but is a delightful accompaniment to the main canon, with all the verve you’d expect from this charming mystery property.