Death of a Diva at Honeychurch Hall is the latest installment of one of my favorite cozy series. Hannah Dennison writes with great humor and affection of country house life, and-- as much as I enjoy the mysteries, the humor, and the camaraderie-- I always find myself learning something when I read about Kat Stanford's latest adventure. In Death of a Diva I learned some interesting facts about opera, horseshoe bats, and the Spanish Armada and Agatha Christie's Greenway House.

There are relationship woes aplenty. Kat's relationship with the local detective inspector has hit a stretch of bumpy road, and her mother's beau has dumped her for the opera star coming to sing at the Hall.

One of the reasons why I like the lighthearted humor of this series so much is that readers are often "in the know" about what's going on, and we get to anticipate and appreciate the characters' reactions. But we're also treated to how people deal with life in an ancient building with very low beams. (If I ever relocate to the UK, it's Georgian all the way for me. Tall ceilings, tall doors, tall windows. I refuse to be under constant threat of concussion in my own home.)

I think it's time that I come clean about something. Kat's mother drives me nuts. Others probably find her hilarious, but I've found that a little of this woman goes a long way. She's a bestselling author of bodice-ripping romances, but she keeps her identity secret. (Now I like this bit because it's fun to watch her trying to dodge discovery.) Fittingly, she writes in a converted piggery. Why fittingly? Because she "suffered from migraines" for years, leaving her husband and daughter tiptoeing about the house in fear of her health, all so she could write. Then... she's squirreled away all her money in secret, tax-evading accounts on faraway islands. It's all about her, all the time. If there's a diva in this book-- make that this series-- it's Kat's mother. (Now that I've vented my spleen, I do have to admit that this is one well-written character to get such a strong reaction from me!)

Now that I've survived That Woman yet again, I have to smile because I have the next book in the series waiting for me. I always look forward to seeing what mystery Kat has to solve... and I can always hope that her selfish mother finally gets her comeuppance. Well, I can, can't I? ( )