Release Date: 29th April 2024 | Publisher: Cottrill Publishing

Awarded five stars by Julie, Whispering Stories, this is her review of The Silver Dagger…

‘The Silver Dagger’ is the latest novel in the ‘Silveries’ series by British-based author, Angela Dandy and takes us back to meet the residents of Magnolia Court. Quickly we’re transported to Jaipur in 1985, where we’re introduced to thirteen-year-old Ahmed Singh who
makes a reasonable living as a city tour guide. We follow his journey to England where he is to be educated at St John’s College in Stroud and that’s where this story truly begins.

The truth behind what happened at the college lays hidden for almost four decades, until the enterprising residents of Magnolia Court decide to accept the challenge of returning a silver dagger to its rightful owner. They are again fortuitously joined by Gabby, a niece of one of the residents, who is also a well-respected investigative journalist with some helpful contacts. The trail of misery, deceit and cruelty the group uncover spurs them on to bring closure to those who were wronged all those years ago and sees a murderer brought to justice.

The story is written from the perspective of several leading players in this drama and we have a bit of inclusion in the form of first person narrative from Sam, a new resident of Magnolia Court, at the beginning and end of the story.

The pace is consistent throughout with no unnecessary padding and each chapter serves a purpose as the layers of the mystery are peeled away.

I had the pleasure of reviewing a previous book in this series ‘The Silver Sting‘ and am delighted that Angela has taken constructive feedback to produce a piece of work of which she can rightly be proud. This story works well with Ahmed in particular being a strong character for the reader to really care about.

Some of the journey towards the conclusion is perhaps a little unlikely but I’m very happy to suspend reality for a feel good read. I commend the author for a well-researched and thoughtfully constructed story and am pleased to award a maximum five stars.