Murder Most Unladylike is a historical detective children's book series by Robin Stevens. It follows Hazel Wong and Daisy Wells as they detect nine murders from September of 1934 to December 1936, in their boarding school and all over the world. The nine books were released from 2014 to 2020 and are accompanied by several short stories that have been collected in two additional books. The first book of a Spinoff series following Hazel's younger sister May, called The Ministry Of Unladylike Activity, was published in 2022.
The series' books are:
- Murder Most Unladylike (2014)
- Arsenic For Tea (2015)
- First Class Murder (2015)
- Jolly Foul Play (2016)
- Mistletoe and Murder (2016)
- A Spoonful of Murder (2018)
- Death in the Spotlight (2018)
- Top Marks for Murder (2019)
- Death Sets Sail (2020)spoilers up to Death in the Spotlight will not be hidden, including the identity of the murderers.
The series provides examples of:
- Affectionate Nickname: Daisy affectionately calls Hazel ‘Watson’.
- Rebecca ‘Beanie’ Martineau is known almost solely by her nickname, and Kitty refers to her as ‘Beans’.
- All Gays Love Theater: Everything Daisy knows about theatre she has learnt from Bertie. And she herself loves acting more than anything.
- Alpha Bitch: Daisy is loved by all the teachers, almost worshipped by all the younger girls, and even the Big Girls respect her. She gets more lovable as time progresses.
- After Daisy and Hazel's travel to Hong Kong is book 6 and their time in London in book 7, her influence on the school has loosened and her place has been taken by newcomer Amina.
- Amateur Sleuth: The entire Wells&Wong Detective Society and their rivals/friends The Junior Pinkertons. Also Kid Detective Although, by the end of book 9, both Daisy and Hazel are working for the Secret services, making them no longer amateurs.
- One of the passengers on board the Orient Express, although he's painfully bad at it.
- Always Murder: the mini-mysteries are about much lesser crimes, but every single one of the main books is about a murder.
- Book 2 starts with the girls investigating Mr Curtis, but later delves into them investigating his death.
- Book 5 should be about two twins playing pranks on each other, but by the end, they have been both been murdered.
- Asshole Victim: Denis Curtis, in book 2, is an embezzling businessman who almost breaks up Lord and Lady Hastings’ marriage
- Badass Teacher: During all of her lessons during book 2 "Miss Alston" is able to capture the kids in a way few teachers can. That may have something to do with her being a secret service agent in disguise tough.
- reinforced by her lessons in book 7. Daisy and Hazel are learning very little about school, but a lot about disguises and codebreaking.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: in book 8, Daisy wishes to be working on a case, but it quickly backfires as the third murder in two years makes people think that the school should probably be closed.
- Big Fancy House: Fallingford and the Wong Compound.
- A Birthday, Not a Break: At Daisy's birthday tea, Mr Curtis gets poisoned with arsenic. She was already investigating, but this doesn't help.
- Bittersweet Ending: Frequently, they untangle a web of lies and scandals in their quest for the truth that leads to those connected to the events destroyed or significantly upset.
- Boarding School: Deepdean. Daisy and Hazel go there and three of the murders take place there.
- Brilliant, but Lazy: played with. Hazel and Daisy fake to be this to get by in the school and stay popular. Borders in Deliberate Under-Performance
- Broken Pedestal: Daisy with her parents, and Hazel with hers
- Closed Circle: in book two the town flooded in, and the police can’t come to the house.
- A Deadly Affair: played with. Mr Curtis did have an affair with Stephen's mother as a way to steal all of their fortunes, and he does have an affair with Lady Hastings, but the affair isn't the motive, the stealing is.
- Deadly Prank: What Michael Butler hoped the death of Chummy and Donald would look like.
- Dirty Cop: Daisy thinks that every single policeman is a clodhopper
- Dramatic Irony: often present when looking back over the series. For example, Hazel being frustrated when Jocelyn winks at herself and Alexander in First Class Murder – ‘I do hate it when grown-ups imagine romance where there isn’t any.’ – only to end up with him six books later.
- Drives Like Crazy: Everyone in Hong Kong, and Hazel likes it very much to the point of considering British driving boring.
- Entitled Bastard: Daisy starts out this way in book one, thankfully she becomes nicer as the story goes on.
- Faking the Dead: After her fall in book 9, Daisy and her Uncle Felix decide it would be better if she faked her death and joined the secret services.
- Extremely Short Timespan: every investigation lasts one-week maximum, and the whole series covers little more than two years.
- Evil Matriarch: Countess Demidovsky, Alexander’s grandmother. Who, surprisingly, isn’t a murderer.
- Family Disunion: The Wells family (and guests) come all together for Daisy's fourteenth birthday. Bertie and Daisy find out their mother is cheating on their father, Aunt Saskia steals pretty much everything she can, Uncle Felix is trying to catch a criminal (the man his sister id cheating with), and then said criminal is killed by Bertie's (boy)friend. Yikes.
- Fauxreigner: It emerges at one point during the first book that "Mam'zelle", the French mistress, is not really French at all but has been posing as a French woman with an exaggerated accent in order to get teaching work.
- First Day from Hell: the rest of the dorm decide to play a prank on newcomer Hazel, and they close her in a trunk. For three hours.
- Forbidden Love: There are several examples of this throughout the series.
- Bertie did not disclose his relationship with Stephen, (later Harold) as men being gay was illegal during the 1930s.
- Something similar happens with Margaret and Astrid in Jolly Foul Play, and Simon in Death in the Spotlight.
- Women being gay was not illegal at this time, however, Daisy and Amina still presumably kept their relationship a secret.
- Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: some of the killers.
- Stephen's whole family has been destroyed by Mr Curtis, doesn't stop him from being arrested or going on trial.
- Mr Thompson-Bates was the first to try to kill her, doesn't excuse Mrs Tomphson-Bates for trying to poison him
- Theodora Miller was not a good mother but Heppy is going to be trial anyway for her murder
- Friend on the Force: Inspector Priestley, by actually believing them and letting them investigate, has become quite a friend to the Detective Society, to the point that Hazel thing of him as "theirs"
- Genre Savvy: Daisy loves reading murder mysteries, and that is what makes her want to investigate. Helpful when the killer has read the same book as her and planned to partially recreate it.
- Grew a Spine: After their experience in Hong Kong, the relationship between Hazel and Daisy is more equal.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: The two main detectives are quite inseparable, to the point that in the two years the series span they don't spend one moment without the other, including when Hazel goes back to Hong Kong to mourn her grandfather. Daisy is not heterosexual though.
- Hereditary Homosexuality: In Book 2, Stephen is revealed to be the boyfriend of Daisy’s brother Bertie. The latter is later in a relationship with Harold Mukherjee after Stephen is arrested for the murder of Mr Curtis. Daisy herself is later revealed to also be gay. Amina El Magrahbi becomes her girlfriend in Death Sets Sail.
- Great Detective: The Detective Society members are not even 16 years old, and they solved at least one murder each. Daisy and Hazel have solved nine.
- Held Gaze: Frequently, Hazel and Alexander made eye contact and Hazel is rendered utterly helpless.Alexander nudged me, and I jumped. 'Are you all right?' he whispered, and my world was suddenly narrowed to the three inches of air between our cheeks.
- Hello Again, Officer: Inspector Priestley, who turns up on many of their cases. By Death In The Spotlight, Priestley is not at all surprised to see them. In Top Marks For Murder, they orchestrate his presence on the scene, as he is no longer a Gloucestershire policeman by then.
- I Work Alone: In the early books Daisy refuses most of the times to let anyone else into the Detective Society, even though they would help them.
- Interpol Special Agent: Uncle Felix Mountfitchet, also known as M, and Lucy Livedon.
- Kid Has a Point: Daisy’s hatred of Mr Curtis turns out to be justified in more ways than one.
- Let Her Grow Up, Dear: Uncle Felix is very keen on keeping Daisy and Hazel from "dangerous things" be that murderers or boys. Aunt Lucy is of the opposite belief for both.'the real problem is,' said Uncle Felix, screwing in his monocle thoughtfully, 'which is more dangerous: men or murder? I can see the case for both, personally. What if we simply send you both to a nunnery?'Aunt Lucy cleared her throat.'I am being denied the nunnery,' said Uncle Felix. 'So. You may see the boys, I suppose, Hazel.'
- Loophole Abuse: Daisy loves poking holes in her uncle’s rules.
- Master of Disguise: During her stay in London, Daisy learns to disguise herself, almost to perfection. Hazel can tell the old lady in front of her is Daisy only by the shoes.
- Minor Crime Reveals Major Plot: Frequently. In book 5, climbing is a crime itself, and important to the wider plot of the murders.
- Moment Killer: Hazel does this to herself in book 9 numerous times to avoid Alexander confessing to her, at once point actually grabbing a book at random, pretending that it interests her and running out the room.
- Mood Whiplash: Hazel is often subjected to this by Daisy, who can fly from being upset to over-the-moon in the span of a second.
- Murder Most X: Murder Most Unladylike. Not only the first book is called that, but the series as a whole has been renamed this.
- Mystery Magnet: Daisy and Hazel, and this is often lampshaded.
- Never Suicide: Verity didn't kill herself, she was killed by Miss Griffin, and that is the reason behind the murders that happen during book 1.
- No Place for a Warrior: After the four cases in six months earlier in the school year, Daisy and Hazel struggle to come back to schoolgirl like in book 8
- Not-So-Fake Prop Weapon: the poison in the Rue Theatre's opening night performance of Romeo and Juliet is exactly that. Poison.
- Odd Friendship: Daisy and Hazel fit this criteria, being that Daisy is an outgoing and conventionally attractive white-blonde girl with status who is revered and adored, while Hazel is rather more shy and considers herself unpretty, and is Chinese and often teased for this.
- Old, Dark House: Fallingford, especially in book two when they are flooded in.
- Only in It for the Money: Hazel's mother in book 6. She only accepted to help kidnap Teddy because of the ransom, which would leave Hazel with no worries about her future.
- Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping: in book one when "Mamzelle" must take the form register instead it's noted that she has somehow forgotten to roll her Rs. It is later revealed that Mamzelle is not French at all and was posing as a French person in order to get teaching work.
- Opposites Attract: Daisy and Hazel can seem like opposites but they share very similar mindsets.
- Alexander and George also fit this criteria, Alexander being often messy and awkward, while George is neat as a pin and never has a hair out of place.
- At the end of book 5, it is revealed that Bertie Wells, who would rather drink and party than attend his lectures, has fallen for the serious and scholarly Harold Mukherjee.
- Out-of-Character Alert: Daisy begins to act out-of-character in book 7, which alerts Hazel to what is later revealed to be Daisy’s crush on Martita Torrera.
- Paparazzi: It is often referenced that the Fallingford case attracted a lot of attention to the Wells family, particularly Bertie Wells.Uncle Felix: Outside are a pack of reporters, just waiting to get our pictures. And we don't need any more of that, not after the Trial last year. Tip your hats down on your head and cover your faces with your free arms.Daisy: Why should I?Uncle Felix: Bertie.
- Parental Favoritism: Although Teddy is not June's biological son, kidnapping him to get a ransom to make sure your Hazel doesn't have to marry for money, definitely qualifies.
- Phoney Call: In Top Marks For Murder, Hazel pretends to be calling her family and instead rings Inspector Priestley with news of the murder.
- Police Are Useless: there might as well not be any, if the only thing they do is bother the Detective Society.
- Promotion to Parent: has anyone seen Lord and Lady Hastings after book 2? Because every time the girls spend time with Daisy's family it's anyone but them, most often Uncle Felix.
- When not even Uncle Felix can make it, it's Inspector Priestly that takes the role
- Rank Up: Inspector Priestly, unfortunately, profits from the Fallingford case and is promoted to a London inspector – a fact which Daisy is furious about.
- Sarcasm-Blind: Inspector Priestly jokingly calls Daisy Madam Super and jokes often about their involvement in the case. Daisy does not understand it, ever.Priestley: There's a line in my official report that reads, Acting on a tip-off from schoolgirl detectives Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong, I arrested Stephen Bampton and solved the caseDaisy: Really?Hazel: Not really. It's a joke
- Secretly Selfish: Although by solving cases they help people, it's clear that the detectives are in it mainly for the thrill of the enigma.
- Security Cling: Both Daisy and Hazel and Alexander and George cling onto each other when either excited or faced with a horrific crime.
- Serial Killer: Miss Griffin from Murder Most Unladylike kills three people.
- Shout-Out – Plenty of references are made to Agatha Christie. Daisy even goes as far as reading Murder on the Orient Express while on the very same train.
- Slave to PR: Pretty much everyone in book 4, especially the prefects.
- Smitten Teenage Girl: Daisy is sure Martita can't have done it in book 6, but that's her crush talking.
- Soap Opera Disease: What does Beanie's mother suffer from? We don't know, but she's ill and unable to attend parent night. She's even sicker in book 9.
- Summation Gathering: Although they are not always done by the Detective Society, they happen often.
- Sympathetic Murderer: Several of the murderers in the series are initially likeable characters: book two's Stephen and book nine's Heppy are good examples.
- Teens Are Monsters: The entirety of book 4 is built around that, from the teen killer and teen victim to the teen secret spreader.
- The book 2 killer, Stephen, was in his last year of high school.
- Thriller on the Express: Hazel's father takes them on a vacation on the Orient Express, the year later a famous book is published. What did you think was going to happen?
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: Daisy and Hazel, to an extent.
- Twisted Christmas: Although the whole situation is done by Christmas day, book 5 takes place during the 1935 Christmas holidays. This includes mistletoe spiked drinks, an almost drowning and two murders.
- Between a cult, a murder, May almost dying and Daisy faking her death, the 1936 Christmas Holidays are not any better.
- We Used to Be Friends: Minor example, but Kitty was friends with Clementine when they first got to Deedean, somehow.
- Why We Can't Have Nice Things: If you're a detective, don't ever go on vacation. People will die and your vacation will be ruined.
- Who Murdered the Asshole: The victim from book two turns out to have been a cheater and scoundrel who had a string of people who wanted him dead for entirely understandable reasons.
- book four's Elizabeth was not nice, and not even her closest friends actually liked her: they only were near her because of the secrets she held.
- Will They or Won't They?: Hazel and Alexander.
