Death at Victoria Dock: A Phryne Fisher Mystery by Kerry Greenwood

I have said before and I’ll say it again, I want to be Phryne Fisher, but I will have to settle for reading the amazing adventures.  With her two adopted daughters home on break from school they help her on a missing person case while she gets help from Cec and Bert on finding out who murdered a young cute man and shot at her.  The entire gang is involved in solving these two cases, which means you learn more about the characters and grow even more attached to the cast of characters that float around the Fisher household.

Character List/Book Summary:
Phryne = finds a dead man on the docks on her way home, help Hugh with how to solve the murder, has a new notebook for each case she takes on, doesn’t like it when young cute men die, likes it even less when her car is hurt in the process

Dot = thinks Phryne should get help from Cec and Bert on finding the murders, like Hugh Collins, gets scared after being shot at and is kidnapped, uses what she has learned from Miss Fisher while she is kidnapped and is certain that Phryne will come and save her

Mrs. Butler = always has food ready, taken an interest in Ruthie

Mr. Butler = drives Phryne and Dot around, enjoys driving Phryne’s car

Cec & Bert = agree to help Phryne find the murders and guard the girls after her life is threatened, trust that she will come home with Dot and the other kidnapped woman at the end of the book

Jane = Phryne’s adopted daughter, wants to be a doctor, helps Phryne with her investigation during a break from school, by inviting friends over and getting information from them

Ruthie = Phryne’s adopted daughter, wants to be a cook, helps Phryne with her investigation during a break from school, by inviting friends over and getting information from them, thinks of inviting Estelle over for information about the missing girl’s brother

Hugh Collins = Constable that is looking after Phryne, wants to be a detective, Catholic, asks Dot to help be his cover, likes Dot, helps Phryne find Dot after she is kidnapped, uses his skills as a police officer to be a distraction for Phryne’s rescue mission and helps prevent the kidnappers from chasing after them

Mr. Waddington-Forsythe = daughter has been missing for three days, asks Phryne to find her, his daughter is Alicia

Alicia May Waddington Forsythe = doesn’t like who her father remarried, has a secret about her brother, wants to be a nun, found out people’s secrets and then blackmailed them

Christine = Mr. Waddington-Forsythe’s new wife

Paul = Alicia’s twin, in love with his step-mother, almost makes a move on Phryne

Vera and Joseph Wilson = friends of Phryne that are politically connected to revolutionaries

Peter Smith = Phryne doesn’t believe that is his real name, gives Phryne information about the murder

Mother Theresa = head of the house for the Anglican Sisterhood, helps Phryne rescue Alicia from an aslyum

Mary Tachell = Alicia’s best friend, Ruth & Jane invite her over for tea to help get information for Phryne’s investigation

Jean Vassileva = psychic, Phryne pays her not to recognize Phryne at the show

Little Billy Ferguson = associate and hired killer for several gangs, helps Bert and Cec so they stop asking questions, thinks the criminals that killed the man give criminals a bad name

Estelle Underwood = Ruthie invites her over for tea so that she will bring her brother who goes to school with Paul, Jane and Ruthie gather information about Paul and his step-mother from Estelle and her brother.