Jane Bettany

Detective Isobel Blood's team is a group of believable detectives...no superheroes...no "Kojak Wanna-Be's"...just hard-working people doing a sometimes thankless job. Isabel herself is smart and capable, and fair, but also has issues in her personal life to deal with, like her adult son, Bailey. This is an intriguing, well-written, well-plotted story that is rich with secrets, and surprises. Overall an enjoyable read. If you are a fan of Ann Cleave's Vera series or her Shetland Island show more series, which I am...you will more than likely like Isabelle and her team. show less

Murder at the Book Festival is the second in the series featuring Violet Brewster, the owner of the Memory Box. The local business community is involved in setting up their first Book Festival and are thrilled that local girl turned big-time author, Leonie Stanwick, is returning to be the star guest. But there are secrets all around, and Violet will have to dig into them to keep everyone safe.

What I enjoyed most about this is the village setting; everyone is nosy, but they will all pull show more together to put on a festival. I also found the business set up to record people’s memories is interesting as a real idea as well as a good way to reveal secrets in a mystery. It’s a different cozy occupation than the usual baker or yarn shop owner.

What I had more difficulty with was why Violet was so intent on solving the murder. Usually, the MC is related to someone who has been accused or have themselves been looked at as the murderer. There just wasn’t really any compelling reason for her to be involved, although I do give her credit for letting the police know what she was doing.

Some of the characters could use a little more fleshing out, particularly the love interest. However, Leonie turned out to be more layered and interesting; she was pretty sassy, in fact.

All in all, this is a good, quick cozy read. show less

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

This opened really strongly with Lauren wondering why her friend Anna hasn't come to pick up the son she has been baby-sitting for her. It was a solid police procedural, with a good balance of focus on the case and the personal lives of the police officers. I haven't read the first two instalments in this series, but it read like a stand alone book. There was a point in which the focus on DNA evidence got a bit confusing, but I show more thought the solution was satisfactory and despite the odd loose end (who was Anna on the phone to when Fenella entered her office?) I would recommend this novel and would read others by this author. show less

D.I. Isabel Blood has been rocked by the events that occurred at her childhood home and the ensuing secrets that were revealed about her family and the disappearance of her father. But life goes on and D.I. Blood is thrown into another high profile case when a new home owner discovers a dead body in her bed.

This wasn't quite as good as the first book. The easy if slightly awkward dynamic the team had the first book was no where to be found in this one. Instead, they took turns sniping at one show more another and didn't really seem to like each other at all. It made it rather discomforting to read. On the other hand, I loved the twists and turns of Isabel's personal life. After the discovery that her father is still alive and has a whole other family! I was expecting there to be no more drama but I would be very wrong. The dynamics between Isabel, her family, the father and the son, Fabien had me hooked and just when I thought I had a handle on it, it's revealed the father can't stop the lies. He hasn't told Fabien about his bigamy, he hasn't told Isabel that he wanted to stay at the hotel or that he organised for Fabien to come along. I'm not sure the man knows how to tell the truth.

In regards to the case, this was okay - generally a fairly average crime mystery. I picked some of it and missed other bits but I was surprised by the ending. I figured that the mum was raped and I picked the sister as being involved. I hadn't figured out that Kevin wasn't the father but the uncle. That one came as a bit of a shock, it hadn't even crossed my mind. I found the inclusion of Evelyn a bit weird though. Murdering someone you only know briefly - even if they were kindred spirits - seemed a bit farfetched. Especially when she only finds out that her friend was raped from the sister and not from the friend herself. I did find it a bit annoying that every one who was being questioned kept getting angry at the cops. I mean, they were doing their job. It's probably realistic, but it's annoying to read about.

So not quite as good as the first one but it was an alright read, mainly saved by the personal life of Isabel. (Her family life really is fascinating). 2.5 stars, rounded to 3 stars. show less