Feb 6, 2025

Murder in the Scottish Highlands by Dee MacDonald

Hello my cozy friends,

Today I am reviewing "Murder in the Scottish Highlands” the first instalment in 
An Ally McKinley Mystery series by Dee MacDonald set in the in the quaint village of Loccharran.  What a great start to a new series.
Join Ally McKinley at her cosy little guesthouse in the Scottish Highlands for whisky by the fire, beautiful mountain views and… a murder to solve?


For recently retired Ally McKinley, the tiny village of Locharran is the perfect place to open the guesthouse of her dreams in a lovingly restored old Scottish malthouse. Before long she is making friends with the locals, including Hamish Sinclair, the earl who owns the nearby castle. But things take an unexpected turn when her first paying guest, American tourist Wilbur Carrington, is found sprawled across her cobblestoned courtyard with a dagger in his back…

With the police baffled, Ally’s instincts get the better of her, and she can’t resist launching her own investigation. In no time at all she and her Labrador puppy Flora are on the case, making enquiries over tea and excellent shortbread. She finds that Wilbur, a keen amateur genealogist, was convinced that he was the rightful Earl of Locharran… Even worse, he had plans that would put many people out of their jobs and even their homes.

But which of the locals resorted to murder? The hotel owner furiously trying to save his business? Locharran Castle’s fiercely loyal housekeeper who’d do anything for the earl? Or the earl himself, whose entire way of life was threatened by what Wilbur knew?

Looking for clues, Ally finds a faded photograph in a hidden drawer in Wilbur’s room. Could this be the key to solving the mystery? But when one of her suspects dies in a suspicious accident, Ally realizes that things are getting a wee bit too close for comfort… Can she uncover the truth or will a killer get off scot-free?

An utterly unputdownable new Scottish cosy mystery series from bestselling author Dee MacDonald. Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Faith Martin and Clare Chase.
Author Dee MacDonald is a new to me but I had heard this was a good cozy mystery.   This story follows Ally McKinley, a retired widow who's renovated a historic malt house into a charming bed and breakfast in the quaint village of Loccharran.

When one of Ally's guests is found murdered, she becomes entangled in a complex investigation. The victim, an American claiming to be the true Earl of Loccharran, had planned to build an amusement park on his "inherited" land, sparking tensions among the villagers. As Ally works to help solve the mystery, she must navigate a web of suspects, each with secrets and motives.

While this book had a lot of characters to keep track of, I had no trouble following along, I enjoyed Dee MacDonald's writing style and the charming Scottish Highlands setting. This was a quick, engaging read, and I'm looking forward to seeing how the series develops.

Recommended for fans of cozy mysteries, Scottish settings, and amateur sleuths
⭐️⭐️⭐️
All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you for stopping by and visiting my little blog!
I always love reading comments and getting to know my fellow cozy lovers.

Hugs,

Feb 3, 2025

The Widows' Guide to Murder by Amanda Ashby

Hello my cozy friends,

Today I am reviewing "The Widows' Guide to Murder” the first instalment in 
The Widows’ Detective Club Mystery series by Amanda Ashby set in the Village of Little Shaw, England.  What a great start to a new series.

Ginny Cole doesn’t want to be a widow. She’d rather not be forcibly adopted by an opinionated black cat. And she’d give anything not to have just found the murdered body of her rude and dislikeable new boss…

So she’s as surprised as anyone to realise that she doesn’t hate being on the wrong side of the law, searching a graveyard for evidence in the company of three fellow widows, and doing a whole host of un-Ginny-like things in order to solve a fiendish mystery.

It was a bumpy start, but Ginny might even be starting to like her new life. Certainly well enough that when her sleuthing puts her too close for the killer’s comfort, she’ll do whatever it takes to hold onto it…

If you love Sarah Yarwood-Lovett, Robert Thorogood and The Thursday Murder Club mysteries, you’ll adore this charming cozy mystery full of page-turning twists and endearing characters.

This is a new to me author and I will definitely be reading more from her.   I love the story and the I enjoyed the bond between the four widows, they were witty, and authentic.   I liked the quirky characters and the sense of community. 

The mystery is interesting and well plotted, and had plenty of twists to keep engaged right to the very end. I kept guessing and second-guessing myself but I was right on who the killer was.

Overall, this book is a must-read for fans of cozy mysteries and heartwarming fiction. Amanda’s writing is engaging, and her characters are lovable and well-crafted. I highly recommend this charming novel and look forward to the next instalment.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I requested and received an advance readers copy from NetGalley and the publisher.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you for stopping by and visiting my little blog!
I always love reading comments and getting to know my fellow cozy lovers.

Hugs,

Feb 1, 2025

Not Quite by the Book A Novel by Julie Hatcher

Hello my book friends,

Today I am reviewing Not Quite by the Book A Novel by Julie Hatcher. Julie is already one of my favourite authors in cozy mysteries but now also in this genre and per usual I was not disappointed. 

A bookstore owner discovers that life as a recluse isn’t for everyone in this sharp yet sweet novel about how sometimes you need to abandon the quest for love to find your true passion.

Emma Rini is in a rut so deep she could shelve books there. While her sister awaits her first baby, and her parents kick off retirement with vow renewals and travel, Emma stays put among the stacks of the family bookshop.

In fact, she can’t remember the last time she took a vacation. Or had a romance that hovered above disappointing. When her parents assume she’ll take over the shop for them without a break, she realizes she needs to get away—back to the nineteenth century. Channeling her favorite poet recluse, Emily Dickinson, Emma rents a crumbling manor house outside Amherst where she can learn how to be quietly, blissfully alone.

But becoming a world-weary spinster isn’t easy. She can’t start a fire or reason with the bunnies that are destroying the garden. She finds herself sparring constantly with the grumpy-hot architect who is renovating the manor. And then there’s the secret admirer who keeps sending her complicated floral messages…

No matter what she does, the outside world keeps knocking, and Emma starts to dream about the future. Will she forgo love for the family legacy? And will she shrink away or become the sort of bold person fortune favors?


I have loved every book that Julie has written and it seemed like a natural for her to write this book. She is wonderful at making us care about the characters and feel their emotions, I didn’t want the story to end. I want to know what happened next , maybe continue but have Cecily be the main character ….

I look forward to reading all Julie’s future novels and highly recommend to all my book loving friends.

I requested and received an advance reader’s copy from NetGalley and the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own and in no way have been influenced.

Thank you for stopping by and visiting my little blog!
I always love reading comments and getting to know my fellow cozy lovers.

Hugs,

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Murder in the Scottish Highlands by Dee MacDonald

Hello my cozy friends, Today I am reviewing "Murder in the Scottish Highlands” the first instalment in  An Ally McKinley Mystery  serie...