Murder at the House on the Hill is the first book in the new Dedley End Mystery series by Victoria Walters and features a mystery-solving granddaughter-grandmother duo in a quiet Cotswold village.
Title: Murder at the House on the Hill
Author: Victoria Walters
Series: A Dedley End Mystery #1
First Published: September 23, 2021
Publisher: Hera Books
Genres: Mystery,
Acquired: Rachel’s Random Resources
*** Thank you to book tour organiser, Rachel’s Random Resources, and the author, Victoria Walters, for providing me with an advanced e-copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. ***
Once Upon A Crime…
Nancy Hunter and her grandmother Jane Hunter run the Dedley Endings Bookshop, selling crime, thriller and mystery books, in a small, quiet Cotswold village where nothing ever happens…
That is, until the wealthy and reclusive Roth family open up their mansion for the first time in twenty years, inviting the people of Dedley End to a lavish engagement party.
While everyone is thrilled to finally look around the mansion on the hill, the festivities are quickly cut short when beautiful Lucy, recently married to young Harry Roth, is found dead after being pushed over the first-floor balustrade.
But who among the guests could have been capable of her murder – and why?
Nancy and Jane decide to investigate – after all, not only do they own a crime themed bookshop, they were also both named after famous literary detectives – but soon wonder if they’ve taken on more than they can handle. Especially when it seems the killer has worked out that they’re hot on their heels…
Can they catch the murderer before the murderer catches up with them? Or will there be a deadly ending to this story?
Join the unlikeliest detective duo for the killer opener of The Dedley End Mysteries series, by a major voice in women’s fiction.
A fantastic start to a new cozy mystery series
How can I not dive right into a cozy mystery where the protagonist was named after Nancy Drew? Plus, Nancy is the owner of a book store that specialises in mystery, crime and thriller books, which is, honestly, right up my alley!
The village of Dedley End, where the book is set, seems like your typical cozy mystery-type village. I love the sense of whimsy in the name: “If you lived in Dedley End, you had to embrace the murder puns or lose your sense of humour completely.” So it’s no surprise that Nancy’s bookshop (which her father had started) was named The Dedley Endings Bookshop.
What makes this story stand out for me is the unique mystery solving duo that is Nancy and Jane, a granddaughter-grandmother team. This dynamic worked really well and their age differences added different viewpoints to the story.
I also like the combination of Nancy and her childhood friend Jonathan Murphy. I say friend, but there are hints that the friendship will move into something more romantic in the future (I’m looking forward to it!). Together, Nancy, Jane and Jonathan have different ways of looking at the murder and it makes for a very entertaining story.
The characters, along with the village, come alive in throughout the course of the story and I felt very much invested in finding out what happened! While I thought I had figured things out, it did take a while for me to come to the right conclusion and it was still very entertaining to watch everything play out.
A well-paced mystery, I felt like all the small details and clues that were scattered throughout the book came together very neatly at the end. There’s a bit of a mystery wrapped in another mystery to this story and I think that it all added to my enjoyment.
While the main mysteries were solved by the end of the book, there are clues that there’s still more to come regarding Nancy’s background, plus an epilogue with hints of another mystery brewing. I think we’re just seeing the start of the investigations for Nancy, Jane and Jonathan and I, for one, can’t wait!
About the Author
Victoria Walters writes up-lifting and inspiring stories. She’s the author of the bestselling Glendale Hall series, which continues with its third book Hopeful Hearts at Glendale Hall in September, as well as two other standalone novels – Summer at the Kindness Cafe and The Second Love ofMy Life. She has been chosen for WHSmith Fresh Talent and shortlisted for two RNA awards. Victoria was also picked as an Amazon Rising Star, and her books have won wide reader acclaim.
Victoria is a full-time author. She lives in Surrey with her cat Harry, and loves books, clothes, music, going out for tea and cake, and posting photos on Instagram.
Find out more about Victoria by following on Instagram at @vickyjwalters, on Twitter at @Vicky_Walters or by visiting her blog at: https://victoria-writes.com/.
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