Review
THE SECLUDED VILLAGE MURDERS
By Shelly Frome
Emily Ryder is feeling the pressure. She's preparing to take three
elderly squabbling siblings across the pond for a village fete. It's not
just any fete either. Lydfield-in-the-Moor in England is the twin city
of Lydfield, Connecticut and the fete is celebrating the twinning of the two towns. In
addition to preparing for this cross Atlantic tour, Emily is keeping an
eye on her mother's B&B. It's not easy keeping her excitable mother
calm when things are fishy in Lydfield. A shady developer is making
veiled threats and her mentor Chris has fallen from a roof under
mysterious circumstances. Although the state trooper sees merely an
accident, handyman Will sees murder. Will Emily be able to handle the
situation long distance? Or will the trouble follow her?
THE SECLUDED VILLAGE MURDERS is a traditional mystery with a transatlantic twist. There are actually two villages here. The story starts in Connecticut, then spends time in England before returning to Connecticut. While Emily Ryder is rushed, the story certainly is not. There's a slow meandering pace and I often wondered if I had missed something as situations and reasonings seemed to come from nowhere.
Filled with rich descriptions and vivid detail, I enjoyed the mystery and appreciated the red herrings, yet I never felt a kinship with the characters. It seemed like everyone had a story that I wasn't made privy to, aside from Oscar-who I love. As I was reaching the conclusion, I found that I just didn't care.
THE SECLUDED VILLAGE MURDERS provides an interesting mystery and delivers an intriguing possibility for future adventures with these characters.
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THE SECLUDED VILLAGE MURDERS is a traditional mystery with a transatlantic twist. There are actually two villages here. The story starts in Connecticut, then spends time in England before returning to Connecticut. While Emily Ryder is rushed, the story certainly is not. There's a slow meandering pace and I often wondered if I had missed something as situations and reasonings seemed to come from nowhere.
Filled with rich descriptions and vivid detail, I enjoyed the mystery and appreciated the red herrings, yet I never felt a kinship with the characters. It seemed like everyone had a story that I wasn't made privy to, aside from Oscar-who I love. As I was reaching the conclusion, I found that I just didn't care.
THE SECLUDED VILLAGE MURDERS provides an interesting mystery and delivers an intriguing possibility for future adventures with these characters.
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The Secluded Village Murders
by Shelly Frome
on Tour November 1-15, 2018
Synopsis:
As Emily heads across the pond for a prescheduled tour of Lydfield's sister village, Lydfield-in-the-Moor, she discovers that the murderer may be closer than she thought.
Book Details:
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Published by: BQB Publishing
Publication Date: September 1st 2018
Number of Pages: 339
ISBN: 1945448202 (ISBN13: 9781945448201)
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads
Read an excerpt:
Picking up speed, she passed the rows of Victorian houses with their pilastered front porches and attached shutters in homage to last century’s Colonial Revival. She’d grown up here, always lived here except for college and her transatlantic jaunts. But at this moment, her village might as well be a scattering of old photos.
Before she knew it, the rain was beating down harder, her wiper blades barely able to keep up. Among the nagging questions flitting through her mind was how could Miranda Shaw have suddenly gotten wind of her leaking roof? Or did somebody just put her up to it, to get Chris rushing pell- mell in the rain so he would...
Emily eased her foot off the pedal, barely able to see through the downpour. She switched the wipers on high and kept her eyes on the road, intent on avoiding an accident.
Minutes later, she pulled into Miranda Shaw’s place at a slow but steady crawl. As she reached the circular drive, straining her eyes through the thwacking blades, she peered up two stories above the stone archway.
There she caught sight of the familiar gangly figure climbing higher toward the peak of an eight-sided turret. At a point where the grayish-blue slate, copper flashing, and a mullioned window merged, the figure suddenly became a shuddering blur.
Emily honked her horn, blasting as loud as she could. But it was too late. The figure flopped over and slid down the turret, glanced off the aluminum ladder and toppled like a broken doll.
***
Excerpt from The Secluded Village Murders by Shelly Frome. Copyright © 2018 by Shelly Frome. Reproduced with permission from Shelly Frome. All rights reserved.
Before she knew it, the rain was beating down harder, her wiper blades barely able to keep up. Among the nagging questions flitting through her mind was how could Miranda Shaw have suddenly gotten wind of her leaking roof? Or did somebody just put her up to it, to get Chris rushing pell- mell in the rain so he would...
Emily eased her foot off the pedal, barely able to see through the downpour. She switched the wipers on high and kept her eyes on the road, intent on avoiding an accident.
Minutes later, she pulled into Miranda Shaw’s place at a slow but steady crawl. As she reached the circular drive, straining her eyes through the thwacking blades, she peered up two stories above the stone archway.
There she caught sight of the familiar gangly figure climbing higher toward the peak of an eight-sided turret. At a point where the grayish-blue slate, copper flashing, and a mullioned window merged, the figure suddenly became a shuddering blur.
Emily honked her horn, blasting as loud as she could. But it was too late. The figure flopped over and slid down the turret, glanced off the aluminum ladder and toppled like a broken doll.
***
Excerpt from The Secluded Village Murders by Shelly Frome. Copyright © 2018 by Shelly Frome. Reproduced with permission from Shelly Frome. All rights reserved.
Author Bio:
This sounds intriguing.
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