Landmarks the book covered a lot of land marks. Penny spent most of her time painting and maybe folding a towel or two. I just couldn't get into this book

This is, unfortunately, in in the "against" column for cozy mysteries. It wasn't horrible. But for a three-hundred-page cozy, it was one heck of a slog, and seemed to take me forever.

One of the most important things in a cozy is the cast of characters, and … the characters in this book did nothing for me. I actually found most of them mildly off-putting. Main character Penny was strangely amorphous, never leaving any kind of strong impression on me at all. She's an artist, of enough impact that when she offers a set of paintings for a fund-raising auction they are happily accepted, and they set off a bidding war – but that's not what she <I>does</i>. (One highlight I made: "My paintings will never do it justice. It’s got something that’s impossible to capture." Not if you're a decent artist, it doesn't.) Her income apparently derives from a spa of sorts she and a friend own and operate – though it sounds more like simply a hair and nail salon than a spa, unless I wasn't paying enough attention (absolutely possible – there was much skimming involved in finishing this book). (This could have been revealed better, for someone who hasn't read – and won't read – the preceding seven books: it took some figuring to realize her position – I had assumed she painted for a living. It's a challenge, providing exposition in a series that will orientate the newbie while not boring the regular reader – and the author failed, I think.) The fact that at one point Penny needs to literally count on her fingers to figure out a date just made me sad.

And then, of course, as another sideline Penny investigates mysteries, for which her partner at one point gives her the sort of talking-to I would expect from a mother to a naughty child, not one middle-aged business partner to another, ticking her off for taking time away from the business to investigate a murder. And yet a little while later she had a complete reversal, and not only encouraged Penny to take a day off to go investigate but volunteers to go with her.

Her one-time (almost?) lover Gareth, now a retired DCI who is having trouble entirely letting go of the job, is also having trouble adjusting to the friendzone Penny has put him in. It was extraordinarily awkward to read about these two people who love spending time with each other, do all sorts of things together, rely on each other in every way, and then kind of clumsily fumble through do-I-kiss-you-or-what-I'll-just-leave-now moments. This might be a good one for my "Just TALK TO EACH OTHER" shelf. They do, talk that is, a little – but it's all … well, stupid. My notes on the Kindle featured such things as "A MAN HAS NEEDS, PENNY"… And then, a few pages later, "NEEDS, I TELL YOU." All caps and everything. When I take the trouble to go all caps and put in the comma on a Kindle note, you know I'm serious. ("'Still, I thought he was devoted to me, and I didn’t really expect this.'" My God, woman.)

Det. Inspector Bethan Morgan, who took Gareth's job when he retired, was another yo-yo character. She absolutely did not want Gareth's help with the investigation, nor Penny's – despite the fact that the latter found the body … until she absolutely did want their help, and then she all but turned the case over to them. It was completely unconvincing.

I felt that the writing was strangely uncertain for something that is the eighth book in a series; it seemed to me like some sections were feeling their way toward where they needed to go. Sentences were badly constructed, commas popped up where they shouldn't and failed to appear where they should, and – oh, look, there's Captain Obvious. "…A rusty red blur emerged from the dense woodland behind the castle. It moved with a swift, agile gait, carrying its bushy whitetipped tail horizontal to the ground, as it headed in the direction of the stable yard. A fox, she thought with delight." And here I thought it might be a wildebeest. That's actually kind of typical. The author doesn't seem to trust her readers much, and I found it annoying to be taken by the hand and led through situations baby step by baby step. I don't know if this is an issue of the uncertainty I mentioned, or an inability to write decent exposition, or that desire to make absolutely, completely, and utterly sure that the picture in the reader's head is exactly the same as the picture in the author's. Maybe it's all of the above. It doesn't make for a fun read.

Or maybe it's just sloppy writing. Like this: "… passed round sandwiches, cheese, and biscuits from the cooler.
'Have we got any biscuits?' 'We do,' said Penny, holding out a packet." That would be those things that were just passed around with the sandwiches and cheese. Oh, and "'I’d hate for this paint to fall into the wrong hands.' 'No, I’m sure you wouldn’t,' said Penny" … Um. That doesn't mean what you meant it to mean.

When one young man appears on the scene, his introduction is … well, not to put too fine a point on it, it's a failure. The initial description is perfectly ordinary. And then suddenly in the midst of talking to our heroes he shuts down and demonstrates behavior that makes it obvious that he is mentally and/or emotionally handicapped – but it was so out of the blue that I was completely knocked out of the story. It's later made clear that this character's challenges are obvious to anyone who meets him, but the only indicator the reader is given is that he stumbles over a long-ish word in one of the first bits of dialogue he's given.

As soon as I read that Gareth was being sent in to clean the debris out of a fireplace in the mansion where he's volunteering, I had a horrible feeling that some priceless piece of evidence would be found stuffed up the chimney. And so it was. That's much the way the whole mystery is solved – through "why, look what I have found!" and coincidence, and a fourth-hand account of something that happened (*counts on fingers*) ninety years ago, of which they have no real proof.

The setting is something else that should be very strong in a cozy – I mean, these things are pretty much the point in this subgenre, aren't they? But apart from names like "Eirlys" and "Bethan" and "Gwrych", and a smattering of Welsh … this could be picked up and set down in any English country village without disturbing a stick or stone of the story. Which is not, of course, to say that I wanted everyone's speech written out to reflect the dialect, or for anyone to burst into Welsh more often than happened – but there had to be a reason the series was set in Wales, no? I'd have liked to have seen it.

Something that could be considered very much a cozy mystery "thing" – and which became really tiresome before long – was the fact that just about every passage – not every chapter, every passage – seemed to begin with, end with, or otherwise feature food. I may not know much about these characters, but I sure know what they ate.

Finally, I was just deeply annoyed by what was a clever pun the first time I saw it, over five years ago, but … really, "Game of Thorns" has been done.

No – one more thing. I wonder what the connection is between Elizabeth J. Duncan and Jeanne Dams, author of the Dorothy Martin mysteries – because Dorothy and her husband Gareth make a really odd and rather pointless-seeming cameo appearance in this book. It was weird.

The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.

Murder is for Keeps by Elizabeth J. Duncan is the eighth book in A Penny Brannigan Mystery series. Penny Brannigan is sketching at Gwrych Castle in Llanelen, North Wales. She is working on a series of painting for an upcoming auction to raise funds to help restore Gwrych Castle and the grounds. Penny is preparing to leave for the day when she notices a flash of red. Penny follows the trail into the old kennels where she finds a body. The victim turns out to be John Hardwick, a landscape architect, who was volunteering at the castle. The next day Penny is at The Llanelen Spa that she co-owns with Victoria Hopkirk, when she is approached by Christina Hardwick, John’s wife. Christina has heard of Penny’s reputation as an amateur sleuth and would like to hire Penny to investigate John’s death. Penny with the help of recently retired, Gareth Davies (former Detective Chief Inspector) starts asking questions. Gareth can provide some background details on the castle. His grandmother, Annie worked at the castle as a seamstress, and he has a box of photos and a beautiful needlepoint. When they return to the castle they meet Lane Hardwick, the victim’s son. Not long after speaking with Lane, he disappears. Then another body is found in the gardens at Gwrych Castle. This victim has been dead for over ninety years. Penny discovers that the castle has a colorful history and looking into the past will help solve the mystery of John’s death. Join Penny on her latest sleuthing adventure in Murder is For Keeps.

I thought Murder is for Keeps to be nicely written. It has a good pace and can be finished in a couple of hours. The location is unique, and I appreciated the pleasing descriptions of the area. I do wish the author would provide a pronunciation guide (for people’s names and locations). Murder is for Keeps may be the eighth book in the series, but it can be read alone. The author provides the necessary background details on Penny. I like the character of Penny Brannigan and her friends. I give Murder is for Keeps 3.5 out of 5 stars. The various mystery components are interesting, and I like how the author tied them together. I just wish, though, that the identity of the killer had not been so transparent (nor the location of the missing marble staircase). Murder is for Keeps is a cozy mystery that I believe many readers will enjoy. It has just the right blend of mystery and cozy (with a subtle romance element).

Penny Brannigan is just spending a quiet afternoon painting at the local castle ruin. She follows a fox to what used to be a dog pen and discovers a dead body. It is the body of one of the local volunteers working to restore the castle to it's former beauty.
There are secrets to be discovered about the castle, both old and new. Penny's friend, retired policeman, Gareth is also drawn into the mystery when it turns out his grandmother was connected to a murder at the castle in the 1920s.
The mystery was a little hard to follow. I do appreciate that Ms. Duncan doesn't make Penny fall into the all-too-familiar trap of having a love triangle. It is always resolved by the end of the book.

Three and a half stars
This book comes out April 11

The initial description for Murder is for Keeps caught my eye as I enjoy reading murder mysteries set in different parts of Great Britain (in this case, Wales). However, having not read any of the Penny Brannigan series previously, this book didn't quite resonate with me as much as it may with a long-time reader of the series. It just didn't click for me as a reader. That said, I imagine that any reader who has gone on an adventure or two with Duncan's Penny Brannigan would enjoy this addition to the series.

I received an e-ARC of this novel through NetGalley and St. Martin's Press Minotaur Books. Thank you.

This number eight Penny Brannigan cozy mystery was a solid 3.5 star read for me. It was my first time to read the series and I was impressed with the good writing and plotting I found here. There were just enough location and character names to firmly establish the action taking place in Wales. The clues were well concealed within the story and I did not have the solution completely figured out until it was revealed by the author. While the manner of death was not unusual, the length of time it took to establish that the victim had even been murdered was very well done because of how that death was accomplished. I also liked the way the author established the relationship between Penny and recently retired Detective Chief Inspector Gareth Davies. Taken all together, this was a very pleasant reading experience which I enjoyed.

Penny Brannigan has been spending the lovely Welsh summer painting the exterior of Gwrych Castle. The once imposing manor house has been in a serious state of decay for decades, but now, local Mark Baker has gathered a team of volunteers to restore the beautiful grounds and gardens. Unfortunately, many hands do not make light work as the volunteers often disagree how tasks should be completed. Still, everyone is shocked when one of the more vocal volunteers, one who gave Mark grief all the time, is found dead. Suspicion immediately falls on Baker, but Penny believes he’s innocent and enlists the help of recently retired police officer Gareth Davies to help in her unofficial investigation. When Penny is asked for her professional options about some paintings in the manor house, she’s shocked to see why she believs could be a clue to her current murder mystery in a painting from the 1920s. This is an enjoyable cozy mystery, if you can overlook the author’s tendency to use a few too many adjectives