Previously published as Copycat in 1999, Death at Beacon Cottage is the third book to feature police photographer and SOCO Sukey Reynolds. The calm and serenity of the Cotswolds is broken by a bunch of daring break-ins resulting in the theft of many valuable artworks. The police believe they have captured the culprit, but whilst in custody, the possible thief apparently recognises Sukey and tries to communicate with her much to the confusion of both her and the rest of the police that are present. Not only does Sukey not recognise the person in custody but she has just come face to face with her doppelganger. From that moment on Sukey feels she has a stalker and when bodies start dropping left, right and centre everyone is mystified. Can they catch this cruel killer before he kills again?

I enjoyed this instalment immensely as the stakes are a lot higher than in previous books due to the involvement of a brutal international criminal gang. Also, Sukey is front and centre rather than just being on the periphery as in past episodes. It is a well written, thrilling and very compelling read and fraught with danger for Sukey and her close-knit family. It's a complex and multi-layered plot as I have come to expect from Ms Rowland's and the pace is quick and keeps you turning the pages. Each instalment can be read independently without issue, and whilst I was totally engrossed in the interesting going-ons I did find the conclusion a little rushed. That said, it certainly wasn't a major problem for me as the rest of the book is perfect and makes for compulsive reading. Many thanks to Bookouture for an ARC.

I am really enjoying this cozy series featuring Sukey Reynolds, a mom and police photographer. This time, she is put in danger through a case of mistaken identity. I am glad Sukey is finally in the middle of events, since she is the title character. Although if it happened in real life I would be highly concerned, I also really enjoy her involving her son in the sorting through of information. It helps highlight the solid, though somewhat unrealistic, relationship they have. I'm looking forward to continuing my way through the series.

This was an interesting entry in Betty Rowlands' Sukey Reynolds mystery series involving international criminals. As is the case with previous books in this series, reoccuring characters and a great plot make for good read.

Another great cosy murder mystery from Betty Rowlands, involving Sukey Reynolds, crime scene photographer and would be detective this time she finds herself mixed up in a case of antique thefts and mistaken identity. Perfect Sunday reading.

Sukey Reynolds wanted to be a detective but then she married and spent some years raising her son. Now she works as a Scene of Crimes Officer for the local police and keeps her hand in the force, especially since she's dating DI Jim Castle. When she's called to the scene of a recent burglary, she gets caught up in the investigation of a series of art thefts that have also led to murder. The complicated case gets personal when one of the suspects thinks he knows who she is and calls her by the name, Pepita. NO SPOILERS.

I really enjoy this cozy mystery series and have read all 3 so far. I like the character of Sukey Reynolds -- she's a great mom and a smart woman who has the luxury of getting involved in criminal investigations through her job and via her love interest. Sometimes she's in danger but not usually because she does something stupid like many other female detectives who go off half-cocked. She cooks, takes great care of her 16-year-old son as a single mom, and is a very understanding girlfriend. I'm eager to see what she does next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the e-book ARC to read and review.

I’m not usually a cozy mystery type reader, but I love these books! This is the second Sukey Reynolds book I’ve read & reviewed. I liked this one just as much! Looking forward to book #4! Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copies!!

This was a delightful cozy mystery. I must go back and read the first two in the series. I loved the characters and they kept me on my toes! There were many twists and turns a d it kept me guessing. Duke you is a new heroine of mine!

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

Great cozy mystery!!

Sukey once again finds herself front and center in an investigation. This has twists and turns that you don't know what will happen next. It made me feel sorry for one of the suspects even though it's by their own mess as I said before this could easily be on hallmark movie mystery channel.

I loved this book as much as the others in the series. Sukey once again finds herself front and center in an investigation. This time there seems to be more bodies than clues! But, as things unravel and the truth comes to light, I was actually left feeling sorry for one of the criminals. The character development by Betty Rowlands is wonderful. As usual, there were many twists and turns and I didn't want to put the book down.
If you love a good mystery, you will truly enjoy The Sukey Reynolds Series. While you can read each book as a stand alone, the character's relationships are developed throughout the series. I am looking forward to Book 4!
Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book. I highly recommend this series.

Another Exciting Cozy Mystery
I love this series! Like the others, this book is full of exciting twists, serious danger and unexpected findings. The plot is interesting and very well executed. This was a difficult book to put down and I wanted to jump to the next book in the series immediately. The setting and characters are great. The reader is given enough information, yet treated like they have a brain and don't need to know all the infinitesimal details. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.

Death at Beacon Cottage is another Betty Rowlands mystery. Sulky gets called to the crime scene and her ability to find the clues and trace the bad guys leads to helping solve the crime. You'll find it hard to put this book down. The plot has lots of twists.

Each book in this series is better than the previous and this one was no exception.
I liked the cast of characters, it was great to meet them again, the plot and the mystery.
I look forward to reading other books in this series.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

After the final Bettty Rowlands novel featuring Melissa Craig I wondered what the chances were of finding another cosy crime series I would enjoy as much. I needn't have worried however, as Sukey Reynolds is a fantastic character whose adventures slot alongside those in the first set of books brilliantly.

The bodies definitely stack up this time as a spate of robberies turn deadly and although Sukey finds danger at the heart of the investigation it isn't her fault at all this time! In many ways this wasn't a whodunnit where the reader is wanting to get to the culprit first because we know who most of the perpetrators are from the start. Instead we get to decipher everything alongside Sukey, Jim Castle and the rest of the local police force as well as enjoying their occasional downtime. There are surprises, of course, and the odd red herring to confuse at times and, to me at least, the final chapter was totally unexpected.

This is the third in this series which means all the main characters are as familiar and eagerly anticipated as those in the previous canon but totally different as well. Everyone, from the minor to major contributors, are drawn with an attention to detail which I have come to expect from this author and it is obvious she sees people and locations very clearly. As much as I love a psychological thriller these books are much closer to my own world and every page is a pleasure. Immediately I am immersed in Sukey's world and look forward to each re-release with anticipation of more enjoyment to come.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for an unbiased review and would recommend it to lovers of cosy crime and good storytelling everywhere.

This third book in the Sukey Reynolds series is a little different from the first two. Yes, there's a crime and a murder or two that Sukey finds herself interested in, but there isn't a mystery as such to solve.
Sukey is again doing her job as SOCO when she finds herself under threat from a violent gang of criminals. She looks just like an undercover officer, who has been getting close to one of the gang. When a robbery doesn't quite go to plan, people start getting bumped off left right and centre and Sukey is spotted by one of the gang.
Although this book isn't a mystery in the usual sense, I still really enjoyed it. Sukey, her son Gus and boyfriend Jim are becoming characters that I know well and reading a crime story that involves the three of them is always interesting. I think the fact that this was a little different was perhaps a little more believable too, even someone who works for the police as Sukey does isn't always going to find themselves investigating a murder directly.
There was at least one occasion when the police seemed to think that the danger had passed when I'm not entirely sure that they would have been so quick to assume that in reality. that didn't detract from my enjoyment of the book. I'll certainly be looking for book four in this series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Another good story by Betty Rowlands, A Sukey Reynolds story, I’ve read all three on the series and all have been a great read. Looking forward to more from this series.

law-enforcement, murder, murder-investigation, international-crime-and-mystery, suspense, England *****

A brilliant entry specialist who is also a wine distributor, his associates who remove the targeted items, the only woman he has come to love but turns out to be police, an opportunistic set of burglars, and an international crime lord drive the action. On the other side is the law including civilian Scenes Of Crime Officer Sukey Reynolds who is a ringer for the other woman. Let the body count begin. This tale is very convoluted and the tension rises with each new body. Excellent!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Bookouture via NetGalley. Thank you!

Last month, I accepted an offer of advance copies of two books featuring Susan "Sukey" Reynolds, a civilian scene-of-crime officer who works with the local police department. "Death at Dearly Manor," which I read, is the second in a fairly lengthy series and this is the third). Despite reservations about both being so-called cozy mysteries, I thoroughly enjoyed the previous book and was eager to start this one.

It's also enjoyable, though not quite as much as its predecessor. Mostly, I think, the plot just wasn't quite as interesting to me personally, and the cast of characters was a little harder to keep straight. On the other hand, I didn't lose a whit of enthusiasm for Sukey (nor her police colleague and significant other, Jim Castle); if I can get my hands on other books in the series, I fully intend to read them. I love that while Sukey gets deeply involved in ongoing investigations, unlike most cozy heroines, she actually listens to what others tell her and doesn't go off the deep end on her own.

This one begins as Sukey is called to a manor house at which there's been a break-in. It is, it appears, one of several such art-and-valuables burglaries in the Cotswolds. Better still, the police reel in a suspect - a man Sukey has never laid eyes on before - but when he sees Sukey, he looks shaken and calls her by a different name. Confusion abounds, and when the suspect turns up missing, the safety of Sukey (and by extension, that of her son Fergus, who lives with her) is called into question. That fear escalates when other bodies turn up, all murdered in the same fashion.

Is Sukey next on the list? Can Jim and his department cohorts get to the bottom of things before something dreadful happens to her? Needless to say, since there are several more books in the series, readers can safely assume that Sukey makes it out alive. But as for the details, you'll just have to read it for yourself. Excellent series!

I really enjoyed this cosy murder mystery. I like the character development and also how the author holds back on some of the information so that it is a surpise at the end - just when you think you have got to the bottom of it.

It is sometimes confusing who is talking to who as DI Castle talks to Sukey at her home but also in the office and it isn't always clear, I found. But this might be because I'm reading it on my kindle and the page breaks are different.

I have read the previous two books and whilst you could follow the plot it would be better to read in order for the characters and background.

Overall, I would recommend this series.

Sukey Reynolds and the gang are back. As a Scene of Crime Officer (SOCO) Sukey collects evidence from crime scenes as a civilian employee and gathers evidence for a large targeted burglary that scored some very valuable pieces. When one of the suspects is at the police station, he sees Sukey and mistakes her for another woman, whom he loves. While it is a mistaken identify, the other woman, known as Pepita, actually was an undercover police officer and her cover is blown, but it is Sukey who becomes the target of the others involved in the crime.

While Sukey is in danger while the police work to solve what seems to be part of a much larger and devious crime, her boyfriend DI Jim Castle begs her to go into hiding. But when the crime ring finds Sukey, she agrees to help the police flash them out…and comes face to face with her doppelgänger who agrees to protect Sukey while they play cat and mouse.

I have read all three books in this series and each one is solid and keeps me turning the pages. I can’t put them down and look forward to the next one in the series. Who knew I’d love English cozies so much!

This is the third in the Sukey mystery series, which continues with her crime solving SOC investigation and blending it into her personal life of single mum and her CID man friend. This mystery moves along quite quickly and a little predictable.