This is the first of a new cozy mystery series, and once again I had to check and see if this would be one that I could follow for a few more books ensuring a happy reading future for me.

This tale begins well, and I had high hopes for it. It ended on a good enough note, and I will be picking up the next book in the series (if given a chance), but I would have liked this book more if things had been slightly different. We have Eve who has a part-time job writing obituaries and insists on doing a thorough job. This leads her to rent a house for a time in the town where a famous musician recently passed away. When she gets there and starts to settle in, the news that foul play was involved and this has her mind racing. Since she is already set to interview everyone concerned, she sets up an excel sheet to cover the corroborating details to try and map out the culprit. All of this, as well as some of the main side characters, was well written. I was enjoying the time spent and te meticulous manner that Eve conducted her research. Till the point that it got too fastidious. I read at a pretty good pace until I hit the multiple layers of analysis that Eve was doing.

The research and the delay in getting to the end was the only reason that I am giving this three instead of four stars out of five. As mentioned at the beginning of this review, I would still read more about Eve because she seems to be a level-headed character who would be interesting to see further pursuits of. The most realistic but relatively unique behaviour was that of her Ex-husband. I have seen the Ex behave erratically and a little heavy-handed in other series' but this guy took the cake for the most random behaviour given the fact that he was the one who left.

I look forward to seeing how Eve deals with that, too, going forward. The mystery of the dead musician was compelling only because of the process of elimination and the back and forth with the information Eve had on hand. I only wish it was done more crisply. Someone with more patience than me would enjoy this far more than I did and I would recommend this to other readers of the genre.

I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

A wonderful new start in a series. Eve is an obituary writer, an leaves London to go to the country side when she is hired to write about famed cellist Bernard. After she arrives she discovers he had been murdered, so now her interviews and research take on a new perspective. With her faithful sidekick Gus, the happy little wiener dog, she has 10 days to help find the killer before she becomes a target herself. Good story with a lot of interesting village characters. Story kept me guessing to the end. Eager to read the next in the series, and highly recommend this book and author.

Recently divorced, mother-of-two, fifty-ish Eve Mallow, is about to go from obituary writing to amateur super-sleuthing…she just doesn’t know it yet!

Eve Mallow accepts an assignment to write an obituary/article on a recently deceased, world famous musician. Along with her dog Gus, Eve settles in for a short stay in a most charming cottage in the beautifully descripted, seaside village of Saxford St. Peter, and begins researching out details on the deceased.

What began as a memorial article, quickly turns into a mystery when the police declare the famous musician’s death a murder.

Wanting answers as much as information, Eve begins by questioning the tight community’s locals. Inquisitive by nature, Eve slowly gathers information and clues. Digging for facts comes with the job and Eve is quite good at sniffing out specifics. So much so that she crosses the line from being safe, to being in danger.

Clare Chase delivers a well-plotted story line, beautiful narrative of the setting, and a very promising lead in Eve.

A thoroughly enjoyable cozy-mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the read of Clare Chase’s, Mystery on Hidden Lane (An Eve Mallow Mystery Book 1).

Opinions expressed in my reviews are my own.

Mystery on Hidden Lane is the first book in the Eve Mallow Mystery series written by Clare Chase. It was published in January 2020 and I found a copy on NetGalley. I was initially attracted to the book because of the charming cover, great description, and the idea of the amateur sleuth being an obituary writer. What an easy way to find your victims... I mean cases!

I am an avid cozy reader. As I spend more time in this sub-genre, I am more suited to the American ones, but I adore the settings in the British ones. In this caper, Eve Mallow rents a charming home to meet a few people who were close to a newly deceased musician. After she arrives to interview others, Eve learns that the cops have ruled the man's death a murder. Everyone is tight-lipped when she approaches them, but Eve is persistent and finds a way to learn about the guy. She has to write a ~3k word obituary, after all.

As a main character, Eve has potential. She's ~50, divorced, half American/British, and has twin kids around ~25. She's not ready to date. She's unsure where to live. But this job feels right, so she sticks with it... and she methodically researches the deceased man, learning who can provide input on his character and personality. He was a bit of a mystery, and she uncovers more secrets than answers at first. By the time she presses everyone for details, she also solves his murder, and nearly gets killed in the process. She's highly intelligent and clearly follows all the right paths to solve the case.

As a series, this has lots of potential too. I like the amateur sleuth approach. The plot was a little difficult to accept at first, but by 50% in, I was much more interested. Part of the struggle for me was an overly descriptive writing style (which also worked because it was pretty) and the characters were a little on the dull side. I couldn't get invested, and I found myself skimming a few paragraphs. When the story got more interesting half way through, I slowed down and found myself keen to solve the investigation.

Overall, it's a good start. I am curious what others think of it, and I give it 3.5 stars. I'll read more by the author, as her writing style is quite nice... but I like a bit more in my plots and a little more colorful characters. Maybe the second one will be stronger and pull me right in -- the obituary angle is quite intriguing.

I loved this first book of this new series, it was a very entertaining murder mystery with an unusual occupation which was extremely well written. I look forward to the next installment of which looks to be a very good series. Thanks to Bookouture, Netgalley and the author for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

This is a new series in the category cozy mysteries. The ones I usually read have owners of B&B's or shops or chefs in the main role, but kudos to the author for giving her amateur sleuth a rather unusual job. :)

When you read this kind of books, you often wonder why there are still police forces around because the amateur sleuth always beats them to it by far. But that's just the nice characteristic of these stories.

Eve starts her job the way she always does, but then things change. She probably did not know she had it in her, but when the person she has to write about did not die they way her subjects normally do, she starts digging deeper and deeper. Maybe even too deep ... She goes from writer to detective and that can turn against her.

Maybe a bit too many details about the surroundings in the beginning, but the pace picks up afterwards.

A nice start to a new series. Looking forward to more adventures. 4 stars.

Thank you, Clare Chase and Bookouture.

This is a story about an obituary writer solving a crime. The idea feels far fetched. The police are portrayed as doing nothing. The story starts with a slow pace. There are too many thoughts and conversations with the dog. If we ignore all this then the suspense is well played out. The Tara Thorpe series was better. This story could have been told in that series. 3.5 stars

Writing obituaries for a living isn't everyone's ideal job but Eve Mallow enjoys it and takes her job very seriously, using her attention to detail to provide a fitting memorial for the recently departed. Of course it also allows her inherent curiosity to sometimes get the better of her if anything unusual comes to light. Hired to write about world renowned cellist Bernard Fitzpatrick, who had died unexpectedly, Eve finds herself in the small but quintessentially British village of Saxford St Peter when it is announced the police are treating the musician's untimely death as murder.

Recently divorced Eve Mallow is a great new character from the pen of Claire Chase as are her friend, Viv and small dog, Gus, and I really enjoyed this book. Whilst there are some things I would consider stereotypical about the location, do people still grow hollyhock, that maybe because I grew up in a small English village. This is only a minor gripe however, as the mystery of Bernard's death and how Eve goes about solving it kept me hooked from the start. The cover will definitely draw you in and I'd like to live in Eve's temporary new home please!

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for an unbiased review. I would suggest that if you are after a crime driven full on blood and guts murder mystery then this isn't the book for you however, if a cosy crime story which will hopefully be only the first of many in this new series is more to your taste then it definitely is, I loved it.

A very entertaining and well written murder mystery. Great plot and setting. Mystery fans will love this book. I received an arc from the publisher and this is my unbiased review.

A promising first novel in a new series. I look forward to reading more featuring this new accidental detective, who stumbled across a serial murderer as she conducted research for an obituary she was writing.

A satisfyingly twisty murder mystery which kept me guessing to the end!

Excellent first entry in Claire Chase's new series featuring Eve Mallow. Eve has a rather odd profession as an obituary writer. In the course of researching her latest "object", she comes across information which may explain who murdered the man. A break with the past and a move to a lovely village near the sea may lead her to a new future. Looking forward to the next installment!

How does an obituary writer solve two murders in a small village in a few days?Eve Mallow who just arrived in town to write the obit for the recently deceased renowned musician manages to do this effortlessly. Besides doing this she bakes scones for a bus load of tourists , interviews a variety of people , asks herself hundreds of questions and take her dog on endless walk. The book started off fairly interesting but just become long winded with Eve becoming a full fledged detective. The mystery component became a little complicated as Eve eliminated suspects with her endless ramblings and rhetoric questions.

A wonderful beginning to a new mystery series! Eve Mallow is a part-time obituary writer who soon becomes involved in solving a mystery. I love that the main character's job is an obituary writer-how unique and creative on the part of the author. The book flowed well and kept me reading. I look forward to reading more in this series.

Eve Mallow is a part time obituary writer who has been asked to write about the life of a recently passed renowned musician. Just after arriving in the quaint seaside town of Saxford St Peter she finds out that the dead is being treated as murder.
Eve continues her interviews for the obituary but is drawn more and more into the mystery of the murder.

The book describes village life and the archetypal village people very well however I found the story lacked a bit of depth.
The local village characters were almost caricatures rather than having any real detailed character building which was a little disappointing.

Overall it was an ok easy read but it didn't wow me.

Thank you to Netgallley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review,

I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for an advance copy of Mystery on Hidden Lane, the first novel to feature obituary writer Eve Mallow.

Eve is in the Suffolk village of Saxford St Peter to write an obituary for famous cellist Bernard Fitzpatrick when she learns that his death was murder rather than the accident it had been presumed. She continues her interviews and discovers facts unknown to the police. When a second body is found her questions develop more urgency.

I really enjoyed the Tara Thorpe series so I was looking forward to this new direction but, to be honest, I found it rather bland and insipid and not really to my taste. It mostly consists of Eve doing an interview, developing a theory about the interviewee as the murderer and repeat when the previous suspect is eliminated by more information. There is little depth to these theories and it gets boring after a while. The solution, however, is unexpected if not particularly credible.

I do think, nevertheless, that if you like cosies you will enjoy this novel. It has all the requisite ingredients, not least a sublime cake baker, a victim with plenty of people who disliked him for good reason, a variety of motives to chew over and a smart, likeable amateur sleuth with more investigative nous than the lazy police inspector in charge of the case.

Mystery on Hidden Lane is a solid read.

An excellent cozy mystery. A real page turner. Kept me entertained all the way through.. well drawn plot and characters. I hope the author writes ore for Eve

This is the first in a new series featuring Eve Mallow, a part time obituary writer. In this book, Eve has traveled to Saxford St. Peter to gather information on recently deceased famous cellist, Bernard Fitzpatrick. Before Eve can even begin gathering much information, the news that the death was actually murder begins to circulate through the small village. As Eve begins to gather information for her obituary she becomes increasingly interested in the murder and who could possibly be the murderer.
The book spends much time introducing characters and information about Saxford St. Peter, much as would be expected in creating the backstory for the series. Eve’s pursuit of her career as an obituary writer is regularly criticized by her ex-husband who feels it is his right to tell her how to live her life so that she is being “safe”. This latest adventure on Eve’s part serves to embolden her to tell him to mind his own business as she begins to follow her own path.
There are some interesting characters in the town, including Viv, owner of the cottage Eve has rented and proprietor of the local bakery; Viv’s brother Simon, a charming bachelor a few years younger than Eve; and Robert Yardley, a local gardener who seems to be something more. These three characters particularly are written with enough depth and interest that a reader will most likely hope they continue to be recurring characters in the series.
While the mystery was reasonably good, it didn’t engage me as much as the story involving Eve getting to know the characters and surrounding town. It came as no surprise that circumstances evolved to provide Eve with the possibility of moving from London to Saxford St. Peter and start a new life with her new friends. As Eve asks questions, first to gather information for the obituary and second to solve the mystery of who killed him, her reasons for getting involved seem a little thin. While she possesses a curious mind, she seems to become invested in the murder quickly with little that affects her. Her strained relationship with her ex is referred to, and would have given her stronger motivation if I had attached more tension to that portion of the story.
My thanks to Bookoutour Publishing and NetGally for providing me with an Advance Digital Read copy in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to reading the next book in the series to see how it builds on this one.

2 stars

I wanted so much to like this book but unfortunately I did not. The description claim it is " utterly absorbing"' but It is not. I never connected to the characters or the plot. It just drags on. I kept hoping the pace would pick up but it never did.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for a honest review.

I really enjoyed reading this! Loved the typical English village location and the very Jessica Fletcher-type protagonist. While some of the behaviors and events would be unlikely to ever occur I found this the perfect distraction from all the holiday events going on around me. I am anxious to read more of this character soon! Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy for review.

This book was described as a cosy detective type story. However I did feel that although the village was the archetypal English village, the story was so very far-fetched as to be implausible. For a start how did this woman get the time off from her job as a school administrator? Any school i know needs all it's admin staff full time. Also she was given 10 days to stay in a village in order to compile an obituary, never likely.
Then the fact that the police seemed to be almost totally absent from the crime scene. All in all suspend disbelief and you will enjoy this cosy novel.