This one got lost in my TBR pile, but I'm glad to have finally gotten to it. First in the Flora Steele series, this book is set in the 1950s in the small English village of Abbeymead. One day, a young man dies in her bookshop and Flora teams up with a crime writer to get to the bottom of the mystery.

I enjoyed this a lot. I'm happy to see that there are quite a few more in the series to move onto next. Good characters, excellent setting, and a fun mystery to figure out. A quick and engaging read.

I liked the book. I enjoyed the setting that Merryn Allingham created. Enjoyed the twist and turns. The secrets. A good cozy mystery!

I must firstly apologise for the amount of time it has taken me to provide a review of this book, my health was rather bad for quite some time, something that had me in hospital on numerous occasions and simply didnt leave me with the time I once had to do what I love most.

Unfortunately that does mean I have missed the archive date for many of these books, so It would feel unjust throwing any review together without being able to pay attention to each novel properly.

However, I am now back to reading as before and look forward to sharing my honest reviews as always going forward. I thank you f0r the patience and understanding throughout x

Super cozy and atmospheric. I was literally transported to the English country side. As a book lover I love that the main character owns a book shop. I will definitely be looking into more of this series.

I appreciate the publisher allowing me to read this book. I really enjoyed reading it the plot was interesting and the characters made me want to know more about them. I highly recommend.

Cozy mysteries are my new go to genre - really enjoying the gentle who done its. Merryn has written some cracking characters in this series.

Feel-good, cosy and wonderfully entertaining!!
Who doesn't love a cosy mystery?
This book is perfect for those who like easy, cosy mysteries without all the bloodshed and who love watching Miss Marple and trying to find the culprit before our detective does (it never happens does it, we all sit back and happily let jane Marple get on with it) and what book lover doesn't love a bookshop setting?
Yup, this has it all!
I thoroughly enjoyed following Flora and Jack as they found the clues and cracked the case wide open, the mystery flowed easily throughout and I enjoyed getting t know both Flora and Jack, even though o first glance you would never have put them together - talk about chalk and cheese! But they work and I do hope that in the series to come jack pops up again to help Flora in another case.
This is the first book I have read by Merryn Allingham and it certainly won't be the last, I liked her light and engaging writing.
Overall, a fun whodunnit with an unlikely detective duo, a definite must-read!!

A fun and intriguing mystery that will keep you glued to the pages and guessing till the end. The whodunnit that you were looking for. Thanks to Bookoture and NetGalley for the ARC.

Just as the blurb promises, this is a classic-style cosy mystery, and set in a bookshop too… be still my bookworm heart!

Not only that, but the amateur duo investigating the mysterious death of a young man – apparently by natural causes – are the owner of said bookshop and a mystery author. So the whole novel is imbued with bookish vibes throughout. Who could ask for more?

Well, as a mystery fan, me! I need a diverting plot with plenty of clues and a few twists, and the opportunity to try to solve the case before the sleuths do. And I got all of that here. Along with hidden treasure, some mild peril and a traditional secret room situation.

The relationship between the two main characters, Flora and Jack, is nicely established and develops very naturally as the story progresses and the setting (rural England in the aftermath of WWII) feels authentic and interesting – I can’t remember reading another cosy mystery set in this timeframe (feel free to jog my memory with any you can think of in the comments!).

Farfetched in places, but fun throughout; I would definitely read more from Merryn Allingham and Flora Steele in future.


Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book is well written and the characters are described well. This is a fast paced cosy mystery. I adored Flora's character. This book will keep you on the edge of your seat from the first page trying to figure out what will happen next. This is the first book in this series. I highly highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone. This ebook is in stores for £1.99 (GBP).

This was a delicious cozy mystery that will be a great start to a new series. Set in the 1950’s in a small English village, the writing is very atmospheric. I enjoyed the plot and the characters. I look forward to the next installment.
Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was a nice easy read that I would consider cosy crime. A well written storyline that is cantered around the quaint little village of Abbeymead in Sussex. Our leading lady Flora is trying her hardest to keep her dearly departed aunt violets book shop afloat, this becomes a much harder task when a body is found in the shop and under very strange circumstances. Enter our leading man Jack, a recluse crime author who likes keeping himself to himself, he calls to get some books he’s ordered as his errand boy is out of bounds, Jack is the one who stumbles over the dead body while waiting for his books. Together Flora and a reluctant Jack take it upon themselves to try and solve the mystery especially when another body adds to mix and all is not what it seems in Abbeymead.

well written and paced first story in a series. Shows much promise. I enjoyed it all. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher!!

😍 This is one of my favorite books this year Wallahi. I am in love with this book! Everything about it is awesome. From the characters, to the chapters, to the plot. Everything about it is simply outstanding.

🖋 The Bookshop Murder is the first book in the Flora Steele Series. Set in England in the 1950s, this cozy mystery revolves around a twenty five year old lady Flora Steele who after the death of her aunt Violet inherits a bookshop called All's Well and a cottage in their small town of Abbeymead, Sussex.

💕 The book starts off with a brief intro of Flora’s life and then, well... the mystery begins. A writer, Jack Carrington, also a customer of the bookshop arrives to collect his books when all of a sudden he finds a dead body inside. Soon, the police are called in but they dismiss it as a natural death. But to flora something seems amiss. In a time when the war has just ended, things are terribly difficult. And Floras' dream of traveling around the world seems impossible.

💜 Her bookshop suffers a huge decline, rumours start spreading about ghosts and what-not in it. And in a little town like Abbeymead, people tend to believe in what they hear. Frustrated, Flora formulates a plan. The only hope she has for her shop to get back to normal. She teams up with the crime writer Jack and together they begin to investigate.

😘 I loooove the setting of small towns and especially when the plot is centred on bookshops. That was why i requested for this. It was a pleasant read for me and I'm really amazed by the writing style.

💫 I believe it really depicted the era it was set in. The characters were interesting but Flora and Jack are simply the best duo ever! I just ship them.

😍It was a bit obvious who the murderer was towards the end but nonetheless i enjoyed this.

Much thanks to Netgalley, Bookouture and Merryn Allingham for this ARC copy.

🌟🌟🌟🌟. 5 💫

1955 and rationing has only just ended. Flora Steele has inherited her aunt's bookshop but books are still a luxury few are buying. The last thing she needs is the notoriety when a man breaks in and dies in the shop! Flora is determined to discover why this man broke in and cajoles local crime writer Jack Carrington to assist her.
The Bookshop Murder is the first book in a new cosy crime and murder mystery series from Merryn Allingham. I have not read any of this author's previous books (but have now downloaded one!)
Flora hasn't had an easy life, losing both her parents and caring for her aunt during her final illness. Now she is struggling to keep the bookshop going, has no friends and is worried she'll never find a husband. Shje is fully involved in village life and we see many interactions with other villagers over the course of the book.
Jack is a quieter character. He is quite a recluse, happy to hide away from the world. His involvement in the investigation goes against his natural instincts but he has a kind heart and wants to help Flora to restore the reputation of her bookshop.
The murder element is not described in great detail as you would expect from this genre. The mystery of the young man's death is intriguing and maintained my interest through the book, but his is not the only sudden death...
The Bookshop Murder is an enjoyable cosy murder mystery and I look forward to meeting Flora again in the next book.

I picked this book up a few times and whilst the blurb is definitely my usual book that I enjoy I found this book hard to get into and it fell a bit flat.

I was expecting a bit more and it was very predictable. I liked the characters and the back stories but just wanted more from this cosy murder mystery!

Thank you for the arc.

I was really excited to start reading this book, however it felt a little flat for me. For this book I expected an eerie countrylife atmosphere, yet it felt a little off for me. It seemed as if I couldn't get into the story and it was a bit predictable. The story itself is gripping enough to keep you reading and want to finish it, but the reveal was a bit lacklustre for me. Overall a decent book, yet not what I was expecting sadly.

This was a quick read and the perfect cozy mystery. Set in England (Because who doesn't love the UK?) and in a bookshop, The Bookshop Murder is a very promising start to what I hope will be a long and wonderful series

Although I thought I would enjoy this book based on the description, it was a book that I could not keep interest enough to finish it.

★★★★★ 4.5 stars (rounded up)

I'm a bit fussy when it comes to cosy mysteries. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy them - if they are done right - but there are so many that are a bit hit or miss for me. So it was with tentative steps I ventured into Abbeymead and THE BOOKSHOP MURDER...and I loved it! I felt like I had stepped back in time to St Mary Mead or even Kembleford, however Flora Steele is a lot younger than Agatha Christie's Miss Marple or that of G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown.

The first in a new cosy mystery series set in Abbeymead, Sussex in the 1950's, THE BOOKSHOP MURDER is just that - a murder that takes place in a bookshop! But how? And why? That is the question Flora Steele finds herself asking once the shock of the discovery has worn off.

1955 in Abbeymead, a village in the lush countryside of Sussex, and Flora Steele owns and runs the All's Well bookshop she inherited from her late aunt Violet, as well as a cosy thatched cottage in which she now lives. Having been orphaned relatively young, her father's sister Violet returned from her overseas travel to take little Flora in and raise her as her own. Violet herself had come into an inheritance when Flora was still young and thus using those proceeds to purchase the All's Well and a cottage in Abbeymead. Violet was well-known and well liked within the village so it was no surprise that the little church was bursting at the seams for her funeral when she passed after a two year long battle with inoperable cancer, leaving Flora the bookshop and the cottage.

At 25, Flora had plans to travel the world but when her aunt fell ill, those were shelved for her to remain and take care of her. After she passed, it seemed the least she could do was continue the running of her bookshop as a legacy. And she had a somewhat successful business of regulars perusing and purchasing tomes for their pleasure or, for some, reference. One such customer was a reclusive writer J.A. Carrington who had taken up residence in a dilapidated house some five years earlier. It wasn't until he deigned to visit the little shop to collect an order he had placed that Flora met the man behind the name, known locally as Jack.

It is upon this visit that the mystery begins when Flora descends the cellar steps to collect Jack's order. Upon her reappearance to the counter, she finds him gone only to reappear seconds later with news of a grim discovery. He insists she needs to take a look and there in the rare and second hand books section her aunt had lovingly began, she finds the body of a young man sprawled between the shelves. The police are called at once but the local bobby refers it to Brighton as a suspicious death is outside of his remit. However, the police soon dismiss it as natural causes whilst contact with the deceased's relatives have him repatriated to Australia before Flora can prove otherwise.

It isn't long before the rumour mill has begun with tales of the bookshop being haunted with ghosts and ill presences, deadly poisons and a load of superstitious nonsense somewhat damaging that soon begins to affect her business. With this mind, just as soon as Flora has recovered from the shock, she rides up to Overlay House on her faithful bicycle Betty (cue image of Father Brown on his trusty two wheels) and knocks on the door in a way that Jack would know she means business. Discussing the problem at hand and the likelihood of murder, she enlists Jack's help who acquiesces somewhat reluctantly to help solve the mystery.

The amateur investigation leads the pair to the Priory Hotel, once home to Lord Edward Templeton from a long line of Templetons, before he died leaving no known relatives until a distant cousin from Australia was tracked down. The cousin, Reggie Anderson, had no desire to take on an old rambling manor house and sold it to the current owner Vernon Elliot, a scarecrow of a man. Flora found it interesting to note that the dead man found in her bookshop's name was Kevin Anderson, late nephew of Lord Templeton's distant cousin down under. Was his visit to do with the now hotel? And if so, why had he broken into her little bookshop? Only to die there?

Then they discover a legend that surround the old manor house known locally to villagers though none can really attest to its validity. Still with the legend in mind, Flora and Jack dig deeper to uncover its truth...or untruth as the case may be. Either way, someone appears to believe in its legitimacy, a powerful motive for murder should it be true. And then despite finding little to go on, they are attacked one early evening by a crossbow which is soon followed by another death, once again seemingly a natural one. But was it really? Is there any truth behind the legend? And can Flora and Jack unravel the mystery before they too fall foul of a murderer?

THE BOOKSHOP MURDER is a quick and enjoyable read that was good fun and leisurely paced. It was easily read in just over 5 hours and is definitely one of the best cosies I have read, having enjoyed my time in Abbeymead as well as with Flora and Jack who are equally likeable.

The plot itself, as well as the characters, give a certain nod to Enid Blyton as well as a touch of Agatha Christie. In the midst of crime thrillers that flood the market today, and even some that consider themselves cosies, wrought with language and sexual themes I feel doesn't belong in this genre, it is a refreshing change to go back in time to a cleaner, simple outlook on life as it were. I love my thrillers and get my fair share of the abovementioned themes which have their place but in cosies I like to step back in time to something different and refreshing.

A fantastic start to a promising new cosy series, THE BOOKSHOP MURDER is an intriguing mystery rife with twists and village village gossip. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and the characters therein. Flora and Jack made a delightful team as they worked their way logically, even illogically at times, through their ensuing theories. The ending is fraught with tension and, for me, reminiscent of Father Brown though it worked well in this particularly little mystery.

Thoroughly enjoyable cosy mystery and the beginning of a promising new series, THE BOOKSHOP MURDER is perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Frances Evesham, Midsomer Murders and Father Brown.

I would like to thank #MerrynAllingham, #Netgalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheBookshopMurder in exchange for an honest review.