This is brilliant, it has everything I could need from a book: literary references, murder, romance, a fish out of water foreigner and the beautiful city of Bath. Loved the architecture details too, as well as the research the author must have done on The Roman Baths and Bath Abbey. All in all, a pretty fabulous read.

DEATH NEEDS A BATH

Thank you #NetGalley for giving me access to Sharon Lynn’s debut novel, Death Takes a Bath for my honest review. This book is the first in a series known as the Cotswold Crimes Mystery(ies), published in Dec. 2022.

“I got to England, met ****at a local *****, and he/she promptly sent me the ear of a guy he/she had dumped at a dig site. That sounds normal.” “Very interesting,” he commented, not sounding the least bit interested. “But we have more pressing matters at hand. Have you eaten?”

“Okay, so, what did ****** do to turn ******* into a murderer?”
“Again,” Simon said with his teeth clenched. “We have more pressing issues.”

I’m sorry to say this novel, with a potentially wonderful backdrop of the Roman Baths of Bath, England, misses the mark, by a long shot, for me.

Poor character development, a very disappointing motive for multiple murders, contrived and transparent red herrings and repetitive descriptions of characters and their behaviors translates into a big yawn for me. To be specific regarding repetition, the author mentions the rumblings and tumblings of our protagonist’s stomach no less than 55 times and describes the obsessive fiddling with her hair at least 30 times. In addition, descriptions of certain character’s facial features such as sneers and lop-sided grins were repetitive and distracting as well.

Outcomes and relationships were implausible, and fortunately it didn’t really matter to me as I hadn‘ t invested enough in them to really care. But I did invest my time, so there’s that. Thankfully, I know enough about Bath and the Cotswolds to still want to visit. I was just hoping that this book might add to my enthusiasm.

Internship Issues…
The first outing in the Cotswolds Crimes series of mysteries finds Maddie McGuire in Bath as her archaeological internship at the Roman Baths is about to begin. Unfortunately for Maddie things are not going to plan - finding a severed human ear on her doorstep was most definitely not in her plan of action - and things are about to get much, much worse. With a well drawn cast of characters, a pacy plot and a delightful setting this is a most enjoyable mystery and a promising start to a new series.

This book is definitely worth a read. First of all, I love the cover, and, in this case, you can judge a book by its cover because the contents inside are specular. what you will get is an intriguing murder mystery, and you will quite enjoy the ride! This book is fast paced and will keep you guessing! You definitely won't see it coming! The characters are well written and there are many twists and turns within the plot. I loved learning all about Bath through the intricate details; it made me feel as if I was transported there. It has everything, a great plot, suspense, great atmosphere, lovable characters and love.

Sharon Lynn takes us to Bath, England, where American college student Maddie McGuire starts an internship in the Roman baths. She encounters crimes, mysteries, aristocrats, love interests, and a lot of tea. Readers will connect with Maddie and work as hard as she does to solve the crimes. Along the way, we learn a bit about archeology--just the right amount. Even though I have toured the baths myself, I welcomed the refresher. Lynn excels at banter, well-timed plot twists, and just the right number of red herrings to keep us guessing. Highly recommended.

3.5 ⭐rounded up

I enjoyed:
✔️setting; Bath, England
✔️unpredictable plot twists
✔️race to discover the villain
✔️sense of humour
✔️gorgeous cover
✔️intriguing premise
✔️history
✔️mention of places I’ve been
✔️each character was unique
✔️authentic voice true of YA experience
✔️the hook in chapter one!

I struggled:
✔️YA

A great debut novel and a great first addition to a series! I would recommend this to my high school students and all lovers of YA fiction.

I was gifted this copy by Level Best Books and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.