Grace’s tragedy was eating away at her, consuming her in a spiraling battle with pain. The pain of losing her son was never far away. It had her second-guessing herself and everyone around her. Grace was determined to do her job by investigating and solving the puzzling murder, which was rife with deceit, jealousy, and anger. It was an engaging and intriguing read.

I received an ARC of this from the Publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I felt at home right away when I began this book, I could imagine Grace’s cosy flat above her detective agency and her golden retriever Harvey welcoming her home from the beach .

It’s been a devastating two years for Grace personally but she’s trying to survive and make her Portobello Detective Agency work but she needs a few more clients to achieve that.

Grace is an ex Detective Inspector so she’s highly skilled but just waiting for the chance to prove herself and her agency by working on a big case.

With this case it had SO many different elements that wove together perfectly, I was engrossed!. I can’t give too much away because I’ll spoil the storyline and I want the reader to enjoy the thrill just like I did.

What I will say is that I’ve found my new favourite series and I’ll be waiting to preorder the next in the series and catch up with Grace and the Gang.

⭐️ The Last page was WOW⭐️

The first book in a brand new series featuring Detective Grace McKenna.

After surviving the worst 2 years of her life Grace is putting all her energy into running the Portobello Detective Agency. Things are ticking over when Grace is hired to find the truth behind the death of a famous psychic. Knowing this could be the big case she needs to put the agency on the map Grace can't wait to get started.

What follows is a brilliant plot with plenty of twists to keep us readers gripped. This book kept me up way past my bedtime.

I can't wait to read the next book.

I was hooked on this book from page one, and it never dropped me! A compelling, twisty story with rounded, believable characters and a plot that kept me guessing. Even the very last line of the book came as a complete - and fantastic - surprise. I can't wait to read the next thriller with Grace at the helm. Highly recommended!

This is the first book that I have read by this author and I was very happy, thoroughly enjoyed it and it kept me enthralled and guessing until the final pages. Shall definitely be looking to read more by Jackie Baldwin. This novel was about Grace McKenna who was previously a Detective who opened her Portobello Detective Agency and was asked by a client to look into the suicide of her husband Paul Gordon.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Storm Publishing for an advance copy of Murder by the Seaside, the first novel to feature PI Grace McKenna, set in Edinburgh.

After a hard year Grace resigned from the police force and has now set up the Portobello Detective Agency. As a new business her turnover is low, so she’s delighted when Sylvia Gordon, widow of renowned psychic, Paul, asks her to take another look at his suicide six months ago, because she is sure he was murdered. Then a young woman is killed and Grace sees links with the death of Paul Gordon.

I enjoyed Murder by the Seaside, which is an intricately plotted read with a likeable protagonist in Grace McKenna. It is told from the investigative point of view, with Grace and her two assistants, Jean and Hannah, contributing.

This is a very busy novel with all three of the women having their own brushes with danger and there is a wealth of detail in who said and did what, never mind all the lies and agendas, notably investigative journalist, Tobias Sloan’s crusade against one of Paul’s business partners and fellow psychic Xander Croft. Grace has agreed to work with Tobias to further the investigation. Are you keeping up? I felt that the middle of the novel got a bit bogged down in all this busyness and I got a little disheartened by the circles Grace kept running in, but the slog through it was worth it for the final chapters where the action ramps up and the twists keep coming. I was fooled by much of it and caught by surprise when the reveals come.

Grace is a sad figure. She has lost her marriage and police job to unspeakable tragedy and perhaps her will to live is next. Yet, her drive to solve the case keeps her going and she’s good at it. The end of the novel suggests that she may have reason for optimism going forward, so perhaps it will be a reinvigorated Grace in the next novel.

Murder by the Seaside is a good read that I can recommend.

As dawn breaks over the empty beaches of Portobello, Grace McKenna emerges from the icy water after her daily swim, her loyal dog Harvey by her side. Little does she know, in the shadows, a cold-blooded killer is plotting his next move...

Edinburgh, Scotland. After the toughest year of her life, Detective Grace McKenna is grateful for her job running the fledgling Portobello Detective Agency… though another client or two would certainly help keep the wolf from the door. So when the glamourous widow of renowned psychic Paul Gordon entreats her to investigate his suspicious death, Grace sees a unique opportunity to make a name for the agency.

Joining forces with Tobias Sloan – a dapper investigative reporter seeking answers about his wife's tragic passing – their search takes a dark turn when the body of a beautiful young woman is found at a nearby elite golf club. The evidence leads them straight to Merchiston College of Psychic Studies – the very place where Paul Gordon met his grisly end.

Uncovering a shocking secret linking the two murders, Grace finds her professional and personal boundaries are beginning to blur. She is left to face not only the ghosts of her own past, but also the prospect of a hardened killer stalking the quiet lanes of Edinburgh. With time running out and the lives of her team hanging in the balance, can Grace McKenna solve the murders, and save herself from the same deadly fate?


Loved, loved, loved this story. Cannot wait to see what happens next. Will recommend to others.

Murder by the Seaside by Jackie Baldwin has rich characters who each have trials and tribulations. The story unraveled how each character had to make choices such as leaving a relationship, putting food on the table for their family, or navigating grief.

I was always so nervous and worried about the dog, Harvey. Harvey was a great canine character, and I want to thank the author for not putting him in harm's way just to create more drama. He was a sweet doggo!

Sylvia hires Grace to prove that her husband Paul was murdered and did not jump off the roof of his place of work. A great line in the book is how we can never truly see into the heart of another person; that is so true and really makes this book great in trying to figure out if Paul did commit suicide or was murdered.

Grace is also grappling with her own demons and loss, and this made for such a dynamic character that I found myself rooting for and also wanting to shake her.

There are some good "wow" moments and reveals that I did not see coming. And I burst into tears at the end of the book; the scene was both shocking and so good!

Murder by the Seaside definitely had me hooked, and I cannot wait to read more in the Grace McKenna series.

I loved the author's note at the book's end about her dog, Poppy, who passed and is the inspiration of Harvey and how Harvey is a way of keeping Poppy alive. I lost my own dog recently, and it is so sweet how the author incorporated her dog into the story.

The story was almost secondary as the characters were each on their own journeys and dealing with life and growth.

I really liked this book, and I liked the author's writing style. I cannot wait for more books! A 5++ rating!!

#MurderbytheSeaside #NetGalley @Stormbooks_co @JackieMBaldwin1

After leaving the police force, Grace McKenna opened the Portobello Detective Agency in Edinburgh, with her helpers, Jean and Hannah, by her side. With such a new business, getting cases was important. Grace didn't want to Agency to fold before it got started. When the wife of a man who had recently died, suicide suspected, arrived at the Agency, wanting the team's help in proving her husband was murdered, Grace had no idea was she was about to face. Her first step was to include investigative reporter, Tobias Sloan, in their team as he had a parallel agenda and his skills would prove helpful.

Putting Hannah undercover to work at the elite golf club proved a good move, but with Hannah's keen enthusiasm to impress her boss, she put herself in danger on more than one occasion. And Jean also went undercover in a different area. The team were busy, the secrets were slowly revealing themselves and Grace, alongside her loyal hound, Harvey, followed the evidence. What would be the outcome for Grace and her fledgling Agency?

Murder by the Seaside is the 1st in the Detective Grace McKenna Scottish Murder Mystery series by Jackie Baldwin, and I was impressed! Glued to the pages, I had trouble putting it down and read it quickly. An excellent plot, a great set of mysteries and some special characters. And the last sentence in the book saw my jaw dropping! I can't wait for #2 in the hopefully not too distant future. Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

This was amazing. It had me hooked from the very beginning all the way to the end. I could not put it down it was so good!
I just reviewed Murder by the Seaside by Jackie Baldwin. #MurderbytheSeaside #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

Ideal for fans of light mysteries, this is the first in a new private detective series. Grace made a good lead character and her support team were good too, not to mention Harvey the dog.
With thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy in exchange for an independent review.

This was a great murder mystery! It felt familiar and easy to dive into like an Agatha Christie story. The author did a great job setting up every character, and making you feel like they could have been behind the mystery. My only reasoning for knocking it down a star is because I felt the ending with Hannah came a little out of left field. It didn’t make a lot of sense to me. Otherwise, I really enjoyed this book and thought it was a great mystery!

Engaging Mystery..
The first outing in the Detective Grace McKenna series of mysteries finds Grace grappling with her newly formed detective agency - trying to keep her head above water with work yet at the same time struggling with her still immense personal grief. A rather unique case comes through her door and she is soon to be consumed by it - but will it be the making of her and the agency or the breaking? Engaging and compelling character driven mystery in an atmospheric and keenly observed setting.

Murder by the Seaside is an excellent mystery/thriller novel. Detective Grace has recently opened her own private detective agency following the aftermath of her son’s death. She’s still in a place of grief and denial that he’s really gone, preventing her from being able to fully move forward with her life. Feeling bogged down by the seemingly meaningless cases that come through her door, she’s somewhat skeptical when a widow comes in claiming to be psychic and that her husband’s ghost is claiming that his apparent suicide was actually murder. Grace takes the case not knowing that she’s thrusting herself and her team into a complicated web of lies, deceit, betrayal and murder. I really enjoyed this book! The twists and turns just kept me turning the pages. I also loved watching Grace’s growth and her slowly coming to accept her son’s death. Everyone grieves differently, but a mother’s grief is always so much more complicated so witnessing her stages through that were definitely heart wrenching at times. This was definitely a good murder mystery! Looking forward to the next one!

Good book! This book had a bit of everything! It had suspense, intrigue, murder, mystery, A good who done it, and a few crazy twists and turns! The storyline was very interesting and kept me glued to my Kindle! I definitely recommend reading this book as it was well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

A good book not my usual type of writing I’m used to but I’m glad I stumbled onto it, if the other books are like this I’m going to love them