An incredible book with wonderful characters and a beautiful setting. It will keep you guessing until the end.

The Body at Rookery Barn is the first book in a new paranormal cozy mystery series by Kate Hardy. Released 24th Oct 2023, it's 270 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately. For Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book is currently included in the KU subscription library to borrow and read for free.A second volume in the series is also available (with a 3rd slated for June 2024 release). All are in KU.

This is a well written and engaging cozy with a very strong parallel paranormal plotline alongside the unexpected death of the main character's short term lodger. Georgina, a widow, has moved to rural Norfolk after her bereavement and hopes to get a fresh start. Things seem to be going well, with a new circle of supportive friends, until a violent death (and suspicion from the police) threaten to upend her newfound tranquility.

The paranormal / ghost aspect is very odd and not entirely well meshed (Georgina suddenly starts being able to hear and interact with a ghost after getting her hearing aids changed out for a new type. (Okay)). Readers should be in the mood for some whimsy with their cozy murder mystery to get full enjoyment out of this one.

The unabridged audiobook format has a run time of 8 hours 4 minutes and is capably narrated by Tamsin Kennard. She has a clear, well modulated alto voice which is unobtrusive and easy to understand. Sound and production quality are high throughout the read.

Four stars (with the codicil that there's an odd dichotomy between the parallel storylines which isn't really resolved in this volume).

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

The Body at Rookery Barn is the first book in Kate Hardy's Georgina Drake Mystery Series. In this installment, widow Georgina Drake has moved to a small village in Norfolk County, England and has turned an old barn into a rental cottage. On the morning that her current renter is scheduled to leave, Georgina goes to clean the cottage and discovers the renter dead. In addition, she also hears a voice telling her not to go in the barn and soon discovers that the voice belongs to the ghost of a woman who died in the main house on the same day that Georgina was born.

The author does a good job of introducing the characters in this story and infusing them with a history that can continue to be built on in future installments. By making the victim an unsympathetic character, the author is able to establish a wide variety of potential suspects giving the police and Georgina an uphill task to determine just who is responsible for the death and why. In addition to the main plot of this story, the author has woven in the mystery of the identity of the ghost and why she has not moved on to the afterlife. The core of this mystery lies in the love and loyalties that bind families together. While there are a number of twists and misdirects, the ultimate reveal of culprit and motive comes as a shock even though both are pointed at several times during the course of the plot. I look forward to reading more books as this series develops.

The narration of this audiobook is performed at an appropriate pace to enable the listener to easily follow the plotline as well as the distinct voices of each of the characters within the story.

I received an ARC of this audiobook from NetGalley and Dreamscape Select and am leaving this review voluntarily.

Engaging mystery that had me guessing until the very end. Good narration

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First time reading this author. I look forward to reading more of their books. The mystery kept me guessing. I liked the MC, older, and hearing impaired but obviously didn't impact her ability to solve the crime.

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Amazing audiobook. Great narrator and well written.

Crime time in the village of Little Wenborough, widow Georgina Drake's peaceful life is shattered when she finds her tenant, the unpleasant professor Roland Garnett, dead.
Even worse when suspicion falls on her, as the poison used to kill Garnett was found in a meal she prepared.
Amidst mounting clues and escalating tensions, Georgina must unravel the mystery and clear her name, all while dodging the killer's deadly gaze.

This story is everything one might expect of a cozy-crime and from time to time they are such a pleasure to read!
Once again Tamsin Kennard does a beautiful job narrating this story!
Thank you #NetGalley #Dreamscape Select, Storm Publishing for this audiobook

4.5 stars

Kate Hardy’s ‘The Body at Rookery Farm’ is a delightful read! The characters are so engaging, and you can’t help but get invested in their story. The village setting adds this cozy yet mysterious atmosphere that really hooks you into the plot. The pacing too is right on point, keeping things exciting without going overboard with crazy twists. Overall, it’s a really enjoyable book that’ll keep you hooked till the end!

This was a cute cozy mystery that was entertaining though a little slow to get through. I did enjoy reading it, but it was not very memorable to me, and nothing really stood out as good or bad.

Narrated by Tamsin Kennard ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
by Kate Hardy ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I loved this!
I loved the premise, the characters and I need book two now! Will they find Trev? Was it an accident or murder? and more importantly is love about to bloom?

Let me know when book 2 is coming out because I need to pre-order it!

As the title indicates the creation of drama and suspense from a murder is always good but in a remote barn makes for a twisted plot with many blind alleys explored. I found this an atmospheric piece that showed how human frailties can be exploited!

Release Date: October 24, 2023

📖📖📖📖

Widowed Georgina Drake has no regrets about moving to beautiful, sleepy Little Wenborough in rural Norfolk. Until she opens the door to her rental property and finds the dead body of her latest guest, irritable university professor Roland Garnett. And on top of that she’s suddenly hearing a woman’s voice through her hearing aids.

Completely shaken by the discovery, Georgina can hardly believe it when the police conclude that Professor Garnett was poisoned, with a dinner delivered by Georgina herself. Is she about to be accused of murder? Georgina needs to pull herself together, try to ignore the distracting voice, and clear her name!

Asking around, it seems Roland Garnett offended half the village during his three-week stay and made unwelcome advances to the rest. But who was provoked enough to poison him? Georgina’s best lead is the deadly oleander found in Roland’s system. Her gardener, Young Tom, had access to the plant, but before she can talk to him Tom becomes the killer’s next victim.

As the crimes mount up, so do the clues, but does Georgina have what it takes to follow them to their conclusion? Even when her amateur sleuthing puts her next in the killer’s sights…?
I really enjoyed this first story of the #georginadrakemysteries. The characters were enchanting and I love Doris’ story. I did figure out the killer but it wasn’t until the latter half of the book. I enjoyed the friendship of Georgina, Francesca and Sybil. I am very excited to see what happens in book 2 and found out if they will find Trev!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

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One of my first ever audiobooks and I have to say that half of the experience is in the narrator and their ability to tell a story, and tell the story she did. Fantastic storyline of a small town crime, small town suspects, and a group of girlfriends that got each other's back. What makes it even better? Rookery having its own resident ghost too! Georgina is on a mission to clear her name, help out her new friend Doris, and prove that her investigative skills are just as good as the DI assigned to the case.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

I enjoyed this cosy mystery. I loved the story! I also really enjoyed Georgina. Her character had so much depth.
Her friends are great also! I couldn’t put this book down! Great start to the series! The narrator was great also.

This was a super cute cozy and I can't wait to read what happens in the next one. I love that she was able to reunite the siblings by acting as an intermediary for them, once she convinced them she wasn't full of crap. I also love that she is trying to move on with her life after the death of her husband. This was my 1st book by Kate Hardy but it is not going to be my last, for sure!

#TheBodyatRookeryBarn
#NetGalley

The Body at Rookery Barn by Kate Hardy is such a cute and touching cozy mystery! It layered a modern whodunit with a cold case mystery flawlessly, and kept me guessing for pages and pages.

And even when I have figured out one and kept shouting at the protagonist, “Don’t do that!” (like I do at teenage horror flicks), I still had the other one to try to figure out.

And the cast of characters was so diverse, that I felt like almost everyone would have someone that could speak to them. That was an amazing gift that the author has!

I am not sure if the plot lines are part of the mystery…so I don’t want to spoil anything, but I will say that the protagonist, Georgina Drake is amazing, and she will be a great main character for this new cozy mystery series for Hardy!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for this audio ARC!!!

Many thanks to Net Galley and Dreamscape Select for an audio copy of The Body At Rookery Barn.

This is a mystery, a ghost story all in one. There is a murder by poisoning. And many suspects.

This is the first in a new cozy series, and the writer is trying to stick out in the crowd. In my opinion, she does everything right. Thank you, NetGalley for letting me read this!
The murder victim is the obvious one, which I approve of in cozies. The main character is a freelance photographer, and she is sympathetic and likable. There's a little romance and paranormal activity, but nothing silly. The mystery itself is interesting, and there are enough clues that I felt involved in helping figure out the murderer. I hope I read more of this writer later.

Georgina Drake is planning to clean her rental property for her next guests but she gets a nasty surprise when she finds the body of her last guest. It turns out the man was poisoned, and Kate was the last one to feed him. Desperate to prove her innocence, Georgina launches her own investigation and discovers that there are plenty of people who wanted the man dead, she just has to narrow down the list to the actual culprit. A delightfully charming cozy

I don't usually go in for cozy mysteries, but I thought that this one was really well done.


Review copy provided by publisher.