This book is the first in a series about Detective Warren, who is barely settling in to his new job when he's called to a fire on a small farm. There's a body, but the barn was securely locked from the inside. We follow Warren as he investigates this and gets to know the residents of the small town. I particularly liked one resident, Alice, who is a brilliant woman who likes to garden. I really enjoyed the book, especially the ending, and I'll be looking for the next one in the series. I'd recommend it to those who enjoy historical police procedurals when things like DNA and computers were not available. But at least they had cars! :)

Set in Bethany, Vermont in 1965, Agony Hill is the first book in a new series. After reading it I can say that this series is off to a good start.

Police detective, Franklin Warren, leaves Boston to move to Bethany, Vermont to take a new job with the Vermont State Police. He is ready for a new start after suffering a tragedy and a small town in rural Vermont seems like a good place to start. Warren, as he is called, is still unpacking when he gets a call that a local farmer, Hugh Weber, has died from a fire in his locked barn. The police initially rule it as a suicide but then began to realize that it was actually a murder. But how could the killer murder Hugh, start the fire and then escape with the barn door bolted from the inside and no other way out?

As Warren begins investigating he realizes that more than one person in Bethany and the surrounding area have secrets, including Hugh’s wife. Agony Hill has a strong sense of place and rural Vermont is really brought to life. It is a time of change because the Vietnam war is heating up and an interstate is coming to their town and that will change everything. Hugh is a bit of a drinker and a crackpot and he is protesting the interstate. The Townspeople are wary of him. He has also had an altercation with a former friend, so there are several suspects in his murder. Warren also has a widowed neighbor, Alice Bellows who is an amateur detective with secrets of her own.

If you enjoy mysteries with a strong sense of place, small town secrets and an intriguing locked room murder, you will enjoy Agony Hill. I am looking forward to the next book in this new series.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the advanced reading copy.

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This Cover definitely gives spooky vibes but this is more of a cozy mystery, which i was not disappointed. I definitely wanted to read this by the cover!

Set in Vermont 1960 you follow a man who moves to a new town and all his neighbors since he is new are very nosy! The one neighbor has a very mysterious past of their own.

This book was very well written and kept you engaged. Thank you NetGalley for letting me read and review. Cannot wait to find and read more by this author.

Agony Hill by Sarah Stewart Taylor is billed as the first novel in a new historical series, and it is a satisfying read by an accomplished author.
The story is set in 1960s small town Bethany, Vermont, which is already experiencing unrest re the Cold War and the Vietnam conflict. There is plenty of history to mine and use as a framework for this excellent police procedural.
The characters are well developed and relatable. Boston PD transplant Franklin Warren is the new State Police detective, tasked with solving a mysterious death, and he carries the story, while the townspeople of Bethany have a lot of opinions and a lot to hide.
This is a very good murder mystery and is a character driven tale, showing good insight into the day to day doings in a small town. Reading on, it felt like I knew these people! This is great storytelling, and there is a lot of humanity that is lent to a complex criminal case, occuring in a pretty unsettled time in US history.
I look forward to the next book in the series!

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the DRC. This is my honest review.

They say you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, the same can be said by not judging a book by it's title. Agony Hill sounds like it might be a horror story, but it is not that at all. Agony Hill is the first volume of what I hope is a long series of cozyish mystery books. Set in an imaginary village in Vermont in the 1960's, the primary characters are a law man who is new to town and escaping something in his past and his nosy neighbor who has a mysterious past of her own. The only thing bad about discovering a new series is when you realize that you have to wait for the next book to be published.

A haunted by his past Warren moves into a new town, Bethany to work as a detective with the state police. As soon as he arrives there is a fire in a barn on a local farm and Hugh Weber is inside the bard dead. Now it is up to Warren to investigate whether the fire and death were an accident or a murder cover-up. He begins by talking to the family and then with the community's people, and he hears several questions about Hugh and how strange he is. This is a very well-written police procedural and it shows all of the steps and the clues that he is finding out talking to the community's people while solving a few small mysteries as well.
This is a story about the communities that know everyone's secrets and everyone has something to hide, Warren is doing well by getting all the information and putting different clues together while he tries to solve the murder case.
This book has a hometown feel and the story was well written, I enjoyed the aspects of all the people of the community with the dynamic characters. It's a great story and well-written! Thank you Netgalley and Minotaur Books for the extraordinary opportunity to read and review this one!

I’m usually not a detective novel type of person. I tend to find them tedious and dry. However, this book was not that at all. I think the historical setting and the dual perspectives were very helpful in making this a memorable mystery.

I enjoyed the rural setting of Vermont. My in-laws live there so I have many good memories of time spent there. I thought the characters were complex but also likable. I was rooting for many of them, especially Frank Warren. I like how he was sympathetic and didn’t rush to conclusions when that seemed like the most likely scenario.

I have the next book in the series preordered. I can’t wait to return to this small town.

The New England setting was an immediate draw for the first novel in Sarah Stewart Taylor’s new series. Set in Vermont during the 1960s in the small town of Bethany, a new detective with the state police has arrived from Boston. Franklin Warren's arrival is perfectly timed as the small town begins to feel the growing pains of a new interstate nearby bringing new people and new problems amidst the growing national spread of war protests. His first case involves the death of a local farmer and transplanted New Yorker, Hugh Weber, who died in a fire at his barn. While trying to determine if his death was deliberate or a murder, Warren gets to know Weber’s widow, the local residents and their secrets. The interconnected drama between the residents and the backstory of the tragedy that brought Warren to Vermont adds to the intrigue in Agony Hill.

A historical mystery full of interesting characters and detailed descriptions of the small town setting and all the secrets. A few loose threads and the hint of an attraction between the detective and the widow create a perfect setup for the next in the series.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced readers copy.

I loved this book but i am not sure how to review it. I don't want to give anything away. I guess I will simply say that I think you will enjoy it too!

First I would like to thank Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this kindle book to read and review.

This is the first in a new series by this author and I will definitely continue to read it as more books arrive on the market. I did take me a while to get this read and it is no reflection on the story, but rather my lack of time to just sit and read.

I really enjoyed the characters and look forward to getting to know them more. The story line was intriguing and kept my attention. Very well written, not too wordy, interesting characters and timeline. I recommend this story to anyone who likes a good mystery.

This first story in a new historical mystery series by Sarah Stewart Taylor introduces former Boston Detective, Franklin Warren. He’s recently moved to Bethany, Vermont, settling into what he hopes is a quieter life and less-demanding job. He’s taken a position as a detective for the State Police and plans to get to know the town and the people and start into the job slowly. Maybe just a traffic stop or two.

Too quickly for him, he’s called to his first major investigation. Hugh Weber, a local farmer, was killed in a barn fire, and the situation is odd to say the least. The barn door was locked from the inside. So, was it a suicide? An Accident? As the investigation proceeds, Warren finds out that Weber was a complicated man with many secrets and rather odd behavior. Weber has left four sons and a wife; who doesn’t seem all that aggrieved at the loss.

Presented as a classic, “locked-door mystery” the journey from first discovery to solution is a well-paced story with more than just the mystery to keep a reader’s attention. I enjoyed the backstory on the various characters that was revealed in small doses as Warren considered who might have wanted to kill Weber.

The book is written from multiple points of view, which is popular now in fiction, allowing each character to give their slant on the story. In addition to Warren, I was drawn to Sylvie, the widow, and Alice Bellows who lives next to Warren. She, too, is a widow and an amateur detective. I suspect she will play a role in forthcoming books, and I look forward to reading more from her and Sylvie. There is a hint of something to happen in the future between Warren, a widower, and Sylvie.

Maybe?

Agony Hill, the place in Vermont is aptly named, as is the title. Some of the troubled characters must climb their own agony hill to resolve whatever traumas they’ve experienced, especially Warren. The setting is deftly created, with sights and sounds to draw a reader in, and I enjoyed the rural setting, visiting a town fair and tasting the homemade jams. It was also so nice to travel back to the 1960s and remember the good parts, as well as be reminded that all was not rosy back then.

Thanks to St. Martin/Minotaur and NetGalley for the ARC so I could read and review the book.

Out now! Delayed in reviewing this one :D

Thank you to St Martin's Press/ Minotaur for the ARC, I also bought the audio because I was excited to read this one on audio.

I really liked this story!

A heads up: "Mud Season" is a short story about the town busybody: Alice Bellows and I found it was zero pennies on Amazon so I read it before reading this one and it added a lot of back story about Alice; totally not necessary to read it first though!

I liked Franklin Warren's character; he is dealing with some trauma in his past and trying to start fresh in a new, small town in Vermont. This community is very close knit and he gets thrown in with the local police to try and solve an apparent arson-- or is it? When a second fire occurs he thinks something malicious is going on in this small town. But those local police want to shut this down as quickly as possible.

The writing and the story kept me turning pages to see where this would end up. I loved that Alice showed up for her town, trying to solve a crime to protect a boy's reputation. I loved the character development of these two main characters. I loved the development of the setting, the community is its own aspect to the story.

Side note on genres: This has a "thriller" tag on Goodreads but 100% is: mystery, police procedural and historical. I don't think there was really any thrill.

Agony Hill was an intriguing read that balances tension and emotional depth. As Officer Franklin Warren arrives in the small town of Bethany, he is immediately called to a crime scene. With the discreet help of his neighbor,Alice Bellows, Franklin begins putting together the pieces of Hugh Webers' death. I am looking forward to seeing where the next book will take these characters.

Taking readers back to small town bucolic Vermont during the riotous 60s, Taylor depicts a time that will never come again.
Everyone knows everyone else in this little village but it still harbors secrets.
I enjoyed getting to know the residents of Bethany and all their quirks and sins.
Sometimes we have to overlook to overcome and keep waking on.

Thank you Minotaur Books, #partner, for the advanced copy of Agony Hill in exchange for my honest review.

This is the first book in Sarah Stewart Taylor’s new Franklin Warren series and I am a fan! I first became a fan of this author with her Maggie D’Arcy series and love that this one brings new characters, a new setting and a new time period!

Historical mysteries have become a new favorite sub-genre and I have a feeling this just might become one of my new favorite series. Already I am loving the characters we have met and feel that the author has done a magnificent job drawing out the time period of this book. It’s not too often I read books set in the 1960s and I loved being immersed in this world. It’s a volatile time and she’s already started laying the groundwork for some changes that are coming that will bring disruption to the town. The writing is steeped in small-town atmosphere and secrets, and we have just started to scratch the surface of some of those secrets.

I loved that as this is the first book in the series, we are introduced to a lot of characters but focused on just a few. I have a feeling that Detective Franklin Warren and Alice Bellows will be the main characters of this series and that makes me so happy. Both have such interesting back stories that leave me wanting more.

In this first book, the case Warren is involved in isn’t quite as clear cut as it first appears to be. And as Warren and his team dig into the case, with amateur sleuth Alice Bellows doing her part, they all soon find out that the quirky residents of the town aren’t always who they seem to be at first glance.

I loved the way this one played out, with the main mystery solved and some threads left hanging loose. This is why I love reading series…these unresolved threads that take one, two or even multiple books to finally find closure.

I am a huge fan of Sarah Stewart Taylor's Maggie D'Arcy series, so I was excited to hear about her new series starting with Agony Hill.

Sarah Stewart Taylor can write an atmospheric setting like no other; in this book it is rural Vermont in the 1960’s. I absolutely loved the small town setting.

Warren is newly arrived in the small town of Bethany, Vermont to start his new job as a detective with the state police. Warren is sympathetic and tortured and has great main character energy.

The mystery is interesting, but was easy for me to figure out.

The setting, the hero, and a bunch of quirky townsfolk creates the perfect foundation for an engaging new mystery series.

This was an enjoyable, first in a new series book about a Boston detective who moves to a small Vermont town where he is immediately presented with the death of a farmer which may be a suicide or a murder. The setting in a small farming town in the 1960s is interesting and I did like the characters. My favorite was the older woman who lives next door to the detective. I’d be interested in seeing more of her in future books! A good start to a series and I’m looking forward to the next one!

Agony Hill by Sarah Stewart Taylor is a mystery that reads like literary fiction and is one of my few 5-star reads this year. I enjoyed this book and was especially intrigued by the breadcrumbs dropped to set the stage for subsequent books in the series. There’s a commune/cult just outside of town, Alice—the elderly neighbor who is more than meets the eye—and, of course, our protagonist, Detective Franklin Warren, who brings his own dark past.

The novel is slow-paced, which works well. It’s set in summer and captures that “too hot to move” feeling that is so familiar. The story is very much rooted in the 1960s and evocative of small-town life—how quick people are to jump to conclusions or gossip about your business. But they are eager to mind their business when it comes time to help if helping means rocking the boat. I recommend Agony Hill to those who might enjoy a police procedural that’s a little outside the box and can’t rely on the forensic evidence that has become so familiar to us.

I received this Advanced Reader Copy of Agony Hill from St. Martin's Press / Minotaur Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a lot.
The Agony Hill to me is more like agony mountain when I finished. However, please do not take my word for it because it has a lot of potential. I have read that this is the first book of the series and who knows how the story will progress. So, let's break it down.

Hugh Webber- a local farmer who was found dead from a fire in his barn that was locked which raise the question of the investigation if he was murdered or took matters into his own hands.
Sylvie- the wife of the dead Hugh Webber
Franklin Warren- the detective. He was kinda a newbie in town that was brought to work with the local sheriff's office since the crime in this little town are progressing. Thus, Warren's expertise from Boston experience with more crime comes to place.
Alice Bellows- another amateur detective that plays a role in solving the town's mysteries.
Other characters- there were too many supporting characters that I lost track.

The location was in Vermont sometime in the 60's. I love the small town story. It was very descriptive and graphically picturesque and I can hardly call the plot as a full suspense mystery since it gives me the cozy atmosphere. However, the whole thing did not work for me. I can read it as slow paced- or maybe it was me that was slow because I am having a hard time comprehending. I am interested on how the other characters will be developed as the series goes.
Will I read the next book? Maybe.
Overall, it has a lot of potential as I previously say. It is definitely worth the time.

What a beautifully atmospheric, small town, police procedural mystery! Set in 1965, the Vietnam war and subsequent protests are very much a part of the narrative. I enjoyed getting to know Warren as he got to know the people in the town. The town was so richly and vividly portrayed that I felt as if I was there. Agony Hill is deeply character driven, however the plot, to my surprise and delight, had some lovely layers, as not all in the town are who they seem to be. I also loved Mrs. Alice Bellows - an unassuming elderly widow, she is kind and caring, observant, intuitive and clever. I found myself looking forward to what she might be getting into. I’m thrilled this is book one of a new series!