What's not to like about a book that has merriment, mistletoe, and murder. This is the third book of this series and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Love the Christmas theme, the mystery, the characters and the story itself. The magic of Sea Isle, Scotland is the perfect setting for this murder mystery.

A lead singer of a band murdered, plenty of suspects and Emilia trying to solve the mystery of not only the death/murder but what happened to the missing music? This is a fun, intriguing and mysterious story and I enjoyed it, was entertained by it and had fun reading it. This is a great cosy mystery series and as always I look forward to seeing what comes next.

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Land Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

It is Christmas time on the Sea Isle, one of the Scottish Islands and doctor Emilia McRoy is off for the entire month. Em hasn’t had Christmas off in years much less an entire month. What is she going to do to keep busy? Thank goodness Mara, best friend and manager of the Pig & Whistle, has plenty for Em to do in the way of festivities. Jasper, friend and owner of a local bakery, says that December is an entire month of cultural events and after all, Scots love a party. The last thing that Em figured she would be doing is an autopsy and helping to solve a murder. Big time band Bram and the Stokers have agreed to play at the Pig & Whistle. It turns out that lead singer Bram and band member Render (also known as Hamish) are local boys who have made it good. Bram is a charismatic lead singer who sang beautifully, was easy on the eyes, and such the charmer. It is a pity that someone ended his life earlier than necessary; in fact he did not have much time left.

This cozy is sweet and a tiny bit tart, just like Cathan, the multi layered Scottish dessert that Em enjoys at the pub the night that the band played their last, and most amazing set. The entire band and the band’s manager Davy, agreed that the last set was magical and the all agree that they have no idea who could have killed Bram. So of course that means that the each band member is a suspect, especially Destinee, the only woman in the band who may have had feelings for Bram, feelings that weren’t taken seriously. The band manager, Davy, seems a bit cold and even Machiavellian with his ideas of how the band can continue to tour with Bram’s voice dubbed in for performances. Lastly, it seems that the Laird, Mayor, and constable, Ewan Campbell had history with Bram that included some infidelity on the part of Ewan’s then fiancée. No one believes that Ewan has anything to do with the murder, especially not the Doc, ask Ewan likes to call her, but with such a high profile case, the higher ups send Detective Inspector Bethany Thompson, to make sure the investigation is 100% by the book.

This is another well written Scottish Isle Mystery that does a great job as a stand-alone. There is plenty of backstory to explain, for the most part, why Doc Em has left Seattle and taken up as the resident doctor on Sea Isle, Scotland. Em needed to start over and she has found a new place that feels like home. Em has friends who are there for her. They are there to help investigate, although Em repeatedly states that she is only investigating the medical side of things …right (said in a drawn out way). In addition to great friends, there is the back and forth between Em and Ewan that has all the makings of a slow burn. This cozy series has all the cozy feels and an accent that is really fun to try and replicate in my mind while reading. The one thing that I was successful in creating is the Cathan recipe which was as enjoyable as this story.

Emilia, Seattle transplant to the Highlands is a combination of Quincy MD and Shetland. In her post as local doctor and coroner, she has come up against some very unusual murders. As she and her friend Mara transport the members of a popular band to Sea Isle, little did she expect she would be investigating not one but two murders. And this time constable Ewan seems willing to work with her.

The murders are very clever. The band is just about to start an American tour that will launch their careers into the stratosphere but there are forces at work underneath the surface that might destroy it all. Whilst they give the performance of their lives, problems are swirling. Could one of the band members have committed the murders? Why would they do so as the band sat on the cusp on superstardom.? Might there be someone else in the shadows. When Ewan is attacked and Emilia is followed and someone breaks into her office, the need to solve the mystery increases. When the villain is revealed, it is as much as surprise to Em as the reader when we learn the motive.

Good suspenseful story with interesting characters and a great locale. Five purrs and two paws up.

Thank you to NetGalley, Crooked Lane Books and Lucy Connelly for the opportunity to read an ARC for Death at a Scottish Christmas. This is my honest and unpaid review of the book. I am thoroughly loving this series. Each time I read one I am transported to this small Scottish village, in the snow and I wish I could actually be there. Except for the murders, it seems quite idyllic! The author always describes food in the books so I recommend having some kind of scottish delicacies on hand, or pub/ tearoom food or else you'll end up hungry. I really like the main character as she is a strong and intelligent woman who is making a new life for herself after some personal setbacks. The other characters in the book are great as they provide some colourful background to a snowy setting.

In just months American doctor Emilia McRoy has become an important part of the Sea Isle, Scotland community. She has developed friendships that have become like family. When she is asked to help transport a band that is scheduled to perform in town after their transport breaks down, it gives her a chance to meet Bram, the lead singer. The morning after their performance she finds him sitting on the cold beach. When she approaches she realizes that he is dead. McRoy is the town’s doctor and also the coroner. An examination reveals an injection site that led to an embolism. An investigator is sent from Edinburgh to take over the case from Ewan Campbell, the local constable. Ewan had a history with Bram and is considered a suspect. McCray, however, is certain that a member of the band was involved. While they were a close group, they had also been involved in arguments and fights. Bram was responsible for writing their songs, but lately he stumbled over words and forgot lyrics. The band also complained about his erratic behavior. When McRoy sends for his medical records they reveal a diagnosis that he kept from his bandmates and their manager. She has been asking questions and now she is being followed by a shadowy figure, her labs have been broken into and Ewan is attacked outside her home. A second murder tied to the band is committed in the same manner as Bram’s putting pressure on McRoy to find answers before anyone else dies.

McRoy has been drafted by one of her friends to assist with holiday celebrations. Lucy Connelly’s descriptions of the week leading up to Christmas is filled with songs, food and holiday lights. While there are threats against McRay’s safety, her friends are there for her and Ewan, who she considers a close friend, leaves her feeling that there may be more between them than friendship. It is a relationship that is developing and I can not wait for their next adventure. With warm friendships and holiday cheer, along with a mystery that keeps you guessing, this is a perfect holiday treat. I would like to thank NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for providing this book.

Excellent installment in one of my go-to cozy series. I thought the mystery was really good and well paced and definitely kept me guessing. Great read!

Enjoyed this one very much, another great cozy mystery from author Lucy Connelly. Never disappoints, highly recommend

I love this series and all the characters, the setting is so cozy and I love Scotland! It's one of my favorite series so I hope it goes for a while and doesn't end to soon!

I really enjoyed the third book in The A Scottish Isle Mysteries series featuring an American ex-pat, Dr. Emilia McRoy, living in Sea Isle, Scotland and working as a local doctor and coroner. The characters are fun and interesting and very colorful, and the mysteries are intriguing with some great red herrings. Also, Sea Isle is a character within itself, and a place I would love to visit.
This book can be read as a standalone, but I recommend reading them all for maximum enjoyment.

Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias or favor or expectation.

This was a well-written cozy mystery with an intriguing plot about a band member who mysteriously dies on the beach. It has a CSI or Diagnosis Murder vibe. It was so good I couldn’t put it down. The characters were very complex; making it hard to pin down the killer. The main character, Doc Em, along with her assistant and the local constable, figure out how the man and his manager were killed and who was behind their demise. This book also touches on the subject of early-onset Alzheimer’s and the devastating effects of the disease in younger patients. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series!

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

3 1/2 stars. A holiday cozy mystery set on a Scottish Isle filled with seasonal cheer and celebrations (and even though it is called a Scottish Christmas there were observations for a number of different seasonal holidays so you probably won't feel left out). There were quirky characters, good friends, the requisite snow storm that stranded people in town and of course a murder. And the female lead, a doctor for the town plus its coroner may be an amateur detective but she actually has a good reason to be investigating murder as its coroner.

On top of that Emilia and Ewan continue their snipping which obviously hid an attraction that neither was willing to acknowledge (hopefully that will change in future books).

I was disappointed in the culprit. I was really hoping that it would be someone different and a surprise twist at the end. But, oh well, you can't get everything to go the way you want. It was still a good read and I will be back for more.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

Sea Isle is a Scottish community that celebrates all the winter holidays in full force. It's also the hometown of several members of Bram and the Stokers, a popular indie folk band, that plays at a local pub to try out some new music in preparation to a US stadium tour. Unfortunately the lead singer is found dead the next morning. Was it suicide or murder?

Having a cozy mystery lead by a doctor/coroner instead of a cupcake baker or a dog walker opens up all kinds of possibilities and complexities. The cause of death was unusual and interesting. I really liked that aspect.

I didn't realize when I requested this book that it was part of a series. main character's full name isn't used until 85% of the book which I guess isn't an issue if you've read the first two. The author does give some backstory information but I am pretty sure the ending of book #2 is spoiled in several places.

There were quite a few repetitive words/phrases and some timeline jumping that I hope were corrected before release date. There were also a few things left unresolved that seemed germane to the plot but were then never addressed. <spoiler>For example, the painting Bram bought in town that no one knew was painted by his father? Was Desiree being poisoned at the B&B? How do people keep breaking into that church/house/hospital and why aren't there security cameras and motion detection lights on the property?</spoiler>

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for the advance reader copy. I am required by law to disclose this.

Death at a Scottish Christmas is the third in the Scottish Isle Mystery Series. It can be read as a stand-alone, though.

Dr. Emilia McRoy moved from America to Scotland for a fresh start. She became the small town doctor in Sea Isle. Emilia is thrilled to be experiencing a Scottish Christmas, having not celebrated much while she was in America.

Emilia has a month off work for the holidays, and she's wondering what she's going to do with herself. But, when she finds the lead band member of a local Scottish band dead on the beach, she finds she suddenly doesn't have so much time on her hands anymore, as the local coroner, she finds herself assisting with the investigation.

I enjoy this cozy mystery series, I love the Scottish small town setting and enjoyed learning more about Scottish celebrations.

The mystery was interesting. There were several possible suspects and motives. I had a small inkling as to who might be the culprit but never fully figured it out.

The doctor is a great main character, but the secondary characters are all amazing as well. They all add so much to the warmth and coziness of this story.

I'd definitely recommend this one for fans of cozies.

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books for the advanced digital copy of this book. My opinions are my own. I paired this one with the audiobook Kimberly M. Wetherell  did a phenomenal job narrating this story.

It’s Christmas time in Sea Isle, Scotland and the festivities are ho ho ho hoing away. The merriment ends for both Em and Ewan a famous singer is found murdered in town and Ewan becomes a suspect. Can Em figure out who killed the singer and why? Or is the Grinch going to win this one and send you one to prison for a murder she knows he didn’t commit.

I have loved this series since the first entry. Every book is a trip to Scotland and I love solving the mystery along with Em. The only thing I wish is that Em and Ewan we just get together already. These two have been dancing around a relationship for far too long at this point. Especially at their age. Hopefully that’ll be rectified in the next entry. Can’t wait!

“Death at a Scottish Christmas” is the nicely done third book in Lucy Connelly’s Scottish Isle cozy mystery series. In this book it is Dr. Emilia McRoy’s first Christmas in Scotland, and she is determined to enjoy it as much as she can – taking part in as many events as possible. She is supposed to have a month of from her duties as doctor and coroner but when a body turns up, she finds herself investigating yet another murder. Connelly does a great job of describing Sea Isle and I felt like I was right there alongside Em, Abigail, Ewan, and others as they investigated the murder. The mystery is well done with just the right amount of suspects, twists, and turns, and the right amount of suspense. Truthfully, I was a bit sad when I found out who the killer was. All of this was well done by Connelly and I was sorry when my visit to Sea Isle ended – I look forward to my next visit there.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley.

Such a fun cozy mystery series. I love that Emily is intelligent and strong headed. I love Sea Isle and its residents. The mystery of this one was pretty good. I will definitely read/listen to the next book. While you could read this before the other 2 I do feel you’d enjoy it more after reading the first 2 books.

**Thanks to the author and publisher for the e-arc I received via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.**

As strong as the others in the series. The setting is still possibly the most captivating part, but the unique balance of cozy /police procedural/medical examiner is very good. The characters are well-done and believable. A good mystery as well.

I received an ARC of this title from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love this series so much and it just keeps getting better! The tension just keeps building between Emilia and Ewan and I can't wait to see what happens next!

What I loved:
* Christmas in Scotland
* Em doing her job WHICH enables her to also be extra nosy ;-)
* The mystery was very good and kept me guessing [and in the end I. WAS. WRONG. How glorious].
* Em watches ALL of my favorite British crime shows [I LOVE it when they mention them, especially Vera!!].
* I love all of the side characters in these books; how they have accepted Em from day one and how they've become her family and love her [and each other] fiercely. They are the glue that holds these books together.

What didn't work for me:
* This isn't a reflection on the author, but the publisher/proofreader. I expect some mistakes, because we are all human, but this book really suffered from some editing issues [namely mis-naming people, having Em do one thing and then do it again several sentances later etc] which was very glaring when listening to the audiobook [as the excellent narrator READ THEM all as written], and after awhile, got kind of old.
* There was WAY more repetition in this one than there has been in the previous books; sometimes within the same paragraph and it really unnecessary. We are not 5. We do not need to be told the same thing over and over again [this was all super frustrating along with the editing issues].
* The very rushed reveal and the actual reveal itself. It was pretty anticlimactic and didn't have any of the excitement that typically comes with a reveal and so it was disappointing.
* While I will not mind if Em and Ewan get together, it is the getting there that is so juvenile. It all felt so high schol and I'd love to see that handled better.
* That ending!! WHAT???? Ergh.

Even with what didn't work for me, this was still a good read - the positives [mostly] outweighed the negatives and I enjoyed my "visit" to Scotland and being with Em and Co. at Christmastime [even though it was 70+ and October when I was reading LOL] and I am very much looking forward to book 4!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Lucy Connelly, and Crooked Lane Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this story and the wonderful description of the Scottish scenery - made me proud to live here. I do love a good mystery and this was, for me, a wonderful mystery with all its twists and turns.