A Sedate Life..?
The first in the Sarah Vane Mystery series finds Sarah having settled in a small pretty seaside village, having great hopes for a quieter and more sedate way of life. What she doesn’t expect is the discovery of a very dead body in an unused beach hut. When it turns out that the body is that of the local pub landlord and that he was murdered, Sarah feels that she no choice but to investigate further. As she does so, the bodies begin to pile. Slow burn cosy crime with a nicely crafted cast of characters, a well imagined setting and an easy going pace. A promising start to a new series.

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for a copy of "Murder at an English Pub" in exchange for my honest review.

Sarah Vane is a retired doctor who has moved to Merstairs, Kent with her Scottie dog, Hamish after the death of her husband Peter. Her friend Daphne Roux from way back in boarding school is her next door neighbour. She can best be described as a rather loud, whirlwind.

When Sarah needs some extra space to store some of Peter's belongings that she hasn't had the heart to do something with, Daphne offers her the use of her beach hut. They soon find a dead body in the cluttered hut. The police are depicted as not the brightest, the area is barely cordoned off, and hardly any questions are asked.

Sarah comes up with a list of suspects and for an educated woman comes up with some odd theories. The story moves along at a rather slow pace and it would benefit from moving along at a faster pace. The best character of course is Hamish!!

This is the first book in a new series, and I'm in! I've read many cozies in the past few years that feature a smart, widowed woman retiring to the English countryside. Yes, it's a trope. But, it's also lovely to have a strong, smart woman on her own as a main character! I like Dr. Sarah Vane, and her ridiculous friend Daphne doesn't bug me too much. Daphne is just silly enough to make me feel Sarah's occasional frustration, but she's just warm and generous enough to make me like her anyway.

One thing that stands out to me as strange is the way they keep disqualifying suspects by virtue of the fact that "they weren't storing stuff in the hut at the time of the murder." Well, just because your team or club or group isn't officially meeting right at that moment--that doesn't mean you wouldn't take advantage of a handy spot to dump a body, does it? So there are a few illogical bits, in my opinion, but it's overall a lovely read. I'm looking forward to book 2.

Review copy provided by the publisher via Netgalley.

A new cosy series featuring a widowed retired GP, Sarah and her childhood friend Daphne. Chalk and cheese, Sarah and Daphne have opposite approaches to life. When they discover a dead body in Daphne’s beach hut. Sarah immediately wants to investigate much to the dismay of Daphne. Well drawn characters, with a strong sense of place. The story flows well, though Sarah’s naive approaches to solving the murder seem out of character for a well educated professional. Overall I liked the story, not too taxing, and very readable with likable characters.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance copy.

Sarah Vane has finally hung up her stethoscope and retired. She moved to the seaside where she planned to enjoy her retirement and life in Merstairs. Unfortunately life has other plans for Sarah as she and Daphne find the body of the local pub owner. With her less than stellar impression of the police and their efforts, Sarah puts on her sleuthing hat and tries to track down a ruthless killer. Can she reveal the killer before her retirement is cut short?

I have read the Beth Haldane series from this author and am EXCITED to have this new series come out. I cannot get enough of true British cozies and this is a great start to the new series!

Retired Doctor Sarah Vane moves to a small English seaside town after the death of her husband. When her old friend Daphne offers to store some of Sarah's things in her beach hut, they discover a dead body in a trunk. Sarah doesnt trust the inept police detectives to find the killer, so she sets out to solve the murder herself. This was a fast paced mystery that kept me glued to my kindle! I loved the setting, the writing style. the main characters, and the antics of Hamish the Scotty dog. What a fun start to this new series.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. I enjoy cozy mysteries and this is a fun start to a new series. Sarah is a widow who has moved to a quiet British seaside town and stumbles into not only one but two murders. There are some fun characters that I look forward to more development of, such as Sarah's quirky friend Daphne. I feel like the book was a little longer than it needed but being the first in a series, it did contain more exposition and "backstory" than future books will need. Also, there are quite a few British words and expressions that I was unfamiliar with, but this did not impede my enjoyment. This is a good setting for this type of book and look forward to future entries.

Murder at an English Pub in the first in a new series by Alice Castle, featuring a recently widowed and retired GP, Sarah. She and her Scottie dog, Hamish, have moved from London to live next door to her best friend of sixty years, Daphne, in Merstairs, Kent. Daphne is a larger than life character who always dresses in spectacularly colourful outfits and insists that the spirits from beyond tell her things. Sarah wants to store her late husband’s stuff somewhere and Daphne suggests a beach hut that she has recently purchased. The pair trot down to the hut in Chapter Two and find a body in one of the many boxes inside the hut. The two beat constables who turn up in response to Sarah’s 999 call are incompetent but Daphne’s daughter, Mariella, also works for the police and is much more efficient, but is very junior. As is traditional in such novels, Sarah decides she needs to solve the murder herself – well, with the aid of Daphne and Hamish, of course.

The title page describes it as “A completely gripping and addictive cozy mystery” but I wasn’t gripped and I’m not addicted. The writing is competent; the plot is OK; and the characters are beautifully depicted, with that last being the book’s strength. Every character stands out and I can picture them all in my mind. However… the only other thing that stands out is the stupidity of someone who is supposed to be a GP. For a (presumably) highly educated professional who needs to assess evidence and reach a diagnosis, Sarah does reach some mind-boggingly naive conclusions. How likely is it that a shop-keeper would murder a pub owner because the brewery delivery wagon hampers access to the shop for thirty minutes every so often? Sarah plans to meet a suspect in the pub; ask him questions and record the answers on her phone to play back to Mariella. Did Sarah expect the conversation to proceed along these lines; “Did you kill him?” “Well, how on earth did you guess? Yes, I did, but don’t tell anyone.” The conversation didn’t happen after all, but, if it had, how would it have progressed? After a bit of thought, Sarah tends to realise that her plans and suspicions are ill-founded and to back off. However, my point is that she should never have entertained them for a second. I’m accustomed to suspending my disbelief to read a novel, but there are limits! The ending felt rushed and also unrealistic.

Thank you very much for the free advance review copy, Bookouture and NetGalley. I’m sorry that the book and I weren’t suited.
#MurderatanEnglishPub #NetGalley

Following the death of her beloved husband, Peter, recently retired doctor, Sarah Vane and her Scottie dog, Hamish, have relocated to the small town of Merstairs on the Kent coast to a picturesque cottage next door to her best friend, Daphne. The two women have been friends since their schooldays and both are delighted with the new arrangement.

Daphne kindly offers to store some of Sarah’s moving boxes for her but the subsequent visit to the beach doesn't go quite according to plan after a body is discovered! When Sarah finds out the the victim was not universally loved she is unable to stop herself becoming involved in an investigation she’s sure the local police aren't up to solving. With the discover of a second body and a dangerous encounter it's clear someone thinks Sarah and Daphne are getting too close for comfort. If only the two friends were as confident!

A new cosy crime series is always an exciting prospect even if some are a bit of a let down! This absolutely doesn't fall into that category and was a very enjoyable read. Sarah is a, mostly, sensible and reliable main protagonist, while Daphne would drive me to distraction but is a great fictional partner in crime for her best friend. My only bugbear was that in all of the car journeys Hamish was never restrained, even sitting on Sarah’s lap in the front passenger seat for one trip! The investigation however was interesting, varied, and fast moving, and I will definitely be on the lookout for book 2.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Bookouture, but the opinions expressed are my own. This is a good start to what promises to be a fun and enjoyable new cosy series. 3.5 stars (because of the Hamish problem) rounded up to 4.

A 2cosy" murder story. Good strong characterization including Hamish, the dog. Plenty of humour, an easy read.

I would recommend this book as well-written, escapism I highly recommend this book for a murder mystery read with a very good cast of characters which will stay with you once you have finished reading the book.
This book is full of twists and turns, and surprises around every corner. The characters are skillfully drawn and remain quite memorable long after the unexpected conclusion.

Really enjoyed this gentle murder mystery. Quirky characters and a good seaside setting make this a good start to a new series. I look forward to reading the next mystery for Sarah to solve.

Dr Sarah Vane has moved to Merstairs, a quaint quiet little village, following the death of her husband. Whilst trying to store some of her husbands old clothing in a beach shed, she and her old friend Daphne stumble across a gruesome sight. After meeting the bumbling local police Sarah has little hope that they will solve the mystery and embarks on an investigation of her own.

The first 30 pages or so proceed with nary a mention of a pub and I was wondering if somehow I was reading the wrong book. The pub mentioned in the title does come into play but still seems like a slightly odd title choice.

This is a cosy small town/village murder mystery. Sarah is a likeable main character and Daphne makes for a fun eccentric sidekick. Although perhaps Hamish the dog is really the sidekick. It reads quite like a modern Miss Marple. The pacing is pretty good and it keeps you guessing with a few twists and turns.

Three and a half stars rounded up to four ⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance copy to review.