When a gruesome murder rocks the picture-perfect English village of Raven’s Edge, the evidence begins to point to Milla’s old friend and former lover rock star Lorcan Black & she must choose between her loyalties to the past and the possibilities of the future. Meanwhile, DI Ben Taylor is on a different trail – he’s begun to suspect that the murderer could be someone from his own family's dark history & his family is being targeted.
The second book in the series & I read it straight after finishing book one. I must admit I much preferred it to the first book too. In this book we learn more about Ben’s family & the events from fifteen years ago. As events unfold links are made to the robbery when Ben was fifteen. There are twists, turns & red herrings before things are gradually revealed & the ending is a surprise I wasn’t expecting. I warmed far more to the characters & feel the books would be best read in order. I look forward to more books in the series, to see how all the relationships both professional & personal develop
My review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

This is the second book by Louise Marley set in Raven’s Edge and is just as good as the first one. Milla Graham has settled into Raven’s Edge but starts sleuthing when there is a gruesome murder in the picturesque village. Her friend Lorcan Black has recently moved into the village and becomes the prime suspect but things aren’t how they seem. She has also recently broken up with police officer Ben Taylor who is part of the team investigating the case. He has always tried to distance himself from his notorious family but it’s looking like they are the ones being targeted. This is a gritty page turner that has so many twists and turns. I loved the way how everyone is connected is weaved into the story. Although I would recommend reading book one the characters and events in that book are well covered. Thanks to Storm Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Murder at Ravenswood House by Louise Marley is a multi-POV mystery and direct continuation of Murder at Raven’s Edge. Milla goes to meet her ex-boyfriend, Lorcan, to later learn that he is the estranged cousin of her current beau, detective Ben. Meanwhile, a murder from Ben’s past is rearing its head up again as the reader learns more about his family and the role they played in a robbery and kidnapping.

What I liked was how we got to see Ben’s family’s issues whereas we saw Milla’s family in the previous book. Ben has several cousins that he doesn’t really have a relationship with and Lorcan, in particular, has very little contact with the family and is a singer who’s third studio album bombed when he did a concept change. Another cousin runs a driving school with his wife and sister-in-law.

The other thing I liked was how the flashbacks were set up, giving us glimpses into what happened fifteen years ago and what led us to the current day. Ben’s father and uncles invaded a home in order to get cash and a man ended up dead. Ben continues to feel guilt about this death and his part in the family’s crimes.

I would recommend this to fans of Murder at Raven’s Edge and readers looking for a mystery with a strong established romantic relationship subplot.

A lovely gentle read set around Halloween. Beautifully written book with well crafted characters. Thanks to Storm Publishing and NetGalley for the chance to ARC this book.

The beginning had me hooked from the moment we met Mila. She is the kind of character who you will never know what will do next. I enjoyed her relationship with Ben and his interactions with his investigative team.
I thought Ben was smart and liked how he didn't jump to conclusions even when what happened seemed obvious.
It did drag a bit in the middle for me, and I think if I had read the first book I would have been able to understand Mila's actions and motivations a bit better which did have me confused during parts of the story. I did really enjoy uncovering all the info about Ben's family and his past, and thought the mystery was well plotted and I didn't figure it out until it was revealed.
I will definitely go back and read book one, and be reading any future installments in this series.

Murder at Ravenswood House
by Louise Marley
Pub Date: May 07 2024

Murder at Ravenswood House is the second book in Marley's English Village Mystery series, which is a British Cozy-ish Mystery that features a music journalist who finds herself at odds with her policeman boyfriend. It has many twists and turns, a mystery that balances the suspects, clues and red herrings and will leave you pondering the whodunit until the final reveal. It kept me guessing until the final page! A great follow-up to the first book. I'm looking forward to book 3.

Synopsis: A gruesome murder in charming Raven’s Edge sends Milla Graham sleuthing to catch a killer, win back her detective ex, and dig up a decades-old secret along the way...

Many thanks to #MurderatRavenswoodHouse #NetGalley and #StormPublishing for providing me with an E-ARC of this book.

The 2nd book in the series, which unfortunately for Ben, brings his family heritage to the fore. Family reunions, murders, village history and tales of folklore makes for an interesting case for Ben and Harriet to solve. Plenty of action and humour throughout. Well recommended. I received an ARC copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to @rachelsrandomresources for my copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Just as good as book 1 in the series, more murder, family secrets that just keep on coming and legends that come to life at Halloween time - what’s not to love!

Milla and Ben are together, someone is trying to intimidate his family and he needs to stop the Horseman before it’s too late. Oh and work out why the new local resident is found covered in blood in a church. Honestly, there is so much going on in this one, you can’t put it down. The writing style of these is fab, I love the little snippets of history between chapters that are their own story throughout.

I really enjoyed both of these and am super excited for the next one in the series, will definitely be adding this author to my list of favourites.

Although second in a series this reads equally as well as a standalone as the author gives enough backstory to the main characters that you are not left puzzling out relationships.
The return of a rock star to a small town followed by the discovery of a headless corpse at the village pond has tongues wagging and locals trying to tie the mysterious happenings to the wealth of ghost stories and legends surrounding the area.
Dotting between the present and the past, from the headless corpse via the mysterious sword wielding highwayman to an older crime involving similar costumes the truth is unfolded in a glorious way via the official investigation and the interference of Milla, trying to protect her ex, her current and herself!

Murder at Ravenswood House is the second book in Louise Marley’s An English Village Mystery series.

Although this was the second book in the series it is easily read as a standalone, I did not feel lost in any way not having read the first novel.

The novel is told from multiple points of view, but the main character is Milla (Camilla) Graham, a young journalist who is at loose ends after having recently returned to her hometown of Raven’s Edge. She has no job, and with a rich father no need to rush out looking for one. Instead, she uses her investigative skills as an amateur sleuth.

I quite enjoyed this story except for Mila’s actions in the first chapters. Even for an amateur sleuth in a cozy mystery, her actions seemed out f the ordinary, and not in a good way. I don’t want to spoil anything by saying what she did, but if you read it, I think you’ll know. How she didn’t end up in jail by the end of the book is beyond me. That one action really almost caused me to stop reading.

Once I was able to set that bit aside and continued reading, I really enjoyed the mystery and the townspeople of Raven’s Edge. The people were quirky, and interesting, providing a wide array of suspects.

I did find the story dragged on a bit at times, and at first wondered about the secondary mystery that was hinted at throughout the book, but the author tied everything together at the end and made it all make sense.

I would recommend this book to lovers of cozy mysteries.

This was a great book 2 in this new series, we get to continue with our same main characters but also get some additional ones. I think Louise did a great job making book 2 very strong with lots of character development and history very much like book 1 though for me this one was my favorite so far.

contemporary, small-town, smoke-and-mirrors, secrets, lies, twisty, investigations, false-information, local-gossip, local-law-enforcement, local-legends, family-dynamics, family-history, rural, local-history, cozy-mystery, procedural, wry-humor, sly-humor, relationship-issues, relationships, relatives, England*****

The trouble with small towns is not that you know everyone, but that everyone thinks they know you.
DI Ben Taylor is in the village of Raven's Edge to investigate a rather bizarre murder in abandoned manor house only very recently occupied by Lorcan, music journalist Milla Graham's ex-boyfriend (now a Goth rock star). Ben and Milla are together at the beginning of the book, and that irritates both DS Harriet and shady PI Drake who is ex-police. All this plus a headless body in the pond, an abundance of blood in the chapel, and a notorious town history of highwaymen and witches. Lots of twists and a totally blindsiding ending! Super!
I requested and received a free temporary EARC from Storm Publishing via NetGalley. Thank you!

Murder at Ravenswood House is the second in the English Village Mystery Book series.
A body has been found in town in a gruesome manner and the clues are misleading. DI Ben Taylor has distanced himself from his dodgy family but this case seems to be linked to the Elliots’ past. Ben and Milla have broken up over her dishonesty and they are both miserable.
I enjoy this author very much. She tells the story in the present and past and it is very absorbing. I did not figure out the murderer - a very well constructed mystery.

Cozy, small town mystery with a great twist. Has a good bunch of well developed characters and a great story line.

I did find it dragging a bit through the middle and had to force myself to pay attention more than once, but very happy with how everything turned out.

3.5⭐

British Cozy-ish Mystery that finds a music journalist and her policeman boyfriend are at odds when her rock star ex is implicated in a gruesome crime connected to the village's dark past.

4/5 stars: This is the second entry in Marley's English Village Mystery series, which is a British Cozy-ish Mystery that features a music journalist who finds herself at odds with her policeman boyfriend after she makes a gruesome discovery at her her rock star ex's home and when he's found covered in blood she's on the case which is connected to the cop's notorious family history and the village's dark past. With plenty of twists and turns, Marley has crafted a mystery that balances the suspects, clues and red herrings and will leave you pondering the whodunit until the final reveal. Marley manages to mix the new murder investigation with solving a cold case effortlessly. I really liked the addition of the Gothic elements, Eddie the raven's awesome. Told in multiple POVs and utilizing flashbacks, Marley's writing and character work is great; the characters are well-rounded and complex while remaining incredibly likable. The main POVs are Milla and Ben, a local policeman, with additional POVs added in the present, Ben's co-worker Harriet, and in flashback to fill out the plot. Milla's used to handling things on her own and this causes her all kinds of troubles in this book. Sensitive topics are discussed, take care and check the CWs. While you could read this as a stand-alone, you'll gain so much more by reading the series from the beginning; so be sure to pick up book one, Murder at Raven's Edge.

I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

Murder at Ravenswood House is, I think, more convincing than the previous book in Louise Marley's series. Milla is still annoying and Ben seems to be losing the plot but, that apart, I enjoyed the murder mystery element. I'm hoping that the series will continue and settle down a bit. Perhaps the next book could centre around a crime unrelated to any of the main characters...

The small village of Raven's Edge sees Milla Graham and ex-boyfriend DI Ben Taylor find themselves entrenched in another shocking and mysterious murder. A headless body of a dead woman is discovered at the local pond! The ever-stubborn Milla is intent to win Ben back, primarily by inserting herself into the investigation. As more details come to light, more dark family secrets are unveiled.

Milla's old friend (and ex-boyfriend) Lorcan Black has some secrets of his own. This was my favorite part of the story; seeing how these secrets came to light and were connected with the home Lorcan moved into and other character connections. I found this novel more enjoyable than the first, and did not see the ending coming!

This is book two in the series, though it's not critical to have ready book one to follow the story. Thanks to NetGalley, Storm Publishing and Louise Marley for the ARC.

Second in the series, another quite enjoyable cozy mystery! That keeps you wondering til the end with an I would never of thought it was that person twist. I look forward to what's next for Milla and Ben! And must add I really enjoyed Hariette's character development in this installment.

Huge thanks to the publisher and NetGallery for the advanced copy in return for an honest review!

Thoroughly enjoyed the second book in the series - this time Ben is the one whose past (and dodgy family) is linked to the present-day murder. Loved the character of Lorcan (on the one hand, a Goth rock star; on the other, lonely and needy). Thoroughly interesting local history strand about highwaymen and witches; and there are lots and lots of twists and turns. As with the first book, as soon as you think you've worked it out, you realise you've fallen for a red herring. Cracking pace and a good read. Thank you to Louise and Storm for the Netgalley ARC.

Ben and Milla are together for the time being, or not, and there are shenanigans with highwaymen (well people dressed up as such and sword wielding) not to mention an awful lot more relatives. Just when I thought I'd sorted them in book 1. Headless body, head later sent to Ben, our amiable, erratic detective with a highly dodgy family, then the highwaymen start taking over. Milla's ex boyfriend Lorcan/Will is found laid out on a tomb in the church, uninjured but covered in blood. Ben's DS naturally assumes he's the murderer and takes him in. Said DS is becoming an unpleasant character too. Milla could, and does, lie for king and country, breaks into a lot of houses and generally meddles whilst angsting over the break up with Ben. This is more a story of Ben's relatives than Milla's this time and relate to the past robbery gone wrong. We keep getting sections in italics relating to that past but mostly they just seem out of place although we can guess who the people are which explains some of the odd characters we have present-day. The police procedural is, as last time, rather vague but this seems to be necessary in cosy mysteries. Things improved towards the end with a satisfactory result murder-wise, and there are definite options for Milla to remain annoying and to return in future books. For me the jury is still out but, this time, the 3.5* is downgraded to 3* for Milla's attitudes. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.