This book is a wonderful start to a brand new cozy mystery series! We follow Alice as she navigates her adult life fresh from a breakup after 25 years. Due to various circumstances surrounding her, she finds herself in a new place meeting many new people and tries to form new friendships and bonds therein. There is also the potential for a new romance too as is pretty common in this genre, but we don't see it fully develop here. There's the promise of more to come!

The pace is pretty easygoing, so if you're looking for something that won't cause anxiety or goes too quick, this is definitely the place. It certainly lives up to the genre's initial promise of something cozy you can settle into. It also has a lesson or two to teach, as Alice's plans don't always come to fruition. Many can stand to learn this lesson too, as sometimes life doesn't go the way we expect but that it can lead us down paths far better for us mentally and physically. She also learns she's capable of far more than she'd ever thought before, having been thrust into this new life and mostly on her own.

"Death at the Old Curiosity Shop" gets 4 stars out of 5! It was very entertaining, a fun and peaceful start to a new series I'm excited to continue when the sequel releases next year.

Thanks for NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC.

I jumped at the chance to read this book, which is the latest in Debbie Young‘s new Cotswald mystery series

50-year-old Alice splits with her longtime partner who decides he wants to travel the world and this leaves her homeless. So she buys an old shop in a small Cotswold village, hoping to turn it into a cosy home. Unfortunately during this time she loses her job and then finds out that the shop was sold to a cheaply due to a clause in which says it has to remain a shop.

The story bimbles on rather like a pleasant but leisurely Sunday walk it’s not until some way into the story before we get our murder victim.

I suspect, however, this is one of those awkward first books and that the stories after this will be much more enjoyable

Thanks must go to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book to read and review

If contemporary cosy crimes are what you read
This is certainly one that you need!
The first in a series that is new,
A fun read I highly recommend to you.

Moving to live in the village of Little Pride
Alice Carroll believes she’s found the perfect place to reside.
A change of role, a new home, too,
A life full of change she is going through.

Assumptions made prove to be so wrong
From who lives where and to whom they belong.
With village characters to get to know
To a murder mystery to solve as along you go.

Friendships new and old are there to see,
Perhaps they’ll help solve the mystery?
A small community with surprises, too,
Make me look forward to more in this series to view!

For my copy of this book I say thank you
As I share with you this my honest review.

Death at the Old Curiosity Shop by Debbie Young is a delightful cozy mystery that transports readers to the charming Cotswold village of Little Pride. Alice Carroll, newly single and ready for a fresh start, finds herself the owner of Curiosity Cottage, a quaint former shop. What begins as a simple plan to sell off leftover stock and settle into her new minimalist lifestyle soon turns complicated when the quirky villagers of Little Pride prove resistant to her changes—and a murder mystery drops right on her doorstep.

The discovery of a body buried in a neighbor’s compost heap adds a thrilling layer to the small-town charm, as Alice finds herself entangled in the investigation. Young masterfully balances the lighthearted atmosphere of village life with the intrigue of a whodunit, weaving in colorful characters who each add their own flavor to the story. The picturesque setting and lively community create a vivid backdrop for the mystery, and Alice’s fresh perspective as an outsider offers an entertaining entry point into the village’s hidden secrets.

With a satisfying mix of humor, mystery, and a touch of suspense, Death at the Old Curiosity Shop is a cozy escape perfect for fans of Agatha Christie and Fiona Leitch. While the plot unfolds at a leisurely pace, the engaging characters and charming setting make it an enjoyable read from start to finish. Alice’s sleuthing debut hints at more exciting adventures to come in this promising series.

BLOG TOUR REVIEW

Review for 'Death At The Old Curiosity Shop' by Debbie Young.

Such a gorgeous, easy, fun cosy mystery that had me hook, line and sinker!!! Well done Debbie on yet another absolutely addictive cosy mystery!!

I absolutely LOVE, LOVE, LOVED this fantastic cosy murder mystery!! Such an absolutely brilliant start to what is guaranteed to be an addictive series!! I mean SERIOSULY Debbie WHEN is the next book in this 'The Cotswold Curiosity Shop Mysteries' coming out??? I looked on Amazon but it doesn't say!! I hope you are editing it as I type this because I need more of Alice and The Curiosity Shop in my life now!! I mean, just look at that absolutely amazing eye catching cover!! If that alone doesn't make you want to grab a copy then continue reading!! I really did love reading this book which took place in such a brilliant environment. I mean who doesn't love looking around curiosity shops and I loved "seeing" Alice setting it back up ready to reopen discovering new items with her. It wasn't just the shop that I loved but also exploring Little Pride, getting to know the community who live there and seeing the other businesses running. I felt like I had disappeared on holiday for a few hours. It was a shame it was only a few hours but that's how long it took me to zoom through the pages after not being able to put it down. I genuinely felt like I was in the storyline and I was devastated to come to the end and have to "unpack my suitcase", leave Little Pride and return to dreary rainy Wales. In this brilliant book we meet Alice Carroll who has had to move out of her house after her partner Steven decided he wanted to go find himself in India just after they had payed their last payment on their mortgage. If that wasn't enough for her she then loses her job at the museum after they made her redundant. She finds the perfect house for her in Little Pride but after buying it she discovers that her estate agent and her ex who was a lawyer and did the conveyancing for her failed to mention the fact that The Curiosity Shop has to legally be run as a business unless the council agreed to a change-of-use application. Along with that all the villagers are also determined to keep The Curiosity Shop going. Alice has no choice to open the shop. With the help from her friend and colleague Danny they get the shop up and running and after a few learning curves business is going well. However, when a body is found buried in her neighbours compost heap, the donkeys she fell in love with behind her home disappear, she discovers there is going to be new buildings where the donkeys were plus more Little Pride does not seem to be the perfect place to be. Alice was previously the museums Victorian specialist and was known as the museums sleuth so she is determined to discover the killer. Will Alice ever be able to settle in Little Pride? Will she discover who the killer is before they kill again? Grab your copy of this explosive start to what promises to be an addictive series now. I promise that you will not regret it!! With a storyline filed with mystery, humour, danger, friendship, murder, donkeys, stunning settings, twists, curios and much more what are you waiting for?? The storyline is multi-layered with mystery upon mystery and action upon action to keep the reader completely absorbed throughout without a moment to get bored. I went to put the book down at one point to do some washing but each time I went to put it down something happened and I just HAD to know what was going to happen next! In the end I completely devoured the book in one sitting of several hours and I was left needing more. I was absolutely gobsmacked by so many reveals that my jaw completely dropped. I was not expecting those twists at all Debbie so a MASSIVE CONGRATULATIONS!! After I have read hundreds of crime books it is getting harder and harder to surprise me but you managed it hook, line and sinker!!! This book is truly one of those fantastic finds that you can read absolutely anywhere from the beach to in front of a fireplace. It doesn't matter where you read it because of Debbie's evocative writing skills you are guaranteed to be swept away to the beautiful village of Little Pride in no time!!! I loved that although this book is predominantly a murder mystery it also made me laugh so many times. Its perfect when you find a book like that that even when the storyline has death in it it still makes you laugh and lightens the mood!!!


Do not pick this up until you have cleared your schedules as you will not be able to put it down!!

I absolutely LOVED meeting Alice and getting to know her throughout this fantastic story. Alice is a strong, fierce and independent woman who is determined to make a new life for herself. Debbie does a fantastic job of building up the characterisation of Alice along with the villagers and other 50% of the book is dedicated to Alice settling in, sorting the shop out, meeting new villagers and building up the picture of Little Pride which I absolutely loved. Debbie then weaved the murder in and we continue getting to know the villagers. I was intrigued by Alice and the fact that she worked in a museum which I thought was fascinating. I really connected with her and became invested in her immediately and I truly cannot wait to meet hr again in the next book to see what she gets up to next and how she gets long at the Old Curiosity Shop. There was a wide range of characters in the storyline and I loved getting to know the community of Little Pride. We have Danny who is Alice's best friend and was her colleague who I really liked getting to know and "seeing" him help Alice, Danny's partner is Martin but Alice is not a fan of him and neither was I. Moving on to the villagers we have Andrew Gloster who is the editor of the 'Little Pride Parish News' which is like gospel to the villagers, Maudie Frampton who is an elderly lady with a fierce attitude, the horrid Terrence Bolt who is Alice's neighbour and is determined to build his housing estate by her shop, Suki Price who owns the 'Suki's Stores' and loves to gossip, Coralie who is a hairdresser and owns 'Coralie's Curls' who I really liked and Robert Sponge who is also Alice's neighbour. These are just some of the fantastic characters you will get to meet when you pick up this brilliant book and dive into Little Pride. Every single character as their own uniqueness along with flaws, quirks, strengths and weaknesses. However, many of them seem to use different names and hiding secrets so it is difficult to know who to rust. The fact that Debbie cares about her characters shines out of the pages with her fantastic character development. I am completely invested in each of the characters and Debbie portrayed village life and the characters perfectly. I live in a small village myself and Debbie has got it spot on, especially the gossip being rife! Alice and the rest of the characters have very quickly become like friends that I look forward to catching up with and Debbie's fantastic and evocative writing skills really make them jump out of the pages and come to life in front of the reader. Every one of her characters are well developed, strong and most importantly realistic!! I am looking forward to meeting them all again in the next book in this fantastic series and seeing how friendships and relationships with all the other characters develop. I'm really looking forward to seeing what all these fantastic and memorable characters get up to in the not so distant future!!!

Congratulations Debbie on yet another absolutely addictive book and an amazing start to what promise to be an addictive series!!! Here's to many more successes 🥂

Overall an addictive cosy mystery set in a stunning area that you won't be able to put down!!

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Death at the Old Curiosity Shop is the first in a promising new series from Young. Being the first I've read by this author it was a brilliant introduction to her writing style and a was a fantastic little story to boot!

Without further ado it was time to pack our suitcase and head off to the village of Little Pride tucked away in the glorious Cotswolds.

I always love to make new friends and meet new faces, so an impromptu visit to the Curiosity Shop was needed. The characters were diverse in range. I found myself immediately forging a connection with Alice and hope she will be one of the recurring characters throughout the series.

Death at the Old Curiosity Shop is an easy to read cosy mystery. I flew through the book in an afternoon with the whole 'just one more chapter' losing its way.

An enjoyable and addictive read

I'm reviewing this via NetGalley, as part of a tour with Rachel's Random Resources.

This is the first in a new series of cosy mysteries set in the Cotswolds. I think the Cotswolds is the perfect sort of location for a cosy murder mystery, so I was excited to read this.

When Alice splits up with her long-term partner, she decides to make a fresh start at the Curiosity Cottage in the village of Little Pride. I liked the idea of a curiosity shop as the backdrop for this book, and was keen to see the author bring it to life.

I connected with Alice, in a fun, lighthearted way, and on a deeper level too. It seemed that she was a person who liked to reflect on a lot of things, and was observant of others, as well as being kind-hearted. This book had a few other loveable characters too.

As I escaped into the Cotswolds village setting with the characters, I found this book lighthearted, charming, and very easy to read. If, like me, you're a fan of cosy village mysteries, you may enjoy this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, Rachel's Random Resources, Boldwood Books, and to the author, for the opportunity to read and review this.

Alice is ready for a fresh start, and the charming Cotswolds seem like the perfect place. After a tough break-up, she’s eager to embrace a minimalist lifestyle, but first, she has to tackle the cluttered old shop that’s part of her new home, Curiosity Cottage. The village expects her to continue running the beloved bric-a-brac store that has been a fixture in their lives for decades. However, things take a darker turn when a body is discovered in a nearby allotment, pulling Alice into the heart of village life as she tries to solve the mystery. Who wanted the victim dead? And why? As Alice digs deeper, she realizes life in Little Pride is far from quiet, and the village—and its residents—start to grow on her.

I love getting into a new series, especially when the main character immediately clicks. Alice is strong, curious, and determined to make the most of her new life. Her background in museum work and passion for history give her an edge as she takes on her new role as the owner of the Curiosity Shop.

Like any village, Alice’s neighbors are a mixed bag. Some are warm and welcoming, while others seem determined to make her life difficult. Not everyone is happy about her taking over the shop, and some will go to great lengths to see her fail.

This mystery was well-written, with a fantastic protagonist. Like Alice, I was kept guessing about who could be trusted. Just when I thought I had it figured out, the author threw in a twist. I’m excited to return to Little Pride and see what’s next!

Readers of British cozy mysteries will enjoy time spent with Alice in Debbie Young’s new cozy mystery, Death at the Old Curiosity Shop. While the mystery doesn’t happen until about the middle of the book, I still enjoyed the first half as it was a wonderful introduction to Alice, her dear friend Danny and what led to her new life in the village of Little Pride. I loved touring Alice’s Curiosity Cottage and the bric-a-brac shop. I could easily picture the dusty items and the line of customers wanting to sell their items. The story hints of a mystery in the beginning as well, so I found myself eagerly turning the pages, wanting to find out what happens. The details Debbie incorporates in her story bring the setting and characters to life. Sign me up for another visit to Little Pride – I hope there are more stories!

This is the book you want to read when you have COVID because, between the fever, cough, sneezing, and bone pain, it's hard to focus. It was an excellent helper as it made me laugh and entertained me, making me feel good.
It's the start of a new cozy series featuring Alice, a 50-year-old who just ended a long relationship, lost her job, and found that her lovely cottage must remain a shop with a flat, not a cottage.
Plus, there's a corpse, quirky inhabitants, suspects, and old rancor among the inhabitants of the quaint village. There's a lot of potential in this story, as Alice is a former museum expert, and her expertise is used in managing the shop.
I had fun, liked the characters, and appreciated the mix of humor and mystery, even if the mystery often takes a backseat.
Very entertaining and a book I recommend if you like cozy mysteries.
Many thanks to Boldwood Books and Rachel's Random Resources for this digital copy; all opinions are mine.

Alice Carroll, aged 50, has split with her partner Steven who she’s been with since her university days and relocated to the village of Little Pride where the houses are more affordable. Thinking she has found the perfect old cottage to do up, she moves in as she made redundant from her job as Victorian expert at the Broadwick City Museum but soon discovers an overlooked clause in the sale contract that means she will have to continue running the business known as Nell Little’s Cotswold Curiosity Shop. Maybe it’s fate but she soon takes to the task in hand aided by her best friend Danny from the museum. Then things take a darker turn in the village. The lovely donkey paddock next door has been sold to slimy developer Terence Bolt and she makes a friend of his labourer Barnaby who smuggles out old bottles and bits of broken tiles for her to sell, while she also makes the acquaintance of some of the rather eccentric villagers, including billionaire industrialist neighbour Robert (he of the famous Eternal Sponge) ex-spy Andrew and hairdresser Coralie. When Barnaby is murdered and found in the allotments, and council Archaeology Officer Felicity expresses her doubts about the speed that Bolt was given permission to start work, she and Robert take another look at the pottery pieces and decide to do some digging for themselves. Alice wasn’t known as the museum sleuth for nothing, and there’s definitely a mystery here to be solved.
There is plenty of wit and charm in this start to a new series as Alice has to judge just who of her rather quirky neighbours can be trusted and finds herself taking to life in Little Pride with alarming ease. Danny is lovely and a true friend whom she can rely on, and the Cotswold village and its inhabitants are beautifully described as the battle between conniving developers and retaining green spaces ensues. The death comes quite late in the story, the first part mainly devoted to setting the scene and getting to know all those involved, but the plot soon thickens in the second half and develops quite quickly into a nice cosy crime with a very likeable and capable detective in Alice. I’m looking forward to reading more in this series.

When Alice, recently single, decides to move out of the city of Broadwick to the small Village of Little Pride to turn an old shop into a cozy home, she didn’t think she would find the body of one of the officers in front of her terrace.
More trouble comes to her way when she was made redundant from the museum she was working in, she also discovers her once lawyer boyfriend, Steven, forgot to read the buyer’s clause in which, in order to get the property, she had to continue to operate Nell Little’s Cotswold Curiosity Shop.
Contrary to her wishes to convert the shop into another room in the house, she started to continue the former owner’s tradition of accepting everyone’s “heirlooms” until someone else wants the old junk.
The small village atmosphere with the Little Pride Parish News, the local council with its strict rules, and its quirky residents that do not like change, make a challenge for Alice to settle down as she would like to, not to mention the tragedies that suddenly surrounded the town.
October is the perfect month to read mysteries, I really enjoyed this amateur sleuth one, the main character with her friend Danny.
Thanks to Debbie Young, Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Death at the Old Curiosity Shop by Debbie Young

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

When Alice Carroll steps into Curiosity Cottage, a picture-perfect former bric-a-brac shop in the Cotswold Village of Little Pride, she thinks she’s found the perfect place to start the new phase of her life. Freshly separated from her collector long-term boyfriend, she’s excited to embrace her new, minimalist existence.

All Alice needs to do is sell off the left-behind stock, and settle in. But the villagers of Little Pride have other ideas, and Alice quickly realises they won’t give up their beloved shop without a fight.

Then a dead body is found buried in her neighbour's compost heap, and Alice realises there’s much more to Little Pride, and its residents, than meets the eye.

My Opinion

Firstly, I want to start by saying that this is such an interesting idea for a shop. Alice is trying to start over following a break up and finds what she thinks is the ideal cottage for her to move into, unfortunately the locals want her to keep the shop open. When a body is found in the area Alice finds herself drawn into the investigation.

Whilst this is a new series by Debbie Young it was nice to see mentions of characters and shops from her other series. I have read quite a few books by Debbie so I know that they are always delightful, cosy mysteries. With an opening like this, I can see this being another great series.

Rating 4/5

Newly separated from her long time boyfriend and now fire from her job Alice Carroll buys a house in the Cotswold village of Little Pride. There she gets involved in solving a murder. Good cozy read.

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

I love a cosy mystery as you know, and this new series is just my cup of tea. Alice moves to a new home in a village in the Cotswolds after a break-up and redundancy, hoping to change the shop into a cosy cottage and recharge before finding a new job. However, things don’t quite go to plan when the paddock next door gets sold to an unscrupulous builder and a body is found in the allotments!

As you can imagine, there are some real characters in the village - some nice and not so nice. Gossip is rife too, if you want to know what’s going on, just ask the locals 😆

Really well written and a quick cosy read, I’m definitely going to look out for more in this series. If you like a cosy mystery then look this one up.

This book sounded interesting and fun to read. I love a good mystery. But unfortunately the execution was more on the meh side. It wasn't really it for me. The story was still nice and i did enjoy reading it. It was just pretty slow, and for me it felt like there wasn't really much of a mystery. It all just took a while. I'm also not sure what i think about the mystery plot. But like i said, it was still a nice. Also liked the characters, but some were a little eh tbh. Not sure if i will continue with this serie.

3,5 stars

A new life in the beautiful Cotswolds beckons to Alice. After a break-up, she needs a new start, where her vision of  a minimalist lifestyle can finally come true. But first she has to deal with the cluttered old shop within her new home, Curiosity Cottage. The locals expect her to carry on the tradition of running the bric-a-brac emporium that has been parts of their lives for decades. When a dead body is found in a nearby allotment, Alice finds herself drawn into village life, as she works to solve the mystery. Who wanted the victim dead? And more importantly, why? It turns out life is never dull in Little Pride, and Alice becomes more and more drawn to the village and its residents.

I love starting a new series, and especially when I take to the main character right away. Alice is strong and curious, with a determination to make something of her new life. She has an interesting background in museum work and a strong fascination in all aspects of history. I like how she brings all this to her new role as the latest owner of the Curiosity Shop. 

As with all villages, Alice finds that her neighbours are a mixed bunch. Some are delightful and friendly - but not everyone is happy to see her take over the shop. Some are determined to make her life difficult and will stop at nothing to try and make her leave. 

This was a well written mystery, with a great main character. Like Alice, I was never sure who to trust. Just when I thought I knew where it was going, the author surprised me. I can’t wait to visit Little Pride again.

"Death at the Old Curiosity Shop" starts a new cosy mystery series set in the picturesque British Cotswolds. After being laid off shortly after being dumped by her long-time partner, Alice Carroll decides she needs a fresh start in the charming village of Little Pride. Her plan for a simple village life is complicated by an unliked and overeager builder tearing up the land around her new home, especially when one of his workmen turns up dead in the neighbour's compost heap.

While the mystery unfolds more gradually than usual, readers will appreciate the lovely village atmosphere and the details of its quirky residents. Young is excellent at capturing village life (I currently live in a village much like Little Pride1) and demonstrating Alice's strength of will and intellect as she navigates her new surroundings.

The story balances Alice's character development with a gradual uncovering of the town's secrets, intertwining small character arcs with the mystery. I found the murders happened quite late in the story, and the wrap-up was inversely short. It was still satisfying, but I very much enjoy a Miss Marple or Poirot wrap-up, which was missing from this story.

Overall, "Death at the Old Curiosity Shop" is a charming beginning to a series that will appeal to fans of light British mysteries. If you enjoy cosy mystery stories filled with character and a touch of intrigue, you'll want to follow any future adventures in Little Pride.

A big thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for proving an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

After her relationship ends and nothing is certain about what will happen with her job, Alice moves to a cottage in the village of Little Pride in the Cotswold.

All she needs to do is sort out the stuff left over, as the cottage used to be a shop, but, the villagers aren’t happy as they lived the shop.

When a body is found, Alice suspects things are not as they seem. The list of suspects is long as each character is different to the next.

This is the first book in a new series.

I loved the setting.

I highly recommend this book.

I liked this one. It's a sold 3 stars. I don't always read cozy mysteries but I like the change of pace every once in a while.

Alice Carroll is 50 and has been recently dumped by her long time partner and has also lost her job in the city. She wants a change and decides to move to the Cotswolds to a small village called, "Little Pride." She purchases a house that used to be a shop called, "Nell Little's Cotswold Curiosity Shop." After purchasing she finds out by the local council that the shop must be reopened as its former business. This is more than Alice has bargained for. There are still plenty of things on the lower level. Along with her friend Danny, Alice begins to clean up the shop to open it and meets many of the area locals. There's also a developer in town who wants to build-up the area. One day a dead body is discovered in Alice's neighbours compost. Alice sets off to find the murderer.

This is book 1 of a new series and I think it's promising. The first half introduced Alice and dragged a little for me. In the second half once the body was found things ramped up. I'd be interested to take another trip into, "Little Pride" again.