A great cosy mystery that had me turning the pages from start to finish. A great addition to an already great series and I really enjoyed reading this book about family, accidents, cheating, feuds and much more. As always there are some great characters who make this story what it is.

I never got bored, I found it thrilling and cosy all at once and I loved the murder mystery involved. PI Dan Armstrong is a great character, the story is well written and easy to read yet it has the depth to it you want to keep you interested and reading. Another great book and I do recommend it.

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

PI Dan Armstrong is asked to look into the suspicious death of famed opera singer Rodolfo Argento. Rodolfo's mother is convinced her son was murdered, so Dan enters the world of opera to investigate. Rodolfo's flagrant womanizing, opera-world jealousy, and the Argentos' intra-family tensions give Dan a lot of suspects. A quick read and delightful to spend some time with Dan, his girlfriend Anna, and his black lab Oscar in Verona while solving a not-too-complex mystery. Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the eARC.

The Dan Armstrong cozy mystery series is one of my favorite quick reads. They’re well-written and so wonderfully descriptive that they instantly transport you to Italy and its countryside. If the dreamy location isn’t enough to convince you, Oscar, his Black Labrador companion adds an extra layer of warmth. This book can absolutely be read as a standalone, should you desire.

In this sequel, we meet Signora Argento, a grieving mother with a bit of a lead foot. (Woman after my own heart lol). She hires Armstrong to look into the suspicious death of her son— and that’s where the story takes off. Was it accidental? A scorned lover? Or jealous family member or adversary?

This one gets a 3.5 ⭐️ from me. I loved the characters and setting, but the mystery itself felt less compelling than previous Armstrong editions. It was very slow reading, and there was no action or excitement until the end, when everything happened all at once.

This is the first Armstrong and Oscar book that I’ve read but that didn’t matter as this can easily be read as a standalone. Private detective Dan Armstrong, along with his canine sidekick Oscar, is tasked with finding out if opera singer Rodolfo Argento who died tragically in a car accident, took his own life or was murdered. This has a fabulous cast of characters, a beautiful location and a storyline that kept me guessing right until the end. I spent the whole book convinced that I’d worked out how it was going to develop and end to then find out that my theory was totally wrong! A great book and I’ll definitely be looking out for more in the series. Thanks to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for the ARC

Murder in Verona is the latest in the Dan (human) and Oscar (canine) mystery series set in lovely towns in Italy. This episode takes place in Verona, an ancient city that is home to a famous fictional opera singer who dies in mysterious circumstances—many possible suspects, music, food, and evocative descriptions of Verona and the Italian countryside.

Dan and Oscar are engaged by one of the suspects to discover the cause of the singer’s death, and the red herrings kept me guessing until the very end. 

While this is a series book, it’s a great read even without having read the rest.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Another amazing adventure with Dan Armstrong (Private investigator) and Oscar his black lad.

This time Dan is asked by Violetta, the mother of an Opera Singer, Rodolfo, who was recently killed in a car accident that she thinks was murder!

Dan is not convinced that it was an accident and as the investigation continues with many suspects including the widow, Rodolfo's cousins and staff at the beautiful villa in Verona.

Could someone have interred with the brakes or was it a freak accident? Whichever is the case, Dan and Oscar are once again helping the local police solve the mystery!

I loved this book as all of them in the series! I can't wait for the next adventure!

This was a fun addition to the series. I love the characters and all the beautiful, Italian settings so richly described within the story. This plot centered around the death of a prosperous opera singer whose mother felt his death was suspicious. As Dan starts to investigate, it quickly becomes apparent that there is no shortage of suspects and whittling away the motive to determine the killer is going to be very tricky
Love this series. Cannot wait to see what Dan gets up to next.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The latest investigation by Dan and, his dog Oscar, does not disappoint. This series goes from strength to strength, and the descriptions of the beautiful Italian settings, and the food, are sublime. It had me researching holidays in Italy before I had finished the book! Highly recommended.

On the blog tour

Another enjoyable book in the series. Love how the cosy crime mystery is mixed in with the history of Verona and information about opera and local food. A cosy crime travelogue!

Interesting cosy crime story with lots of suspects with a variety of different motives. Great to see that Oscar is at the centre of the action too.

Will there be more books in the series?

I always love catching up with Dan and Oscar, and Murder In Verona is no exception. As the title suggests, a case for Dan takes them to Verona, where we meet, once again, a very lively and interesting bunch of characters. I love the way TA Williams is able to bring together such a varied group of people and explore the dynamic between them in such an engaging way. There was no shortage of suspects and I really enjoyed trying to work out who was involved.

I've never been to Italy, but TA Williams manages to transport me there every time he writes. As I was reading Murder In Verona, I could see all the wonderful landscapes, taste all the delicious food and feel the heat of the sun on my skin, and I did not want to be taken away from it back to my own life!

Dan and Oscar are a very astute pair and it was great to follow the investigation along with them. TA Williams’ writing style is very easy to read, but the plot is full of twists and red herrings - I think more so in Murder In Verona than previous books in the series - that kept me on my toes until the very end.

I will end this review in the way I've ended all the reviews I've written for this series: I hope Dan and Oscar are back very soon!

I love this series of ex-pat, retired English Detective Chief Inspector, Dan Armstrong, and his black lab, Oscar. While not the first book in the series, it’s easily read as a stand-alone. Dan and Oscar make a great pair who solve mysteries in Italy where Dan relocated after his retirement and divorce. Each book is set near an Italian city so you get some travel bits along with the mysteries and the great protagonist pair of Dan and Oscar.
This time, he and his new significant other, Anna, are visiting Verona to introduce Dan to opera. Once he meets an octogenarian mother of a recently deceased, rising opera star, she hires him to investigate her son’s death. Since the family own a gorgeous estate that is now an opera academy, Dan, Oscar and Anna are staying at the villa to investigate on site.
The characters are well written, likeable, and the storylines are always enjoyable in this series. I recommend this latest outing and the entire series.

I have enjoyed all the Armstrong and Oscar series so far and this edition did not disappoint. Plenty of immersion into Verona and all it has to offer and a plethora of suspects to keep you guessing. I would definitely read another. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

This book was pretty good, it was a bit predictable, but they also threw in a ton of red herrings to throw you off and confuse you. The writing was OK, and the characters were just OK. Not my favorite but not bad

Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complementary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this AR

opera, opera-stars, private-investigators, inheritance, labrador-dog, investigations, excop, relationships, relatives, professor, cozy-mystery, situational-humor*****

This is not an unbiased review as I really enjoy this series. And Oscar the black Labrador!
Dan Armstrong retired to Italy after 30 years working the Murder Squad at the Met and being divorced by his wife of many years. He made good friends with local law enforcement where they make use of his Italian/English translation abilities, moved there permanently, opened a private investigation firm, and has a permanent girlfriend who is a respected professor and an astute assistant whenever needed.
This time they spend time in Verona staying at an operatic school while looking into the death of a wealthy opera singer with as many detractors as admirers. As always, the characters are well developed and easy to relate to, the mystery plot has sneaky twists, and very distracting red herrings.
I requested and received a temporary review copy from Boldwood Books courtesy of NetGalley. Thank you!
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