This was bad.

The 'mystery' was boring, the plot thin, the charatization lacking. Ramsey, the supposed MC, was a supporting character, at best. I struggled to get into this book, trying repeatedly over several days before I gave up and skipped to the end. Speaking of which, that was also boring. Had I not promised a review in exchange for reading this, I'd have junked it days ago.

I haven't read anything else from this author, however, I understand she's written many other book of quality. I may try one of her later works in the future.

This was a very fast-paced detective mystery,

When I thought i've guessed it, nope didn't.

¸Just like I love them. Very captivating.

first off, I got an arc from Netgalley saying this book was being published in March 2025. Then about halway thru the book, I realized that I'd already read it in 2020 and it had been originally published in 1990. Netgalley does mention that it's in the time in PRINT for the US, but I'd already read it as an ebook. The point to this is, you may have already read it as an ebook, so check your stuff before you go and buy it new.

The mystery was good, even the 2nd time around. I enjoyed the characters, altho Inspector Ramsay could have been fleshed out a little more. I do think her writing has improved since this was written. But, I enjoyed it in 2020 and I endjoyed it again. Mostly because I didn't really remember it. Just the vague hints of this sounds familiar. I must have enjoyed the rest of the series too, as I gave them all 4 stars, altho I must not have been able to get one from the library as I didn't read book 5.

As a fan of Ann Cleeves other books, I was looking forward to reading A Lesson in Dying. However, I just could not get into the book & slogged through it. The headmaster is hung at some point during a Halloween festivity at the school. Inspector Ramsay just didn't do it for me. I'd say try it, as others did love the book. Thanks to St Martin's Press, NetGalley & Ms Cleeves for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I am a big Ann Cleeves fan and was curious to read one of her earlier works. However, it was so hard to get into this book and I did not find Inspector Ramsay compelling. Some of the other characters were more compelling, but then I felt disappointed because I wanted to hear from them more. The book felt dated in a way that is hard to describe because obviously it is set in the past. It was slow and hard to get into. I think Ann Cleeves' writing style has evolved over the years or the series I've enjoyed are more suspenseful and it could be a personal preference.

3 stars as I did want to find out the solution to the mystery and some of the villagers were fun to read about.

I am a fan of Ann Cleeve’s Vera Standhope series and have read all of the books in that series. In A Lesson in Dying she introduces a new main character, Detective Ramsey. He is a not the main character in this story but Cleeves states that his character will continue to develop as the series progresses. This is actually an old series being reintroduced. Harold Medburn’s murder begins the mystery. Medburn was the head of the school and was a rather mean and nasty man which opens up the investigation to numerous suspects. I look forward to reading more in the Ramsey series.

I was so excited to see A Lesson in Dying available in the US, and for reviewing on NetGalley. I have a longstanding love of Vera and Shetland, so I was eager to see Ramsay join the crew. What's preventing me from giving this a 5 star rating is unmet expectations. I think I went in hoping for the brilliance of Vera and Shetland, and while glimmers of it are present here, it's not quite the same caliber. Overall, I really enjoyed this novel and am excited to continue on in the series.

A Lesson in Dying: The First Inspector Ramsay Novel by Ann Cleeves

Posted on January 13, 2025 by Jack
I’ve read several books by Ann Cleeves. So when I saw that A Lesson in Dying: The First Inspector Ramsay Novel by Ann Cleeves was available on Netgally, I immediately jumped om the chance to read it.
This was one of her earlier books and published in he 1990a and in print for the first time in the US. I thank Netgalley and St. Martins Press for the chance to read this before US publication. This anncleeves.com page will give you more details on the Inspector Ramsay series.


The book starts slowly, giving you some detail about the village and developing the characters. It is so slow I almost gave up but I am glad I did not. After this, we have the first hanging. Actually it is the only hanging but solving this is at the center of the story and there are more deaths ahead.

It was an enjoyable book. A story well told. And a mystery that kept me guessing. Ann Cleeves is a master of the British Mystery. Those who enjoy her newer books might want to try one of the older ones.

A Lesson in Dying is the first book in the Inspector Stephen Ramsay series. It takes place in the town of Heppleburn Village. Jack Robson (Councillor Robson) represents Heppleburn on Hepple District council. He was also a school govenor as well as the school caretaker. Harold Medburn is the headmaster of the school. He is married to Kitty Medburn. Harold is a nasty person who holds things over the head of his teachers, etc. and is not liked. He especially likes to threaten Matthew Carpenter, a new teacher, about having him fired. Patty Atkins, Jack's daughter, is on the Parent's Association. She is married to Jim. Paul Wilcox is also on the Parent's Association and is chairman. He and his wife, Hannah, have brought The Old Mill. Paul is a stay at home Dad while his wife works successfully in the business world. They have two children, Elizabeth and Joe. Patty thought it would be fun to have a halloween party as part of the Harvest Festival. To everyone's surprise, the headmaster agrees to let her head the committee.

Jack was sitting in a small room at the school as the party was going on. He was concerned about Patty and hoped the party would be a sucess for her sake. Angela Brayshaw was divorced and is having an affair with Harold Medburn and is expecting him to be at the party. Since Harold and his wife have not come to the party yet Jack goes to their house to see if they forgot about the party. Jack had feelings for Kittie when they were at school. When he got there he found Kitty upset as she had been informed by her husband that he was leaving her for Angela and had a fight with him about it. He had left the house.

When Jack was going back to the school he went into the children's playground and found Harold Medburn hanging from a tree. The police were called. They arrived and were shocked as there have never been a murder in the town. Detective Ramsay and the superintendent arrived at the playground. After speaking with Kitty the police arrest her. Detective Ramsay believes she killed her husband.

Jack believes that Kitty is innocent and decides to prove that she is. He gets his daughter, Patty, to help him. He asked her to go and speak to Angela Brayshaw. Patty goes and speaks to Angela who tells her that she hates living in Heppleburn. She told Patty that she believed that Harold would be giving her more than what she was living now. He was going to tell his wife he was leaving her. Patty asked if Angela had spoken to Harold before his death. She had not. She said she had decided not to marry him as he had other women. Told Patty to go and speak to Miss Hunt. Harold had been very secretive about a lot of things in his life. She didn't kill him. Angela went to see her mother, Mrs. Mount, who ran a nursing home. She had covered all of Angela's debts and expected her to come and work with her the nursing home for helping her with her debts.

Miss Hunt had bought a small bunglow outside of Heppleburn near the coast for her retirement. Police had come and interviewed her. Matthew decided to come and speak to her about his problem with Harold. He had been called into Harold's office on Friday and told that he would never make a good teacher and didn't think Matthew should not continue his probation period. If he didn't resign he would try to get him sacked. That was why he had drank so much at the party before Miss Hunt sent him home early. He didn't know that Harold had been murdered. She assured him that he should continue teaching and not to tell the police about his drinking.

This is where the story takes off. There is too much to put on paper so I am leaving it to the reader to enjoy to the surprising ending.

The series is an interesting one. I look forward to the second book to see what happens with Detective Ramsay.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for this ARC.

Ann Cleeves' renowned storytelling and character development is not at its finest in the first installment of the Inspector Ramsay series - but that's to be expected given that this book was written before we were introduced to the beloved Vera and Jimmy Perez of Shetland. There are little moments of brilliance here that hint at what's to come from Cleeves but alas, this one reads a bit like a mediocre Midsomer Murders episode. If you love Cleeves and need a quick read, I'd recommend this - but just know it pales in comparison to her later work. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance copy. All opinions are entirely my own.

I have never read from this author so I didn’t know if I would like it. I loved this book from the beginning to the end and I didn’t want it to end.

Ann Cleeves writes mysteries which are a perfect mix of some (not too gory and mostly off-stage) murder and engaging characters set in the quiet, somewhat forbidding yet also mysteriously beautiful backdrop of Northern England, usually Northumberland (which I only came to be familiar with through her writings).

I have read and enjoyed her Vera Stanhope series (which i discovered through the excellent BBC tv series' adaptation, sadly in its final season), her Shetland series (also adapted for TV, though with a new character now as lead), and Matthew Venn books (which I've heard has also been adapted for tv but which I haven't yet seen). All excellent series--I've loved them all, even reread a few because i loved the characters so much.

A Lesson in Dying is part of an older series featuring Inspector Ramsey, a dark and brooding character who, like all of Cleeves' characters is fighting not only crime but his own demons. The series is being re-released, I imagine in the light of her other successes, and I am glad it is.

The book is set, again, in Northumberland, in a Heppleburn, a small village whose residents all know each other. Or think they do, at any rate. After the murder of one of their own, people become anxious and mistrustful. Even if the person murdered was not well-liked people are rocked by this sudden violence in their tranquil community.

The book reminded me a bit of Agatha Christie's series--the small village with all the politics and difficulties in personal relationships common to people in groups of any size. I felt at home and comfortable in the environment and with the people

I liked Inspector Ramsey--Cleeves' writes that in this, his first appearance, he has a smaller role to play than in later entries in the series (like Vera Stanhope in The Crow Trap) but I found his scenes satisfying. My strongest likes were for the school caretaker and his somewhat flighty daughter. Patty who decide to investigate the murder themselves (which made me very anxious--after all, there is a killer out there and these likable amateurs are putting themselves at risk).

Often when reading mysteries I get impatient waiting for the solution but I enjoyed the journey in this one so much I was in no hurry to finish.

A pleasant mystery to which the solution was satisfying--I came close to guessing but didn't quite get it. I'm not sure it would have mattered, the book being as enjoyable as it is.

Thanks to NetGalley, publisher St. Martins' Press, and author Ann Cleeves for providing me with this lovely book.

Harold Medford is a very unpopular school principal - neither the parents, the students nor the teachers like him. But no one expected him to be found dead at the school Halloween event.

I wish more authors would do what Cleeves does her and revisit some of their earlier work. The influence of Agatha Christie is clear - Cleeves had a wonderful sense of location on the northeastern English coast. I can almost envision walking the cliffs and watching the tides and putting the kettle on in an old, crafty mill house. I also enjoyed that some of the gossipy dynamics would feel very familiar to any parent - even if none of my PTA meetings have ever ended with murders!

I was disappointed that the book did not end with Patty joining the police force. Between the character beats of her boredom as her children got older, and her deft touch questioning witnesses, it felt like it would be a natural fit for her to find her niche as a police officer.

I am a big fan of Cleeves' Vera series, and great to get a sense of her evolution as an author -I'll continue to read her future books and recommend her to anyone who enjoys Agatha Christie or Ngaio Marsh.

Definitely not as developed as Ms. Cleeves later stories. This book caught my full attention about fifty percent in and kept me interested to the end. Had difficulty associating with the characters, Inspector Ramsey specifically, needed something to make him more appealing, he vaguely reminded me of the Venn series. Good read all in all.

I am a big fan of the Shetland series. This is the first in a new series. I enjoyed the book and did not guess who done it. Look forward to character development in future books

Ann Cleeves storytelling style is like few others. It may be comparable to Elizabeth George in her focus on cultural details and character stories, but Cleeves intimates deep meaning despite long winded backstories that from less accomplished authors, would make readers close the book. From Cleeves' pen, readers don't want to miss a word. A Lesson in Dying (Minotaur Books 2025), Book 1 of 6 in her Inspector Ramsay series, stars a middle age detective with an unusual way of approaching his job. The story starts when a headmaster at a school is found hanged after a community Halloween party. First thought to be suicide, it soon becomes evident it is murder and the man’s wife is arrested. At that point, readers might expect to see the star, Detective Ramsay, dig into clues and cobble together the evidence, but instead, Cleeves does this through a spurned boyfriend, eager to prove her innocence in hopes by doing so he'll have a second chance at a life with her, one that didn't work the first time. He is clever at prizing out clues, often with the aid of his daughter, a bored housewife looking for excitement.

My only complaint is that Ramsay's involvement was secondary for the majority of the book. There were great swaths of the novel where he wasn't even involved except tangentially. Readers ended up relying on the questionable talents of the spurned lover and his daughter, neither one trained investigators. That is the idea behind the "cozy" genre rather than the detective genre, but it isn't a cozy in any other respect. Overall, I would recommend this to those who love cultural books more about lifestyle and character than plot and action.

It's worth noting: This was originally written over a decade ago and only recently printed in the US which is why I got an ARC copy from NetGalley.

I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for letting me read this book.

British murder/mysteries - I love them. I also love Ann Cleeves’ detectives, especially the Vera and Shetland stories. Detective Ramsey is a new Cleeves character for me, but I enjoyed his first case, as well. How do you find a murderer when everyone dislikes the victim? In this case, Ramsey has help from some non-police characters in the story. As the deaths increase, it becomes imperative to solve the case.

I am a big fan of Ann Cleeves, whether it is Vera, Shetland, Mathew Venn, or her stand-alone novels. Detective Ramsay is a new discovery of a much older series. A Lesson in Dying is book 1 in a series of 6 novels, written in the 1990s and now being released in the U.S. as Classic Ann Cleeves. As is the case for Vera, Detective Stephen Ramsay is also based in Northumberland. The murder of a headmaster is the draw for Detective Ramsay's visit to a small village, where everyone seems to have a secret to hide.

A Lesson in Dying is well-written and holds the readers' attention. Cleeves fills this novel with the same elements readers have found in so many of Cleeves other series. There are plenty of flawed characters, whose behaviors have made them susceptible to blackmail, as well as possible suspects or even victims in a murder. Detective Ramsay is also a flawed character, whose behavior makes him an outsider. As is so often true for Cleeves, the characters in her novels are human, with secrets and desires and needs that make them red herrings in a murder mystery. Cleeves carefully unwraps her characters as the novel progresses, thus creating many possible murderers and victims. There are multiple POV, as each character narrates his or her history. Detective Ramsay is unconventional in his approach to solving a murder, or two. As in the case in some many small villages, there are those who are outsiders and the who are the subject of gossip.

I enjoyed reading A Lesson in Dying. This book is a fast moving, compelling novel, and it is a good mystery, with many suspects to consider. A Lesson in Dying is a terrific introduction to Detective Stephen Ramsay. I do recommend this novel. Thank you to Minotaur Books, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC. The review herein is my own honest evaluation of A Lesson in Dying. Cleeves' fans will enjoy finding a new series to read.

Inspector Jack Ramsay must discover who killed the loathsome headmaster in this first in a series sure to appeal to fans of cozy, gentle mysteries.

Another detective!

The introduction of Detective Ramsay finds us in a small town where no one is quite what they seem. When a man is murdered, the question is not who wanted him dead, but who didn't want him dead? Almost everyone has a motive or a secret, and finding out the why becomes difficult as it seems everyone had something to hide. Ramsay befriends a local man and his daughter, both of whom are going through their own identity crisis', but one has a personal motive to make sure the killer is brought to justice.

I am so excited to that we are receiving a new series. The atmosphere of the book draws you in....you can imagine that you are in the small town an as usual the description of the scenery makes you realize how beautiful the area is. Guessing the secrets of the villagers and how they are connecte kept me on my toes. While I enjoyed getting to know the secondary characters, I did close the book wondering more about Ramsay himself. It sometimes felt as if he was a side character in his own origin story, so I am looking forward to the next title and finding out more about him, and if his new found friends will also be featured. At times you could feel his loneliness and his feeling of being an outsider, at work and in his personal life.

I thoroughly enjoyed this and I am ready for the next title. Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for offering me the chance to review this book!