This was another winner in the DCI Bill Slider Mystery series, it had that element that I wanted and worked with the rest of the series perfectly. It had that mysterious element that I was looking for and enjoyed the element that was going on. The characters had that feel that I was hoping for and worked with the previous entries. Cynthia Harrod-Eagles has a strong writing style and am excited to read more.

As a royal reader of the DCI Slider’s series of books, I felt unease as how this book was progressing in its’ plot and characters. For me, it leads me to believe that Slider’s future novels might be geared for a younger readership. I missed the large amount of humor and the clever endings of the previous books.

Thank you Netgalley and Severn House for the eARC to review.

DI Slider and the team are looking into the case where a young woman appears to have been strangled. Murder, or could there be any contributing factors? There are suspects, but except for circumstantial evidence it is difficult to prove that they are involved. There is a lot of lying and misdirection, which of course makes everything more challenging. Even though I was unfamiliar with this series, I had no trouble reading it as a stand-alone. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Absolute Perfection…
What a delight to return to the world of Bill Slider and company in this twenty fifth outing in this superlative series. When a very young woman is discovered murdered, feelings run high and secrets and lies abound. DCI Slider himself is especially affected by the death and determines to get to the truth. As is usual with this series, a cast of perfectly drawn and credible characters populate a well thought out and deeply threaded plot with a lively narrative laced with much humour, dry wit and clever wordplay. Absolute perfection.

The 25th in the excellent Bill Slider mysteries/police procedurals opens with a dead body. She’s Rhianne Morgan, an 18 year old student. She was lying in the sun reading magazines when she was brutally attacked. Her stepfather found her body and called the police. Naturally he’s a suspect but has a strong alibi. There are other suspects but they also have alibis. The police are stymied until they suddenly have a suspect and then two. As Slider continues to investigate this complicated case, his home life with his new wife and children becomes part of the story as does his relationship with fellow officer Atherton who has problems of his own.

The relationship between these two familiar characters and the other members of the Shepherd’s Bush station gives Easeful Death a depth not usually found in mysteries. The well planned plot leads to an unexpected conclusion and the humorous chapter titles (Je Ne Regrette Rhianne, L’apres Midi D’Un Phone) are delightful. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Severn House and Cynthia Harrod-Eagles for this ARC.

“Easefull Death: Bill Slider Mystery 25”, written by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles and published in hardcover by Severn House Publishers Ltd on 1st April 2025. 253 pages ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1448314638

This is the 25th book in this series and one that I’ve read for review although I have read many in the past privately as I find them extremely true to life and much more exciting than the usual police procedurals that one comes across.
Most homicides are young male on young male, and that’s bad enough. But as a father of two daughters, DCI Bill Slider can’t help but take it harder when the victim is a young woman.

Rhianne Morgan, just eighteen, waiting for her A-level results, lies dead in her comfortable middle-class home in a nice, respectable area. Neighbours remember rows with her stepfather. Schoolmates talk of a boyfriend humiliatingly dumped. Her bestie mentions an unnamed new boyfriend, who possibly provided her with drugs. But the back gate was open, and anyone could have walked in. Did she even know her assailant?

Secrets and lies flourished around this troubled teenager, a thicket of thorns Slider and his team must cut through to find the truth. Who killed Rhianne?.
All of this very gripping investigation and the strong bonds between the various detectives on Bill Slider’s team provide a very engaging back story particularly with all the details relating to Bill Sliders marriage to a violinist in an orchestra and the problems of childcare when she is away on concerts. Also will his assistant marry his girlfriend or not?
The mysteries are always extremely well plotted with highly atmospheric story with a rich cast of authentic layered characters and the usual odd red herring before the ultimate murderer is revealed in the final few paragraphs.
Cynthia Harrod-Eagles is a very prolific author with several series ongoing including the very famous historical Morland Dynasty which was originally intended to be 12 books but was so popular it was extended to 36. She also wrote the Kirov Saga a trilogy set in nineteenth century Russia for which she won the 1995 RNA Novel of the Year Award and of course she writes other romantic novels and the Bill Slider police procedural mystery series.
This book was absolutely a delight to read and I always look forward to reading her books. Very strongly recommended.
(I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review. )

253 pages

5 stars

I truly enjoy the play on words that Ms. Harrod-Eagles employs in her dialogues. It adds a bit of fun to the serious discussion of crime and dastardly deeds as portrayed in the fiction novels.

A young girl has been murdered. Recently, she has been having difficulties at home and running a little wild. She has gotten into some trouble - a lot of trouble.

This is the latest Bill Slider novel and it is a good one. As usual, the cast of characters are back and engaging. I especially like Mrs. Slider’s character.

I want to thank NetGalley and Severn House for forwarding to me a copy of this vert good boob for me to read, enjoy and review.

This was a suspenseful and twisty read which had me glued to my kindle! I wish it was longer as I thoroughly enjoyed it!

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟stars!

Most homicides are young male on young male, and that’s bad enough. But as a father of two daughters, DCI Bill Slider can’t help but take it harder when the victim is a young woman! Great book and series! I definitely enjoyed reading this one! This book has suspense, murder, mystery, kidnapping, a great who done it and a few crazy twists and turns! The story was very interesting! I highly recommend reading this book! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

Thank you NetGalley and Severn House for the eARC.
As usual I was thrilled to bits to receive a new Bill Slider mystery for my Kindle. I've loved the series from the beginning.
This time the case comprises the death of a young girl who is found in her backyard by her stepfather, who is immediately a suspect. Subsequently, so are two other men. It takes Slider and the team quite a while to solve the case, but they get there eventually.
I love all the characters: their banter, their treatment of each other, as well as the glimpses into their private lives. Love the cats!
This is such a great series, I never want it to end.

Most homicides are young male on young male, and that’s bad enough. But as a father of two daughters, DCI Bill Slider can’t help but take it harder when the victim is a young woman.

Rhianne Morgan, just eighteen, waiting for her A-level results, lies dead in her comfortable middle-class home in a nice, respectable area. Neighbours remember rows with her stepfather. Schoolmates talk of a boyfriend humiliatingly dumped. Her bestie mentions an unnamed new boyfriend, who possibly provided her with drugs. But the back gate was open, and anyone could have walked in. Did she even know her assailant?

Secrets and lies flourished around this troubled teenager, a thicket of thorns Slider and his team must cut through to find the truth. Who killed Rhianne?

As Slider’s boss says, it’s always the first person you suspect. Except when it isn’t.

Loved it. WIll recommend to others

Easeful Death is not Cynthia Harrod-Eagles' most complex police procedural but I was too happy to be back in the company of Bill Slider and his family, friends and colleagues to worry about that! The story cracks along at a good pace, full of puns and in-jokes and the now familiar usual suspects. As ever, Bill is worrying about doing his job well, Jim Atherton is putting up his still attractive facade, Mr Porson is mangling language and the rest of the team are being themselves. Wonderful stuff!

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

Here Slider and Atherton investigate the death of Rhianne, a teenage girl awaiting her A-Level results, found apparently strangled on her patio. Slider looks after Atherton's cats and Atherton proposes to his girlfriend.

I found this instalment a little disappointing: Mr Porson's mangling of the English language was entertaining as ever, but otherwise the story was full of men treating women badly (or very badly indeed). There were a couple of red herring-type investigative paths which the police followed, but the ultimate solution was unpleasant and ever so slightly random.