Thank you for allowing me to review this book. This is an easy read story. Ginny, a recently widowed lady has moved into a new village and on her second day working at the library finds the body of her boss! As the story unfolds Ginny is drawn into a friendship group of Widows who are trying to solve the murder mystery. The characters are all slightly quirky, but mean well.
A crime story that never challenged the reader. The culprit was unexpected though.

I loved this first book in the Widows' Detective Club series! It's a wonderful addition to the works featuring more seasoned protagonists heading into a new chapter of their lives. Ginny and the other widows were interesting and well-developed, and their adventures were so entertaining. I also really enjoyed the supporting characters and the village. I have the next book ready to go and I can't wait to read it! Thanks to Netgalley and Storm Publishing for the advance digital copy!

ARC Review📚 Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book. The Widows Guide to Murder by Amanda Ashby. This is the first book in The Widows Detective Club series. I really love a good cozy mystery! Ginny moves to a small town after her husband passes away. She becomes an assistant librarian at her local library. A few days later she discovers the body of the librarian Louisa Farnsworth. Who could have possibly killed her? Ginny notices some details on the body that the police didn’t notice. In comes a group of local busybody widows who befriend Ginny. Together they decide to investigate who murdered Louisa Farnsworth. But this is only the first murder! There are lots of twists and turns, dead ends and mayhem. Overall I found this book to be very enjoyable and fun to read. Looking forward to reading the second book in the series!

Ginny is a widow that has moved to a small community, she volunteers at the local library, but the second day she turns up she finds a body. She starts investigating on who would kill the woman, she’s a great sleuth and finds out she needs to find something. Along with a few others in the village will they find the killer? This was a fun murder mystery, it’s easy going and the chapters flow. Loved the wee cat too, he was a good character in the book. Looking forward to reading the next one in this series. A 4 star read. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy.

Thank you Storm Publishing for the ARC of this book.

The Widows’ Guide to Murder is a delightful and engaging cozy mystery, filled with wit and charm. As my first cozy mystery, this was a refreshing change from my usual reads, and I found it highly entertaining. I also found it heartwarming to see Ginny gradually open up to the community and the friendships she formed in Little Shaw Village, even in the midst of a murder investigation. It is a pretty short read as well, although I did feel that some part of it on the beginning and the last part were kind of stretched out, it is still a charming read and I recommend checking out when it releases.

I enjoyed this cozy!! The main character, Ginny has recently become widowed and has moved to a small town to start over. She meets a group of women, also widowed who welcome her into their silly, meddling antics around the town.
Taking a job at the local library seemed like a low-key way to get out in the community but when the head librarian is found murdered, she is caught up in a mystery that her new friends need to solve.
I enjoyed the point of view from an older main character and will be looking out for others in the series!
Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this advanced reader copy.

The Widows’ Guide to Murder follows recently widowed Ginny Cole as she leaves Bristol for Little Shaw, and joins a hang of fellow widows, JM, Tuppence and Hen. When Ginny new boss is murdered at the local library, the four local ladies take it upon themselves to solve the case.

If you love books like The Thursday Murder Club and The Marlow Murder Club, you’ll love The Widows’ Guide to Murder. I instantly fell in love with the characters Ashby had created, and was so drawn into the story.

Ashby kept me guessing the whole way and the twist at the end was so unexpected. Highly enjoyed this cosy mystery and cannot wait to read the sequel.

Thank you for an advanced copy of this book. I really enjoyed this book and cannot wait for the next instalment of this series! I was kept in the edge of my seat all along and just when I thought I’d cracked the case, everything changed!

Recently widowed Ginny moves to a small and quiet (or so she thought) village. There, she starts working at the local library and meets a quirky group of widows, who help them solve a murder.

I enjoyed this book, although sometimes I got confused with so many characters.

This is perfect for fans of The Thursday Murder Club.

I'm so happy to see more and more books set around midlife and later women. Ginny was a hoot and the mystery kept me guessing! I'm so glad it looks like this is the first of a series because I didn't want it to end! I cant wait to see where this series goes next!

As far as cosy mysteries involving old ladies in quaint villages go (I know that sounds oddly specific), this was a pretty standard read. Someone knits. Lots of tea. A grumpy policeman. A large number of suspects and plenty of red herrings.

Oh, there's a cat too. Obviously.

In other words, I find this to be a pretty average read? This could be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on what you're looking for. If you'd want something undemanding to read, I'd recommend this book.

Ginny is quite a sweet character. Still mourning the death of her husband, Eric, and finding herself in an unfamiliar environment, she struggles to navigate life. Even so, I liked that even though Ginny is unsure of herself half the time and is reluctant to try new things (at her age, that's pretty understandable), she still goes for it anyway. Her kindness is also an asset; without being conscious of it, Ginny is actually really good at keeping the peace and getting through to people.

Having said that, I find the rest of the widows to be somewhat background-ish. Hen did get some screentime as her daughter Alyson ended up as a prime suspect for the murder, but on the whole Tuppence and JM didn't seem to have very strong presence. However, this is the first book in a series (at least 2 books are out now), perhaps they are meant to do more in the future. Fingers crossed.

For the murder mystery, I did find myself very intrigued by the case. However, I'd have to say that I find the resolution to be rather disappointing, given that I didn't see how some of the details fit together. I'm not saying it's downright impossible for the murderer to do those things, but it certainly was stretching my disbelief.

**spoilers alert**

At the reveal, I had so many questions. Really, Rita is strong enough to do wrestle two other ladies into a van? The book tried to explain how she got that strong (she works at a pub and had to lift beer kegs), but there's a difference between carrying beer kegs and fighting live human beings. Also, she had an affair with Tom Allan just so she could find more information? I felt that given how Tom just started blabbing about the murder he witnessed when he got tipsy, couldn't Rita just I don't know, get him drunk more often, especially when she has access to copious amounts of alcohol? Also it was revealed that Tom, initially thought to have drowned in a flood, was actually strangled beforehand. How did the police/forensic scientists miss that cause of death?

**end of spoilers**

All in all, this was a decent read despite the solution to the murder mystery wasn't all that satisfying. Maybe keep your expectations low? Ginny, for me, is a character worth rooting for and I'd like to see more of her growth. I certainly enjoyed it enough to continue with the series, as I am already reading the sequel 'The Widows' Guide to Backstabbing'!

This was a really cute cozy mystery read. I enjoyed the flow of the story and the characters were likeable. A very easy going lighthearted read. Thank you to NetGalley for an arc of this

** “For the last time, you and your friends need to stay out of this. I suggest you get yourself a safer hobby.” **

Amanda Ashby offers a fun cozy mystery with “The Widows’ Guide to Murder.”

After the death of her husband, Ginny Cole moves to the small village of Little Shaw. Newly hired as the assistant librarian, she figures she will settle into a quiet life … until her new boss is found dead in the library’s back room. Formerly having worked in her husband’s doctor’s office, she quickly recognizes that there might be more to Louisa’s death.

Meeting new friends, also widows — JM, Hen and Tuppence — the four women quickly band together to solve the murder, as well as other deadly incidents hitting their village. Can they figure out what’s going on before it’s too late for one of their own loved ones?

Ashby creates a delightfully fun story filled with mystery and drama that will appeal to all mystery lovers. She develops a fun cast of characters, who often find themselves in some hilariously odd situations, as well as some who are quite loathsome. And through her story she reminds us to never doubt ourselves but to believe in our strengths and abilities; the power of friendship and loyalty; things aren’t always as they seem; and we all deal with grief differently.

Fans of series like Richard Osman’s “The Thursday Murder Club,” Robert Thorogood’s “The Marlow Murder Club” and Peter Boland’s “The Charity Shop Detective Agency Mysteries” will love “The Widows’ Guide to Murder,” which is due out March 3.

Five stars out of five.

Storm Publishing provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.

This book is a carefully woven, clever, whodunit. It's full of surprises abd suspects, that had me guessing right up to the final pages. A very entertaining read.

I loved the characters in this book. I felt sad for Ginny sometimes. I loved how Ginny is methodical and thoughtful in her approach to solving the crimes. It’s wonderfully written. I look forward to the next book in the series. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced free copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

60 year old widow Ginny Cole moves to the little town of Little Shaw to start fresh after the death of her husband. She settles into the quirky town with new friends and a new job at the library. Her quiet life is turned upside down when her new boss Louisa is murdered at the library. Together with her new friends, called the widows, she goes looking for the murderer.

This books has a very compelling story set-up and is executed brilliantly. The storytelling is great and the twist are turning and turns twisting (to be fair I am not the brightest with these kind of stories). The town and its inhabitants really read like one of Professor Laytons games which I loved playing. I liked that our main character was a bit older than mainstream books are. Although I don't know what it's like to be a widow, I think this books really paints a good picture and different ways of grieving are brought up, which was nice. All acquaintances/friends of Ginny were really interesting to get to know and I can't wait to further dive into Little Shaw and its inhabitants in the next book!
4.5 stars rated on storygraph

Thank you Storm publishing for the ARC!

I wasn't sure where this was going when I started it. A widow still talking to her husband and moving to a new area...... But it proved to be a fun read (obviously not counting the murders, attempted murders etc). I found the group of widows and the way they included her into their ranks to be quite entertaining as they investigated the deaths ( much to the annoyance of the police). I will be reading book 2

A riotous, murderous romp that’s so full of twists and turns! Really enjoyable read with colourful characters and a wonderful setting for what I hope will be a series. I really didn’t guess the ending which is refreshing. Any wait to read more!

Thank you Netgalley

Thank you Storm Publishing and Net Galley for this ARC! Ginny Cole moves to Little Shaw after the death of her husband looking for a fresh start. On her second day of her new job at the library she finds her boss dead! With the help of a few new friends known as the widows without a cause, they set to find out the killer. As the case unravels can they handle all that’s involved? This cozy mystery was fun with great characters and you find yourself routing for these underdogs! Looking foward to the next book with these fun characters!

This was a very well written cozy (in my opinion) mystery! The characters were really likeable and very entertaining. I loved the friendships in the book and I’m so happy this will be a series. I will definitely be continuing this series and reading the future books as soon as they come out. Having a cat in the book also was a huge plus!
I have 3 cats, so It always makes me happy when I find a book with the MC has cat(s).