Set in the French countryside Katherine has a bevy of eccentric neighbors. She is just now finding her place among them when she is involved in another murder. With the help or maybe hindrance of a British mystery writer-to-be, she tries to solve the case. I enjoy this series and I look forward to more. Katherine is a interesting character and her neighbors remind me of the quirky group in Three Pines.

I have mixed feeling. On side the book is well written and the cast of characters is quite likeable with the exception of Pippa, the second non French character, that I found quite unbearable and childish.
On the other side it seems more the description of the cultural clash between the local and the expats, please note that one of them cannot even speak the local language.
The mystery was a bit slow and it often took the backside to the description of the relationship and the story of the inhabitants of the town.
I assume that some of my issues are due to the fact that I live not far from the location where book take place.
Many thanks to St Martin Press and Netgalley

This book is part of a series and did not read that well as a stand alone novel, with too many references to previous events without sufficient explanation.
Although described as a mystery, it read more as general fiction about an American trying to adjust to living in a small French village. The pace was slow moving, with lots of extraneous description and very little action towards solving the crime. There was no sense of urgency or any real interest in the crime and whilst a pleasant read, I would not be inclined to read any more in the series.

I love France and I love to read books about France. “Dressed for Death in Burgundy” is a mystery set in a small village and minor town in the Burgundian region of that country. I thought it would be a fun book and it is.

I don’t like spoilers, so I am going to be very careful what I say. The protagonist is a middle-aged American woman named Katherine who has been resident in France for three years. Her French is pretty good, but not perfect, and for the first part of the book her husband is out of the country and she is on her own. One thing leads to another and she comes across a murder scene. She is not a detective and does not want to be one, but she is curious about the murder and does stick her nose in a bit.

The surrounding cast of characters, mostly French, but including Katherine’s American husband and a rather clueless young Englishwoman, are wonderfully drawn. The author is obviously acquainted with this corner of France, and fond of it. Although the mystery is good, and I, for one, did not guess whodunit, much of the pleasure of this book comes from Katherine’s everyday life in this quiet, rural area of France.

This was an enjoyable book to read on many levels. The first half is a bit slow, but it is worth persevering as the last half just flies by. I did not guess the murderer, even though the author played quite fair and someone more perspicacious than I could probably figure it out.

Dressed for Death in Burgundy is the second book in the French Village Mysteries series by Susan C. Shea. I did not read the first book in the series yet found that did not hamper my enjoyment of Dressed for Death in Burgundy.

Katherine, an American, is living in a small French village, Reigny-sur-Cannes. While her husband is away in the US, Katherine helps with tourist excursions. She finds a body in a local museum and Katherine and her friend Pippa set out to find the killer.

Fascinating descriptions of France. You feel like you really are there!

Beautiful cover! Great book for cozy mystery fans.

Katherine Goff, American expat who lives in a small town in France with her musician husband and pets, is trying to live a quiet life, interrupted only by the fact that her husband Michael is in the states recording an album with a famous country star. It's getting close to Christmas, and she can't wait to have him back home for the holiday.

But all does not stay quiet for long. While doing a favor for a friend - driving American tourists on a museum tour - she encounters the worst possible scenario. While touring the museum, they find a dead body that turns out to be the wife of the local butcher. While Katherine would like nothing more than to leave it behind her and allow the local gendarmes to handle it, her friend Pippa, a British aspiring writer, wants to solve the murder and use it in her novel (fictional, of course). But when Pippa starts looking for clues, she doesn't realize that it makes her look suspicious, since she seems to be where the clues are found.

So Katherine feels the need to help her friend, albeit reluctantly, and just wants the matter settled before Michael gets home and finds out she's been digging around in another murder. Only Pippa won't let it go, and now she's dragging Katherine's little friend Jeanette into the mix, and Katherine has no choice but to help and try and find out who wanted the butcher's wife dead...

This is the second book in the series, and I will say that it has improved over the first. The plot was better and there weren't so many people as to be confused about who was who, which is a good thing in any book.

I did begin to wonder if these people ate anything but sausage, though. (Their cholesterol must be sky high in France). Every time you turned around that's all anyone was eating. Anyway...I found this book to be darker than the first. Winter in France in this small town was depressing; and there was really no feeling that Christmas was an enjoyable time of year. No visiting each other's homes, no decorations, no baking, etc. I was surprised about Katherine's financial situation, because in the first book we were given the impression that if they could just pick up and move to another country they must have had the financial means to do so, but in this book they are just struggling by and hoping Michael can make a go again of his career. It was as I said, a surprise, to say the least. Pippa also appears to be struggling, and since she doesn't seem to have a job, where is her income coming from? (I pay attention to details). It may have been mentioned in the first book, but if so, it was only a sentence or two and should have been reiterated in this one.

While I would have liked to enjoy this book more, unfortunately, I didn't feel a connection with any of the characters, and that's a big plus in a book. If you don't feel a connection, then the book doesn't have any kind of an impact on you. Not the death, not the solving of it. In this case, because I never really connected with Pippa or Katherine, I didn't really care about what was happening to them at any given time. Also, there is a bit of a spoiler below, but I have hidden it.

THIS IS HIDDEN FROM THE READER UNLESS CLICKED ON: And at the last, I was extremely disappointed in Katherine's "revelation" about Eric, and can only imagine that it was thrown in there to cause dissention in the next book: i.e., friction between Eric and Michael; Michael finding out and leaving Katherine (even temporarily); or Eric trying to make a play for Katherine. I truly hope that it is not brought up again in the next book.

Other than that, I do believe that this book has promise if the series continues; I would actually say that it was a 3-1/2 star book well on its way to four stars, especially if Katherine and Michael's financial situation continues to improve, as well as Pippa finally finding herself a published author.

American Katherine Goff is slowly adjusting to life in Reigny-sur-Canne, France. But the innocent task of bringing a set of American tourists to the local costume museum ends up with them finding the murdered body of the butcher's wife in a display. When the local police focus on her English writer friend Pippa as a suspect, the two team up to find the real killer. The plotting was rather slow at times and it was not as enjoyable a read as I expected.

I received an eARC via Netgalley and St. Martin's Press with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and provided this review.

This is a cozy mystery that takes place in Burgundy, France.

Katherine is an American living in Reigny-sur-Canne. She offers to help out with tourist excursions in the area and, while giving a tour at a museum, she and the group she was guiding bump onto a death body. From then on, Katherine and her friend Pippa must find out the murderer to avoid becoming the police's prime suspects or the murderer's next target.

This was the second book in the series. I had not read the first book and found myself at a loss sometimes, it would have been helpful if the author had provided more background story on the characters and the events from the previous book.

The setting is well described and the imagery is excellent. Although the book is described as a mystery I felt the plot spent some time on descriptions about the food and conversations with other characters that did not move the plot forward or made the story more intriguing.

Overall, it was ok. I recommend it to readers of cozy mysteries and travel books.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via Netgalley

Excuse me while I yawn from sheer tedium. That’s better….

Apparently Catriona McPherson, award-winning author of the Dandy Gilver series, says of this book: Not since my first visit to Louise Penny’s Three Pines, have I encountered a more beguiling fictional world than Susan Shea’s Reigny-Sur-Cannes. With an engaging cast, the rare realistic depiction of a good, modern marriage, a sideways look at a budding mystery-writer, and a real head-scratcher of a murder plot, Dressed for Death in Burgundy is a box of delights!” I’m afraid this only serves to make me think I have to avoid Louise Penny’s “Three Pines” if Ms McPherson thinks it’s as good as this book. Which I thought was dire.

Although other reviewers think that the descriptions of the French countryside are charming, I’m afraid I found them cutesy and unrealistic – nothing like the French countryside I live in! – and the two main characters really annoyed me. Katherine, a fifty-something American artist (who appeared to do anything she could to actually avoid painting ) and Pippa, who was apparently an author of murder mysteries, but behaved like a 13 year old from an Enid Blyton book, bumbling around like an over grown puppy and “looking for clues” . The two of them discovered information which they did not hand over to the police, and were really irritating!

I certainly wouldn’t call it a “head scratcher of a plot” – I will admit I didn’t guess who dunnit, but by the time we discovered I couldn’t have cared less! Very little seemed to happen, except for Katherine and Pippa returning endlessly – and uselessly – to the scene of the crime to bemoan the fact that there were no clues, (except for those they’d picked up and refused to tell the police about) and then to trot off to have café crèmes in the local bistro. Or buy chocolates and marzipan sweets in the chocolate shop. Finally, it was the police who worked out who the murderer was, without the help of our two hapless “heroines”, who just seemed to get in the way.

This has an average of 4 stars on the NetGalley site, and I honestly can’t understand why. I’m giving it 2.5 stars – it isn’t quite as bad as the book I gave 2 stars to, but as NetGalley doesn’t allow half stars I’m definitely rounding this one down. In my opinion, it doesn’t deserve three stars! I will not be reading any more in the series.

Dressed for Death in Burgandy is a well written murder. Loved the plot, characters and the French setting. The author is new to me and I enjoyed her writing. I anticipate reading more of her books.

Dressed for Death in Burgundy is the second book in a cozy series. I did not read the first but it was not hard to catch up to the story. I started this book on three different occasions before I finally finished it. The story seemed to drag a little in the beginning. Katherine is a American painting restorer living in France, even though few paintings are restored or even mentioned in the story. I would have loved to read more about her job and the mechanics involved. Pippa is her British friend that is trying to write a crime novel. While Katherine is the main character, I enjoyed Pippa's personality and her investigating more and wished the novel revolved more around her. The story was filled with details that felt french and the background for the mystery was well written. The mystery in itself is okay, a little slow at times, but keeps your guessing through most of the book. This book was just okay for me, I did not really feel emotionally invested in the characters or the outcome. I do not know if I care to read the rest of the series. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from Netgalley.

Two amateur investigators in Paris trying to solve a murder mystery they stumble upon while on tour. They Pippa and Katherine had problems with the language one couldn’t understand much less speak it the other getting better, they often found themselves misunderstood and are found in the wrong place. Katherine was missing her musician husband who was on a business trip in America and Pippa bundles her seeking inspiration by investigating the crime herself, something she knows nothing about. A refreshing and interesting murder mystery that is mildly intriguing, with good characters and an interesting storyline, combining into an entertaining read.

Katherine is finally enjoying her life in French village, and she even helps with local turist tours. Group of American tourists are visiting local museum when the unthinkable happens and butcher's wife is found dead.
Not long after her friend Pippa is singled out as the main suspect. Katherine tries to help but then the threats start arriving. The question is are Katherine and Pippa ready to ask police for help or are they willing to risk their lives finding out the killer.
Set in charming countryside with many dotty and quirky characters it portrays tiny village life 'to the perfection.
Suspensful and well written mystery with a clever plot. Highly enjoyable.

Dressed for Death in Burgundy is a cozy mystery that follows Katherine Goff and her lonely two week stretch as her husband is away in the U.S. working on recording a music album. While helping a friend by hosting a small group of tourists, Katherine walks into a murder of the local butcher's wife, who has been strangled and then redressed in the town's small museum.

The story takes place in Burgundy, France right around Christmas time. It was a very interesting and realistic portrayal of what the area is actually like in general and during the winter. While the weather is cold, the story also touched on cold and complicated things as well. Katherine is in her mid-fifties, married but childless. She's struggling to find her place on a severely limited income, balancing her hope for her husband's success with her loneliness that is only certain to increase if he is successful in his recording contract and will be gone for weeks at a time on tour.

Add to that while Katherine is endeavoring to learn the language and make friends, she still feels very cut-off and longing for friends.

A great story providing a true to life account of someone relocating to France and the difficulties and pleasures of the task.

In addition to being an interesting mystery, this book is an utterly charming and delightful look at life in the French countryside. American Katherine Goff is an artist who moved to France with her ex-rock star husband Michael in the hopes that their money would go further there. She is leading a group of tourists to a local costume museum when she (and they) discover the body of the local butcher's wife lying among the mannequins. Katherine is pushed into looking into the crime by her friend Pippa, an Englishwoman who is hoping to become a mystery writer and therefore wants to solve the crime, although she lives in France, does not speak French so Katherine is always needed to translate. The mystery is interesting but the true joy of this book is the descriptions of French country life - the onion soup in the cafe, the shopping at the various local merchants and the interesting characters such as Jeanette, the local teenager who Katherine is mentoring and Madame Pomfret, the leading social arbiter of the town. This is a book to savor along with a glass of the red wine Katherine is so fond of drinking.