This is the 6th book in the mel craig series but could be read alone.

As I have read most of the other books I really enjoy the characters and their development. Although it appears that iris will be leaving the future books which is a shame!

The books were originally published in the 90s and this does show - the technology and occasional view points seem outdated but over all the murder mystery and plot was great.

Whilst this is a cosy murder mystery series this particular set of murders was rather gruesome however I enjoyed the plot.

I would recommend this series and will be seeking out the next instalment.

Rereleased and retitled this 6th book in the Melissa Craig series is another winner. I am a fan of these cosy mysteries and enjoy following our heroine’s adventures, finding bodies and mysteries wherever she goes. This time Mel is at a writers retreat when the body count begins to stack up and it’s a race against time to solve the case, and get her friendly Policeman to take her seriously before she joins the list.

Another enjoyable story from Betty Rowlands! Mel Craig instrumental in bringing the culprit to justice. Can’t wait to read more of her escapades.

Intriguing mystery with unusual characters. A mystery writer gets involved in trying to solve crime. Lots of twists that will keep you guessing until the end with a surprise twist.

Another enjoyable read by Betty Rowlands. A murder mystery in the gentlest possible way, this book progresses relationships between the main character and her boyfriend and friend. The description of the delightful setting has now, after several books in the series, almost makes me feel I know the village and inhabitants. A lovely, relaxing book to read.

Already book six in this series and I am still not getting tired of it. On the contrary. In my opinion the stories are more and more interesting and this one really had me hooked. 

Some people don't like cozy mysteries because ... well, yes I sometimes wonder because of what actually. But everybody is of course free to choose what they want to read. I certainly can thoroughly appreciate this genre. 

The main character is getting stronger and stronger and this time she was almost a full time sleuth. 

When I finished the previous book, I thought I had found my favourite one. I have to change my opinion. I liked this one even more. This was the one with the most surprising outcome and I do love that. 

It will be hard to top this story, but I will keep you posted when I have finished number 7.

Overall a very good series with a very likeable sleuth.  5 stars.

Thank you, Betty Rowlands, Bookouture and Netgalley.

An invitation to spend time at a retreat comes at the right time for Melissa struggling with her novel, the thought of peace and tranquillity with no interruptions seems like bliss so Melissa gets in her car and sets off, but as always murder is not to far behind and Melissa finds herself once more embroiled in a whodunnit

Murder in the Orchard is a great murder mystery. I enjoyed the plot, setting and the author’s writing. I anticipate reading more books in this series. I recommend this book to mystery fans. I received an arc from Netgalley and this is my unbiased review.

Book 6 of the Melissa Craig Mysteries and I think that each one just gets better and better. I have to admit that I polished this off in one day, not quite one sitting, but I didn't want to put it down. This time Melissa finds herself in the middle of another mystery when she is supposed to be on a writers retreat. Needless to say, she doesn't get a great deal of writing done.
As well as the small cast of suspects, we have the return of regular characters in the form of Gloria the cleaner, next door neighbour and artist Iris and boyfriend and tame policeman Ken. I have to admit that I haven't decided how I feel about the Ken and Melissa relationship. On the whole, I think that I'm in favour, but with Melissa being a bit unsure herself and the two of them continually butting heads when it comes to how involved she seems to get in these mysteries, the jury is still out.
As ever the mystery worked well and I really enjoyed it. I didn't manage to solve the whole thing this time, but I had picked up on most of the clues and got my head around quite a bit before the big reveal.
I love these classic mystery stories and can't wait to see what trouble Mel manages to find herself in the middle of in the next book. No doubt Ken will be less than impressed with her snooping around.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I really enjoy this series. The detail of the area always makes it seem like you are truly visiting the area. Iris is a great secondary character. The main character, Mel, has more going on in her life than many main characters in other cozies. I hate putting these books down and look forward to others.

I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley for my honest review.

Originally published in 1996 as Malice Poetic, this reissue is now titled Murder in the Orchard. I have not read any other novels by Betty Rowlands so this was my first time checking out what could become a new reliable series for me. The victim in this story was certainly written to be a prime candidate for murder and Melissa Craig is a character who picks up on atmosphere and clues quickly to guide the reader along the right path to solving the mystery. I enjoyed the story but it does suffer somewhat from the lack of technology - specifically cell phones - which has become so prominent now, but was not so evident in 1996. Even though this is the sixth book in the series I would imagine that readers would not have any problem picking any of the books to read regardless of publication order.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for an eGalley of this novel.

As always Melissa Craig the famous crime writer is in the wrong place again when she stays at a writers retreat to get away from it all , that is until the owner is found dead and she is drawn into the mystery of who killed him. Betty Rowlands is really good at the cosy murder mystery stories and they would make a great TV adaptation.

A first time reader of this novelist and I am now hooked. It is part of a series of Melissa Craig mysteries but easily stands alone. Refreshing to read a story without gore, cursing and sex. I don't often give 5 stars but this is a winner. Easy to jump right in and keep turning pages. No need to 'report the book', the jacket cover and others have done this nicely. Enjoy!

This book was provided as an ARC by the publisher via Net Galley for an honest review. The opinions expressed are my own.

I do not read cozy mysteries very often but when I do, I just love them! Author Melissa Craig goes to Uphanger Learning Center for a week of working on her novel and to think about her current relationship. The day after she arrived Stewart Haughan, head of the center, is found murdered. He had been receiving anonymous notes and had asked Melissa to see what she could find out. Shortly after Stewart's murder, another guest write is found murdered. Melissa's love interest, DI Kenneth Harris comes to investigate. Stewart Haughan was very much disliked and lots of secrets start to surface. Of course, Melissa gets right in on the investigation and things get really interesting. This was book 6 in this series and is first one that I have read. It is fine as a stand alone and I did not feel like I was "lost" in terms of characters and/or story line. I liked this book so well, I am going to read the previous ones. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review this delightful book.

A very enjoyable cosy mystery with Melissa Craig author going to a retreat to finish her book without any distractions. While there the owner Stewart Haughan is found dead in suspicious circumstances and Melissa tries to solve the murder endangering herself whilst doing so.

This is another enjoyable book from Betty Rowlands.

I’ve had a bit of a binge session reading these books, so I’ll do my reviews all on my post! They are fabulous books to pick up and put down when you have five minutes here and there. The books are all part of the Melissa Craig series, but they can be read as standalone books with no problems at all. They also have all been released under different titles in the past, but the book fairy has come along and brought them right up to date with new covers and titles! They are delightful in the way that they are “cosy crime” books, meaning that there is no blood and gore, no overly violent scenes and a little bit of humour thrown in for good measure. If you like books written by the great Agatha Christie or MC Beaton, then you will love these!

Murder on a Winter Afternoon
This has previously been released as Deadly Legacy. Crime author and amateur sleuth, Melissa Craig is back in this Christmas themed mystery. Following the death of local author, Leonora Jewell, Melissa is asked to finish off Leonora’s last book. But when she visits Leonora’s cottage, she finds an iron blood which is covered in blood and suspects that Leonora was murdered. With the Police not believing her, Melissa decides to investigate Leonora’s death herself.

Murder in the Orchard
This has previously been released as Malice Poetic. Melissa Craig is asked to investigate some threatening notes which have been received by the owner of a nearby country house, but before she can do any kind of investigating, the owner is found dead in his own orchard. Universally hated, Melissa discovers that he wouldn’t have won any prizes in a popularity contest, but who hated him enough to kill him. Can she find the killer before they strike again?

Murder at Larkfield Barn
This has been previously been released as Smiling at Death. We are back in Upper Benbury where Melissa is shocked to discover one of her old neighbours has been murdered and the killer has painted a horrific smile on her face. Looking at her other neighbours and people who live in the Village, is the killer closer to home than Melissa could have imagined?

These were all great books to read. I love the character of Melissa Craig! Being a crime writer, she obviously finds it useful when she is investigating all these terrible murders that she appears to always be caught up in! I would like to imagine her to be your typical quintessential English lady, all dressed in tweed with thick ribbed tights and very sensible shoes, but reality probably has Melissa as a bit more ‘normal’ than that! She comes across as a bit of a “nosey neighbour”, but one that definitely has a heart of hold! One thing you could definitely say of Melissa though is how unlucky she must be to always be around when a murder has been committed!!

The characters, not just in these three books but in all of them I’ve read so far, are fun, interesting and likeable. As the books move on and some of the earlier characters begin to come back into the later stories, you begin to build a relationship with not just Melissa, but some of her friends as well. The locations of the books, and particularly the village of Upper Benbury, are beautifully set and you can just picture Melissa rushing round the countryside looking for clues as you read!

I would whole heartedly recommend these books if you’re after a good old fashioned whodunit! You won’t have to cover your eyes from fear or rest your uneasy stomach after too much blood and gore! What you will get though is a series of very easy to read books that are fun and light-hearted, but with enough crime and mystery to keep you trying to work out the clues before Melissa does!! If you’ve never tried a cosy mystery book before, then what are you waiting for!

Excellent book! Loved the characters and it was a great storyline. I would highly recommend this book.

Another strong outing for the Mel Craig mysteriy series. Mel is suffering from writers block, so she takes up an offer for a retreat at a nearby country house cum language school. The owner has been receiving cryptic haiku. He has started panicking and calls in the police. As there has been no crime or threat, the police can do nothing. As Mel writes mysteries, he asks for her help in discovering the culprit. Before she has a chance to make any progress, she finds the owner dead, he has been murdered. Now the police become involved and Mel works closely with her “boyfriend” on the force.
A good read with a twist at the end. I Recommend this book.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a digital ARC. All opinions are my own.

Evidently once you commit one murder, you have to commit another to cover that one up and still another to just make sure nothing every comes to light - silly people. While on a retreat to supposedly finish the book she is writing, Melissa is asked to keep her eyes and ears open for anything that cold help the police solve the crime. The sixth book in the series, Rowlands manages to continue providing mysteries with enough twistw and turns to be absolutely satisfying.

This is the sixth book in the Melissa Craig series of books by Betty Rowland and once again it is just right for an evening or two curled up with a good murder!

This time Melissa is feeling a bit put upon and craves peace and quiet to finish writing her current novel. Of course she finds nothing of the sort when she arrives at a writers retreat a short drive from her home. The story has more levels than the first few books along with the welcome familiarity of the main characters and a few more red herrings than usual ensuring this was my favourite book so far and once again I had no idea who the killer was until Melissa herself worked it out.

I was able to read an advanced copy of the book thanks to Netgalley in return for an unbiased review and would recommend it to any lover of cosy crime stories. Since joining Netgalley I have been delighted to have the chance to read and review this set of books. They are set not too far in the past but with no mobile phones, internet or social media to detract from the basic detective work are an enormous pleasure to read and I look forward to digesting more in the future.