My thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for a review copy of this one.!

After not really requesting books from NetGalley for a bit (so as to tackle by own TBR pile), last month I came across a handful that sounded so interesting and I ended up requesting. One of these was this one–Murder at the Village Fete. This one, a cosy mystery set in the 1920s, was described as Downton Abbey crossed with Murder She Wrote.

This is the second in a series, The Tommy and Evelyn Christie Mysteries. Tommy Christie, formerly a policeman is now Lord Northmoor having inherited the title unexpectedly in the previous book. His wife, Evelyn had also served in the police. In this one, the couple—who are still adjusting to their new life and roles—have been convinced by Evelyn’s sister, Millicent, to host the local fete at Hessleham Hall, while her father, a former MP has asked them to invite some of his close friends and former colleagues to stay. Most of the guests are trying with endless demands and complaints, causing much annoyance to both the staff and Evelyn. Among the guests staying with the Christies is the current local MP Robert Billingham, who is to open the fete. But on the morning of the fete, as Evelyn and Tommy are walking her Gordon Setters, Nancy and Davey, they come upon Billingham lying face down in the stream with a knife in his back! The case is entrusted to Detective Inspector Andrews, but Tommy and Evelyn soon realise that for their guests’ safety, they must themselves step in and find the murderer.

For starters, even though this was the second in the series, this was not a hard one to get into; one gets a general idea of the events that unfolded in book 1 and it’s easy to pick up the threads again. We learn a little about the simpler lives Tommy and Evelyn lived before he came into the title, the struggles they are having adjusting, but also how they are using the opportunities that this brings to do well by people. Both Tommy and Evelyn are very likeable characters, as is the mischievous Auntie Em (Emily, Tommy’s aunt), who isn’t shy of speaking her mind.

The theme around which this mystery is centred is corruption in arms/ammunition supplies during the war which resulted in many soldiers losing their lives. Tommy is deeply affected by this since he had served in the war and is carrying wounds from the time. There are numerous suspects including even possibly Evelyn’s father, but certainly all the guests he has invited to Tommy and Evelyn’s for they were all serving in key positions at the time. And they have all received letters of blackmail about the incident. Besides the four, the beautiful new schoolteacher, Isolde Newley seems to be hiding something, while a young reporter, Ernest Franklin is also snooping around.

The mystery itself as a result has a few threads and with all of the main suspects having a stake in the corruption scandal, one is not quite sure which of them did it, or whether the blackmailer had more of a motive than blackmail itself. And then of course, there is another death as well, complicating matters. The Detective Inspector seems out of his depth (as is expected in such books) and it is Tommy and Evelyn who do much of the investigating.

The author also uses the story to explore relationships—highlighting Tommy and Evelyn’s comfortable and loving relationship where each has complete trust in the other; and give the other the chance to live their life fully, and so the things that make them happy (including Evelyn’s regular visits to the kitchen and doing some baking there). Some of the others we see are not as lucky. Alongside we also have a possible romance thread with Isolde Newley being somewhat interested in the attractive, but reticent local doctor, Dr. Mainwaring.

While this was a light and fun enough read, there were also some aspects that didn’t work for me. For one, while the murder was supposed to be at the village fete according to the title, we barely see any of the actual fete—I mean it is mentioned and some events happen, but nothing significant; even the murder has taken place before the actual fete, so the fete seems lost in all of this.

Then in the mystery itself, for one I felt, the murder itself happened far too soon, before we even really got to know the guests. There wasn’t even a chance to guess who the victim might be, it simply happens. Then in the investigation, in some of the conversations Tommy and Evelyn have with various people, they seem to approach them far too directly, rather than more tactfully, if that makes sense—you can’t exactly expect anyone to just come out and admit they were involved, after all. And one suspect Tommy just pronounces as innocent without giving a convincing enough reason (in fact, any reason) for doing so (that makes one begin to doubt his skills as a detective).

The other issue I had was with the writing itself; to me at times it felt (especially in some of the dialogue) far too modern for the time period in which it is set; for instance, Tommy using the expression ‘meet up’; also there were other instances where it just didn’t seem like people would speak that way/use those expressions, so it felt a bit off.

All in all while this had a promising setting and plot, it turned out just an okay read.

3 1/2 rounded up. The second book in the Tommy & Evelyn Christie series. I wish I had read the first book- I think it would have helped with the flow of the story. But having said that, it was still an enjoyable read.

Tommy and Evelyn are new owners of a grand estate, Hessleham Hall. They are ready to throw the village fete on their own land. But things take a tricky turn when one of the guests at their home is found murdered on their property. Having solved a murder before (book 1) they are ready to tackle this new mystery!

The author did a good job reminded us what happened in the first book, but again- would have been better to have just read it. The story was fun, the characters were interesting, and it was clean and quick. Overall an enjoyable mystery.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this book although there are some spots that are slow. I liked the main characters and how they interacted with the rest of the characters. I was surprised by who the killed was although I enjoyed how they were caught. #MurderattheVillageFete #NetGalley

A jolly good read. After the first murder, there are ample red herrings to keep us guessing who and why..

The author sets the 1920's scenes in a warm manner. Slowly but surely we are drawn into the goings-on at his

Lordships country pile where we witness kindness and nastiness among many characters. We are aware of the

fallout after WW1 and how life continues, The book has it all - humour, love, revenge and murder..

Likeable Amateur Sleuthing Duo...
The second Tommy and Evelyn Christie mystery set in a Yorkshire village. Lighthearted, cosy reading with a likeable amateur sleuthing duo. This time a murder at the village fete is on the duo’s agenda. Enjoyable, easy reading for little escapism.

A fun read that I thoroughly enjoyed. The characters are well developed and the main characters Tommy and Evelyn, AKA Lord and Lady Northmoor are charming. Due to deaths in the family, Tommy and Evelyn Christie have had to give up careers in the police and to take up the responsibilities in accordance with their new titles. It’s three years after the end of WWI and the mystery surrounds an unscrupulous military arms contract that leads to several murders. Although Tommy and Evelyn are no longer in the police, they can’t resist investigating, especially since one of the subjects is Evelyn’s father, a retired MP.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

Tommy and Evelyn Christie, the charming couple, are embroiled in murder once again when the local MP ends up dead on their property during their first soiree as Lord and Lady Northmoor. Overall, I was very happy with the mystery part of the story. Unlike some historical mysteries and cozies that are light on the detection part of the story this was packed filled. I just wish some of the secondary characters were fleshed out a bit more as they were in the first book. I do love the relationship between Tommy and Evelyn. They are a real team.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a free copy of the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Catherine Cole has written a delightful mystery. In a world that has become increasingly uncivil, it is enjoyable to drift into another more civilized and refined era. It is a cozy mystery and indeed it is very cozy and comforting like a visit from a dear old aunt or warm chocolate chip cookies.
It is the second in a series featuring Tommy and Evelyn Christie who have become the Lord and Lady of the manor and are adjusting well to it. Evelyn’s father receives a letter accusing him of misdeeds in a scandal during the Great War. His cohorts also received similar letters and so Tommy and Evelyn invite them all to the manor to see if they can figure out who is doing the blackmailing.
It is not long before a murder is committed and Tommy and Evelyn vow to the local constabulary to not investigate nor interfere with the police investigation but since Evelyn’s father is involved they must dip their toes into the murky waters a bit. Just a bit. OK, a lot.
The story moves quickly it is filled with wonderful characters including Aunt Emily who is always up for a libation.
Evelyn and Tommy both work on the mystery from different angles and pool their information. Ultimately resulting in a surprising and satisfying ending.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and plan to read all of the books as they come out. It is fun to time travel to time travel and spend time with Tommy and Evelyn.

A quick cozy read!

I had not read the previous but did not face any trouble understanding the backstory. Well written with delightful characters, this is a well paced mystery read. The book had good amount of humour and suspense and I really enjoyed reading it.

Thank you netgalley and publisher for the copy.

1921 Hessleham Hall, East Yorkshire. The 7th Earl of Northmoor, and ex-policeman Tommy Christie, and his wife Evelyn, are holding a weekend house party which coincides with the village fete. The morning of which a body is discovered in a nearby stream. But why, and by whom.
DI Andrews and DS Montgomery investigate but Tommy and Evelyn feel that can help, and so ask their questions. Who will be the first to solve the case.
An enjoyable well-written, fast paced, cozy historical mystery, with its likeable main characters. I look forward to reading more in the series, and although this is the second in the series it can easily be read as a standalone story
An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Murder at the Village Fete is a charming 1920's cozy murder mystery with just the right amount of suspense and humour. The main characters of Evelyn and Tommy are charming and intelligent. A quick, lighthearted read, perfect for a winter evening. I'm off to read Book 1.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my review copy.

This was a fine and entertaining read but lacked some substance for me.

The characters were well written and enjoyable, sometimes detective characters feel forced and like they're trying to hard (to be detectives, to be funny, etc) but Evelyn and Tommy did not, and I got a solid sense of who the house guests were based on their dialogues.

However the plot felt lean. Perhaps if we had less "Evelyn knew how special her marriage was, how modern, how different Tommy was" there would be more room for a meaty plot. There were red herrings that didn't add much to the mystery, more like filler.

Overall it was an enjoyable read I hardly put down and I will read the first part of the series and future installments.

Murder at the Village Fete is the second book in Tommy & Evelyn Christie by Catherine Coles.

Not having read the previous book I had no problems getting into the story. All references concerning previous book have been clearly explained.

Tommy is a former policeman and soldier, now a Lord to the manor and Evelyn is his wife. They are happy and enjoying life but somehow manage to find themselves in murder, quite too often, This of course does not make the favorite with the local detective. Their friends and family however always urge them to take charge and solve the mystery before the detective.

This time, they are hosting a house party at Evelyn father's request as almost all guests are his friends, former coworkers who have at one point been suspected of taking a bribe. They were all cleared but someone is bringing up the matter again, by sending threatening letters.
When on of the formerly suspected is found dead it is up to Tommy and Evelyn to solve the crime before the murder strikes again.

This book had a lot of positive points- time setting after the WWII which I really enjoy to read about, There is a closed circle aspect, as the party is consisted of certain number of people and one of them is a murderer and isolated mystery as it is set at the country manor.

I liked Tommy and Evelyn, they are young, eager sleuths and even have some police experience. They are nice, generous and truly lovely characters.
The story was smartly presented, clues were laid out for readers to follow and solve, there were several red herrings to make things more interesting.
It is fast paced, easy to read and raises some very important issues, such as war malversations and domestic abuse.
I will be following their future adventures.

This was a quick read - I finished it in a few hours.
I had not read book 1 in the Tommy and Evelyn Christie series, but the backstory was covered very effectively at the very outset of this book. The characters were introduced and the story was set up quite soon.
The story revolves around a munitions scandal which took place post WW1. Four politicians who are spending the weekend at the home of Tommy and Eveline receive letters of blackmail, and one of them is subsequently murdered.
Although the beginning was promising, I felt that the pace lagged in the middle part of the story; some humour would have done wonders to enliven the tale.
I am a great fan of historical crime fiction and this is the third series set in the 1920's I read this month. But the atmosphere and description was lacking and I did not feel as if this were set one hundred years ago.
I also felt that the finale was quite sudden. While I understand the writer's need to include a twist at the end, this felt as if important information had been wilfully withheld from the reader so that the 'big reveal' would work. For example, only half of what Florence discovered in London is conveyed to the reader with the initial telegram. The follow up to that is mentioned at the end. "Oh and by the way, she also found out the identity of the murderer..."
Overall, this was rather disappointing.
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

“...we will be exonerated now as we were then because there is simply no evidence any of us did a thing wrong. There is no court in the land that can prove it.”

fete. noun. a public function, typically held outdoors and organized to raise funds for a charity. The new Lady Northmoor, Evelyn Christie, has taken the responsibility of hosting the local village fete on the grounds of Hessleham Hall. The weather is just right, the dogs are running about, as usual, the cooks and maids are working merrily, the guests at the Hall have settled perfectly and young maid Nora is still anticipating her beau to ask her out– nothing could go wrong right? Alas! Once again that phrase seems to be a jinx when Mr. And Mrs. Christie chance upon the local MP's body, lying face down in the stream. The duo must gather the clues and catch the killer before he strikes again.
A short story with a simple plot, simple characters, and two adorable dogs, set in 1920s Yorkshire. Yet all these simple characters were full of light and cleverness. One thing that I picked up on and loved, was how smart all female characters were. From the maid to Great Aunt Em, they were all quick on their feet and sharp. Except, maybe, Evelyn's mother. She was, um, completely useless to sum it up in two words.
Even if the book wasn't particularly exciting, my mind was still whirring with speculations and theories when the clues kept piling up. The story mainly focuses on the mystery around the murder. It's a fast-paced short story– a countryside mystery moving along swiftly. The conversations were all flowing and insightful between the characters. Through Evelyn, Tommy, and a bit of George Hughes (the owner of Dog and Duck), the author touches upon the horrors of the First World War. The source of the crime also seems to be a scandal during the war. That's what made the story the most interesting.
Even if it's not elaborated, you can still imagine the sufferings of all the soldiers, their families, and their anxiety in general.
I liked how the author touched upon a little budding romance here and marital love and affection there, too. I really liked the pairing of Tommy and Evelyn. They were respectful towards each other, defended each other, and the way they danced around, listing clues was beautiful in my opinion. Even if it annoyed them and far from agreed with it, I appreciated the respect they showed towards the age-old traditions and etiquette. Mr. And Mrs. Christie were an adorable couple for sure but certainly not perfect. They have their differences and problems between them too– one being the trauma they both, especially Tommy, faced in the war first hand. Even if it bought some tension between them, they strived to understand each other more, and the adoration was clear between them.
The way Tommy clued the final piece in and helped capture the culprit was a bit cliché, I think. The trap they laid out was not elaborated clearly and I was a little confused. It's become common to see the final piece click on the detective's mind, the next chapter directly jumping to the capture of the culprit and the detective explaining how he caught them to everyone else. I thought the author could've done about it in some other way and bought some originality in it. Finding out who the murderer was albeit, a little surprising. Although the stunt they pulled was suspicious to me, I did not think they would be the "mastermind" behind everything.
Even if I was not quite satisfied with the lack of originality at the ending, it was overall a good story.
When you want to curl up in front of your fireplace with a cozy mystery set in the countryside, this book is probably a good way to start.