Murder in the Village is the first book in a new English village cozy series by Lisa Cutts. Due out 25th Aug 2021, it's 286 pages and will be available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately. For Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book is currently included in the KU subscription library to borrow and read for free.

This was a good series start with a solid small village cozy. The author is a technically adept writer and provides necessary backstory without info-dumping. The narrative is lighthearted, including an ensemble cast of oddball small-town characters.

There are some fairly silly and over the top developments and plot twists (including a murder involving cling film), but it's a village cozy, so it's really part of the whimsy. The "over the top" characters and dialogue were always on the right side of charming and didn't shade over into annoying or yank me out of my suspension of disbelief, so it was a fun read. There's also an almost slow-burn on/off romance subplot with the handsome former detective who's new to the village, again par for the course. The language is clean, the murder(s) are off screen and free from gory violence, there's no direct graphic sexual content; it's a well written and charming cozy. The plot threads include dog-napping, light blackmail, extortion, and murder, and amateur sleuth Belinda, castle-dwelling, clever, and single minded, is determined to get to the bottom of the skullduggery infesting *her* village.

The audiobook version is very well narrated by Lucy Paterson and has a run time of 7 hours 31 minutes. She has an impressive facility with different local accents and they come across clearly in her dialogue recitation between two or more characters (of both sexes). One of the characters she narrated was an older resident in the village and she was perfectly convincing portraying the stressed and crying septuagenarian.

Charming, diverting, and well written. I intend to seek out future volumes in the series. Four stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes

This delightful, light-hearted AUDIBLE story was so lovely. The narrator, LUCY PATERSON, was EXCELLENT a definite favourite, with changing accents, memorable characters and just a really good LISTEN! I found a relaxing narrator who carried you on an excellent reading journey throughout this AUDIBLE BOOK. A feel good story, not too taxing but enjoyable. I would recommend this to listeners who want to plug in their earphones and just sit back and relax.

I would give this AUDIBLE BOOK a 4 star rating

I WANT TO THANK NETGALLEY FOR THE OPPORTUNITY OF LISTENING TO THIS AUDIBLE BOOK FOR AN HONEST REVIEW

There seem to be lots of 'cosy crime' books coming out at the moment, but this is a really good one. An unlikely pairing of a dog food delivery man (slash retired detective) and the 'lady from the castle', there are plenty of eccentric characters, side stories and misdirections to keep you reading well beyond when you intended to stop!
Looking forward to more in this series...

I absolutely adored this book! The narrator really added to the feel of the story, as could easily see myself wandering round the streets of Little Challham in my head.

Also quite the mystery. well planted red herrings and a great plot. The main characters of Belinda and Harry were easily likeable, and mysterious enough in their own right to make me keen to see how they develop and as such increasing my desire for another book in the series already.

A delightful listen, whatever you may be doing as you do.

I loved this audiobook, which reminded me of the Agatha Raisin detective stories, which I also love. I didn't realise this was a cozy mystery book when I started it, so I was pleasantly surprised and I really enjoyed it a lot. The main characters are Harry, who is an ex policeman and Belinda, who is rich and lives in a castle. They both worked so great together and although they are different from each other, they had a special bond which was so sweet. I enjoyed reading about them solving a mystery together and I laughed out loud quite a lot. I loved the setting of the book, the story and the characters. The narrator of the book was great too. Overall, it is a fantastic book and I look forward to reading more from this author in the future.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and Net Galley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Harry Powell has retired from the police force and moved to Little Challham to relax and leave murder and mayhem behind. But now the owner of the local pub has been found dead in his cellar. Belinda Penshurst also calls Challham home and she keeps a close eye on all the inhabitants and their comings and goings, and she’s sure that the recent death is suspicious. Even though police aren’t eager to investigate, Belinda is. Is the death related to the recent rash of dog thefts? Joining forces with Harry, Belinda sets out to sniff out the truth. This is a delightful English cozy, bound to bring a smile to your face

Oh I really enjoyed this book! Midsomer meets audio! Perfect!
It had me in stitches several times and gasping in alarm at others.
The main characters Harry and Belinda make a great crime busting duo, love Belinda's passion for all things right and proper and Harry's ticking the boxes procedures.

The narrator was great, no silly whiney voices for different characters but you could tell the difference when someone else spoke.
I look forward very much to the next in hopefully a long series.

Belinda Penshurst’s cozy village is usually quiet, but lately it has been quite active. Someone in a large, black SUV seems to be dog napping the villagers’ dogs and worse than that, a local pub keep has been found drowned in a large barrel of stale beer. Belinda and her new friend Harry, a retired police officer, are on the scene, taking down names, questioning villagers, and trying to solve the murders in this small part of the countryside. (No spoilers here!)
Lisa Cutts’ delicious descriptions of the villagers and their spectacular environments, easily transports the reader to the village of Little Challham. Here, Belinda and Harry investigate characters in the three competing pubs, suitably named the New Inn, the Duck and Dog, and The Dark Side of the Room. No one is above suspicion, even Belinda’s brother, Marcus’ name ends up as a suspect. The characters are well-developed and believable.
I listened to the audio version and at first I didn’t like it. I wasn’t used to it and I found my eyes longing to “do” something. I much rather prefer holding a physical book in my hand and imagining the voices in my own way. But, the British female narrator does a splendid job throughout and once I acclimated to the audio-style, I easily breezed through the book in a few days.
Murder in the Village is a charming book and I recommend it. 3 stars
--Linda C

Murder in the Village - Lisa Cutts
Narrated by Lucy Paterson

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture and I am leaving this review voluntarily

Nothing ever happens in Little Challham… until the local pub owner is drowned in his own ale. Belinda Penshurst, owner of Challham Castle, is on the case!

Belinda Penshurst loves her home village Little Challham, with its shady lanes, two pubs and weekly market, and she’s determined to keep it peaceful. She may live in Challham Castle but she knows almost everything that goes on under her nose. So when irritable pub landlord Tipper is found dead in his cellar, she’s perfectly placed to investigate.

This is the first book in a new series, which brings together Belinda and Harry. Set in a small English village with some interesting characters this really is a fun book to read.

There is just something about the relationship between Harry and Belinda which made this an enjoyable read and I look forward to following them on future adventures.

Rating 4/5

A very cute murder mystery based around dog thefts. Twists and turns in the plot, end happily ever after. I listened to this as an audio book and really enjoyed the voices the narrator used, they helped me work out who was who. It was nice to get closure at the end of the book and I felt the topic of dog thefts was very current- these things are happening now, so it was good to hear how these crimes are being taken seriously.

Murder in the Village by Lisa Cutts
Audiobook Narrator, Lucy Paterson
A Belinda Penhurst Mystery
This was a very enjoyable cozy mystery set in a small British country town. One of the main characters is a retired policeman and the other is a quirky, slightly cranky woman somewhat reminiscent of Agatha Raisin.
The author used to be a detective constable and has written previous books that are police procedurals.
I’m looking forward to book two in this series.

I think this one will be great for fans of Murder, she wrote!
Not really my cup of tea, but in the past I've given 5 stars to Lisa Cutts' books and she does write a good story - this one was well narrated too.

Thanks so much Bookouture Audio, Bookouture, via Netgalley, for gifting me an audiobook copy - can't wait for more!

A loverly cosy crime book which I settled into very quickly and lots of laugh out loud moments
Such as a barman who knows the difference between fine wine and mouth wash
If you wasn't a good narrator and an easy listen buy this book
Thank you netgalley for a pre publication copy of the book for an honest review

This is the first in a new Cozy mystery series, by an author new to me. The story is set in the village of Little Challham. The lead character is Belinda Penshurst, who lives in the local castle, and is quite the tour de force.

Belinda joins up with a retired detective who moves to Little Challham for a quiet life, but Belinda has other ideas. They join forces to investigate a murder and the disappearance of dogs. Are they connected?

Overall I really enjoyed this book which has a number of twists and some humorous moments. As is often the case Belinda is quite the character and at times can even be annoying (as she is meant to be) but what a great character. I can’t wait to read more of her exploits in future books. If you enjoy cozy mysteries I strongly recommend this one, and in particular if you enjoy M C Beaton’s books I’m sure you would enjoy this book.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publishers for providing a copy of this book for me, for an an open and honest review. This was an audiobook copy of the book and I felt the narrator did a great job of telling he story and I look forward to searching out other books by this narrator.

In a small quiet town Little Challham Belinda Penshurst and Harry Powell want to discover what is happening with dogs and why people are dying. They are really a strange couple but they work well together. They are determinated and succesfull. I loved they found a way to work together and put the past behind them. Good luck in future.

Thank to Bookouture Audio and Netgalley for an audio copy

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first in a series by an author whose work is new to me. Overall, I enjoyed the cozy mystery and felt there were plenty of little twists to keep me interested. The two main characters are engaging, if a little annoying at times (especially Belinda). Their relationship felt like a power struggle at times which detracted from the storyline but this didn't lessen my enjoyment significantly. I hope there will be more to come in this series.

This was my first time reading this author and I enjoyed it. I always love a british cozy mystery. this is the start of a new series, and I am looking forward to more in the series. The narrator was good.