I enjoyed the main parts of the book with retired teachers Pat, Thelma and Liz as amateur sleuths trying to find out what happened to their old colleague Topsy but there were too many red herrings and subplots. I found that they detracted from the main storyline and made things slightly confusing. There were some factual inaccuracies about the fraud and what would happen in the bank which I found jarring. I know the story wouldn’t have worked without it but it meant the plot just didn’t work.

The book had potential but didn’t quite meet it.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange of a honest review.

I just couldn't read beyond 53%.Everything was so haphazardly written .The author seemed to fit in all the characters at one point of time which made it really difficult to read.

The story didn't proceed for me .Being a hardcore mystery reader I was expecting a lot from this book and unfortunately it just couldn't attract my attention.

The story would have been much better with few characters .It could have been fitted into two parts where the author would have tried to explain what really happened ,the mother daughter relationship etc

Unlike some cosy fiction, this novel features a solvable crime with clues that the reader can follow to help them. The three amateur sleuths are retired teachers: Pat, Thelma and Liz. I liked the depth of description which made the novel feel more real. These are three-dimensional characters with their own strengths and weaknesses )including a great deal of self-doubt) and their reminiscences really evoked my own memories of working in schools. There is no shortage of suspects for the murder of an ex-colleague and each one has something to hide making this story more meaty than some other examples of cosy crime fiction. Unusually for this genre, a number of social issues are raised including the plight of the elderly and confused and their carers and that of single mothers. The author images to do this skillfully without making the novel overly grim. This is a really enjoyable read which is hopefully the first in a series featuring these lead characters.

A Spoonful of Murder is a cozy british mystery that follows three friends - Pat, Liz and Thelma - as they uncover who killed their friend, Topsy.

Though the mystery was interesting I found this book very hard to read. The writing was difficult to follow because the author was overly descriptive. There was a bunch of information which could and should have been left out of the book and the three main characters were a bit difficult to tell apart because they sort of sounded the same and on some occasions the pov jumped between characters so fast that I had to reread some parts in order to figure out who was talking.

It was still an interesting read, even though you can tell from the start who did, figuring out how kept me hooked on the story. The friendship between the three main characters was quite beautiful and heart-warming. The author also managed to cover some important issues (that could be triggers to some people, so beware) like elder care, dementia, aging, and fraud towards the elderly.

All in all it was an interesting read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for an e-book arc in exchange for an honest review.

I received this book from the publisher via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun cosy mystery, and definitely in line with the Thursday Murder Club and the Marlow Murder Club books. Our leads in this book are three retired teachers (though one is only in her 50s which is young for retirement!) and they are investigating the ever more suspicious death of an elderly colleague.

One of the things I really enjoyed in this was how honest the book was about the danger the elderly face in being preyed on - I have seen this with my grandparents, and there is honestly a shocking amount. This dealt with that fact in almost every facet of the mystery.

The mystery itself felt really well done - it could have been convoluted because there was a lot to it, and some parts ended up being related to the death, while others weren't. I loved our detectives looking into it all. While the mystery felt nicely tied up, the story was sufficiently messy enough to not end up feeling overdone at all. Plus, as I said, it all ties to the different ways the elderly are preyed on, and so it worked really well together.

However, I didn't love the main characters enough. Individually they are fine, but they all sort of work on their own quite a bit, which I felt was a little of a letdown. And they are all fairly judgemental which crept in quite a lot and made it a little harder to connect with them.

As a cosy mystery, I think this is up there as a good one, just not enough for me to connect with in order to outright love it. 3.5 stars.

A charming read, A Spoonful of Murder centers around three middle aged women investigating their friend's suspicious death. All three women were delightful (although I missed up Pat and Liz a couple times) and they were very bright.

The book has a wide variety of characters that all come into play, and I enjoyed trying to figure out who committed murder While I was suspicious of everyone, I didn't guess any of it.

There were some subplots I didn't really need, but I understand they were to further flesh out the main ladies and give them more depth.

Overall, I would recommend this book, especially for fans of The Thursday Murder Club.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

A cosy crime/mystery/whodunnit with a feel good vibe that makes this story enjoyable and lively.

Three retired teachers feel that the death of their friend was not the accident it was made out to be. This story weaves through the suspects as seen by the three main characters. The result is an enjoyable debut by J M Hall.

Being from Yorkshire myself I loved the setting and the dialogue between the characters!

This was just such a cosy read, with enjoyable characters and a satisfying ending. Really enjoyed this one

This was a sweet book. I loved the characters and enjoyed the story very much. It was a fun read and I loved trying guess who did what and to whom. A refreshing change for me and I would love to read more in the future. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

It was a lovely read. I could resonate with the characters. I throughly enjoyed reading it. Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to have an ARC copy.

A Spoonful Of Murder is an engrossing mystery, which in most respects fits the "cosy" genre, but also raises some very pertinent social issues around how elderly people, particularly those suffering with some form of dementia, can be manipulated and abused by those around them.

Retired Yorkshire school teachers Liz, Pat and Thelma meet up every Thursday morning for "coffee o'clock" at at the Thirsk Garden Centre Café. During one such meeting, they bump into their former colleague, the once-redoubtable Topsy, accompanied by her daughter KellyAnne. It quickly becomes clear that Topsy is no longer the woman she once was - she's fast deteriorating with a dementia-type illness. Attempting to make conversation with Topsy when KerryAnne leaves her with them, they all feel sad to see her in this bewildered state. However, things take an alarming turn when Topsy confides in Thelma about people coming to her house, "financial misnomers" and that someone had said "It'd be better all round if she was dead." when he thought Topsy was sleeping.

The women resolve to keep an eye on their old friend, but within a fortnight Topsy is in fact dead, apparently having "mucked up" her medication while KellyAnne was away on a mini-break in Portugal.

In light of Topsy's comments to Thelma, the three friends aren't satisfied that Topsy's death was the simple accident it appears, and begin a surreptitious investigation of their own into the events leading up to what has occurred. They uncover a rather shocking trail of elder abuse - worst of all that Topsy had been conned out of her life savings by somebody masquerading as a bank employee. She'd also been targeted by a dodgy local builder, who'd convinced her that her late husband had arranged the expensive and unnecessary work he's done (or half-done) around her home. KellyAnne also shows them the evidence of an insidious campaign of targeted catalogues and "special offers" received by Topsy over recent months, apparently designed to draw in the vulnerable to unnecessary financial outlay. And what of KerryAnne herself? Why would she take off to Portugal at a moment's notice without arranging anyone to look out for her ailing mother? And who are the pushy real estate agent and her rather dishy young assistant, who always seem to be hanging around Topsy's home?

The course of the women's investigatory efforts is interwoven with the narrative of each of their own home lives and the goings-on around the town of Thirsk. All three are engaging characters, and I especially loved Pat's no-nonsense approach to life and humorous self-deprecating asides. As the daughter of a teacher, I found that their interactions and preoccupations evoked a sense of nostalgia for listening to my mother and her colleagues-friends chatter during quilting nights.

While on the whole A Spoonful Of Murder is a light and entertaining read, the issues around financial abuse of the elderly are very real and disturbing. From an interview with the author that was placed at the conclusion of the audiobook edition, it transpires that J.M. Hall had to confront many similar issues during his own father's battle with dementia. He's drawn on those experiences to create a very engaging but cautionary tale for those entering their so-called "golden years" and the friends and family members who care for them.

I loved the sense of setting in Thirsk, North Yorkshire, and the very distinctive usage and vernacular in the character's dialogue. The Thirsk Garden Centre and Coffee Shop is a real place, to which J.M. Hall pays homage in his acknowledgements.

A Spoonful Of Murder is J.M. Hall's first novel, and is obviously based substantially around his own experiences. I'm pleased to see that a second novel (A Pen Dipped in Poison) is scheduled for release in early 2023 - I can't wait to get my hands on a copy!

I'd enthusiastically recommend A Spoonful Of Murder to any lover of traditional-style character-based mysteries. Having read an advance e-copy, I'll be purchasing a physical copy of the book for my own collection and to share with friends.

My thanks to the author (Jonathan) J.M. Hall, publisher Avon Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this charming and enthralling story.

This is a DNF for me. I tried reading this one multiple times. The writing was not my style and I felt the details were very repetitive.

What a delightful cozy crime novel! I absolutely loved the characters here (who knew I liked older protagonists so much??) and would highly recommend the book for fans of the Thursday Murder Club or Miss Marple - it has all of the charm of the former series and is a great novel to escape into.

Also great when a fun and cozy crime novel is well-written!

I will be highly recommending this to others who have my taste for reading comfy crime of an evening.

Many thanks to the author, the publishers and NetGalley for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Spoonful of Murder is a quirky, British murder mystery about a group of “over 60’s” in a social group. One of the groups friends dies of an over dose of heart medication amongst her declining intellectual health. The remaining 3 friends make it their business to find out the details of their friend’s death. I enjoyed the concept of the story and the subplots of fraud towards the elderly. It took me a while to catch on with the perspective switching since it wasn’t always clear and would shift in the middle of a chapter. I predicted the ending pretty early on but it still felt like the ending was conclusive and made sense. I wish there was a bit more into the character development of the three main characters rather than a lot of following “suspects” that we never really got an answer to why they were suspected. I did find myself wanting to read on to find out the ending but was never super connected with any of the characters (probably because it took about 30% of the way in to figure out who was who). I’d give it a solid 2.5 stars. Not my favorite, but not the worst book I’ve read this year.

When an elderly former colleague suffering from dementia dies, it all seems perfectly understandable that she would have mixed up her pills’ dosages and overdosed. Retired teachers and friends Thelma, Liz and Pam are saddened by Topsy’s death, and would never have thought anything was off about the situation, but a word here and there sets each off into asking questions and poking at situations to find out whether Topsy really did accidentally overdose or was murdered.

The story takes a while to get going, with the author giving us time to get to know Thelma, Pat and Liz and their personalities, insecurities and family concerns. Thelma becomes concerned about one of her former pupils experiencing money problems, Pat is worried about her weight and her son and some unknown “internet problems”, while Liz is worried about her grandson’s tantrums in a highly regarded school. Also, Topsy’s death exposes a series of schemes targeting seniors, which has all three of the friends understandably upset.

Though fairly slow-moving, I did enjoy this mystery, watching the trio puzzle their way to the not-that-hard to figure out solution. It was also interesting how the author wove in so many issues into the story: caring for an ailing parent, people committing theft and fraud against seniors, broken families, financial woes, and intergenerational problems.

There must be a thing now with older amateur sleuth stories, as I’ve read more than I had expected to recently. This trio muddled their way to the solution, and a resolution for their other personal cares, in a way that held my attention to the end, and has me looking forward to their next sleuthing adventure.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Avon Books, UK for this ARC in exchange for my review.

A Spoonful of Murder is a perfect book for me. Not only am I a retired educator who meets with colleagues regularly over coffee or a meal, but I am a huge cozy mystery fan. As the story starts, we meet Liz, Pat and Thelma, retired teachers and former colleagues of St. Barnabus’s Primary School. They meet up each week to gossip and catch up with each other. One week they bump into Topsy, another ex-colleague, and her daughter Kelly Anne. Topsy is in the early stages of dementia and KellyAnne is her caregiver. While the friends chat with Topsy, they sense that there is something not quite right, especially when Topsy shares some disturbing facts. Within a short period of time, KellyAnne shares that her mother has been the victim of financial fraud and has lost all her life savings. When Topsy is found dead in her home the following week Liz, Pat and Thelma suspect that there might be more to her death than meets the eye. Even though her death is ruled accidental, the ladies are sure there is more going on and they nose around and ask questions. Does the fraud have anything to do with the death or possible murder?

I enjoyed meeting these three ladies. They had a great friendship, yet were very different from one another. I liked how they complemented each other and worked together to figure out what happened to Topsy and with the fraud. Of course, being retired teachers, they knew a lot of people and were observant as well as good at solving puzzles. There was also lots of humor, tongue in cheek and some sarcasm that kept me chuckling. I thought I had a few things figured out, but with so many possible suspects and clues that led me down various paths, I was only partially correct. While the mystery and the ladies antics were somewhat humorous, there are some serious issues dealt with in this story. Issues that elders will deal with such as, treatment of frail persons, possibility of dementia and the issues surrounding care, the vulnerability of older persons to be taken advantage of by scammers (not just bank fraud, but charging for jobs not needed or not completed), banks who don't want to help and those who have no children to help them. Overall, this was a fun cozy mystery with some serious things to think about after you close the cover.. I definitely recommend this story.

Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to read A Spoonful of Murder.

This is an easy to read, cosy Murder mystery. Thursday Murder club and Marlow Murder club feel to it - characters you warm to straight away with lives everyone can relate to in some way.

Loved the chapter headings. Enjoyable and cosy story, but the ending was obvious and no twists you don’t expect.
Some spelling and grammar errors that are easy to get rid of.

A thoroughly enjoyable read about a group of retired primary school teachers who turn detective when one of their own dies in suspicious circumstances.

A great cozy crime with some very likeable characters and situations which are so easy to liken to our own lives.

Looking forward to seeing what happens next for these ladies and their next adventures.

Thanks to Netgalley. the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was an ok read, though it kind of loses its way part way through and just meanders along.

Can understand the comparisons with the popular books featuring mature detectives but this doesn’t quite have the same charm.

2.5, rounded up to 3.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me an arc of this book in exchange for my review.

Really enjoyed this cozy crime debut. I thought the story was good and found lots of the strands interesting.

Very similar vibe to the Richard Osman books, with retirees solving a murder (even the cover is similar).

Lots of characters introduced very quickly and I could have done with a bit more to differentiate the three main ladies earlier on. They started to solidify later which made things better.

Some of the back story, especially the baby storyline felt a bit random and underexplored.

Some great characterisation especially of the suspects which was fun. I did guess the murderer earlier.

Shame the three worked separately quite so often. It would have been nice to have them together occasionally and made it easier to follow and easier to remember who was who (the jumping was unhelpful at times).

Could use of colour, outfits and locations.

All in all a fun, quick, breezy read.