Cover Image: A Cornish Seaside Murder

A Cornish Seaside Murder

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Member Reviews

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me read and review an advanced copy of this book.

Jodie Parker left the police force in London to move her daughter and dog to the quieter Cornish coast. Now a caterer and living with DI Nathan Withers, she is talked into playing the part of a siren in the yearly festival. When a dead body is found, the local fishermen want to blame it on the mythical curse of the siren. Jodie is taken on as a part-time DS to assist the police, and her catering business, motherhood, and her dog are all put aside to help solve the murder. As the investigation progresses, it looks like a smuggling operation might have resulted in murder, and Jodie and Nathan have to balance their relationship with the investigation.

As part of a series, it helps to have read the earlier books, but there is enough background to be a stand alone story. There is plenty of humor, intrigue, and danger to make this an interesting and fun cozy read.

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Another great read by Fiona Leitch and one I thoroughly enjoyed. I haven't read the whole series as yet but I still enjoyed this book. It is a great cozy mystery adn one I read easily and quickly.

A festival in Cornwall, Jodie Parker working two jobs and of course there is a crime and it needs investigating. It has all the twists and turns you want with a bit of humour and as always entertaining.

A fun read and I thank HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and NetGalley for giving me the chance to read and review this book.

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The nosey Parker series of murder mysteries are a great introduction to the writings of Fiona Leitch and I’m very much looking forward to the advent of more in the series

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Just as the local mermaid festival is about to begin a body is found having been drowned in a horse trough. Since the stone statue of a mermaid has disappeared from the church, some of the older residents think the mermaid of the local legend has returned to kill fishermen. Jodie 'Nosey' Parker is convinced it's more likely to be drug smuggling gone wrong.

This is the sixth book in the Nosey Parker series from Fiona Leitch. Having previously read books 4 and 5 in the series I was really pleased to get hold of A Cornish Seaside Murder, at some point I'm going to get around to the first three books too.

Firstly, you really don't need to have read any of the previous books in the series to enjoy this one. Secondly, this is perfect for fans of cozy crime thrillers. There are a couple of incidents involving brutal crimes but nothing is overly graphic.

This time around our main character, Jodie, is working as an auxiliary to the local police force, using the skills she developed when she worked as a police officer in the Met. This is much more of a police procedural than previous books, there is very little story-line involving Jodie's catering business. This means that some of the supporting characters (her Mum, daughter, assistant and dog) don't have a large part in the story, as a result of this I felt some of the usual humour was lost. What we do gain more of is Jodie's relationship with her boyfriend, Nathan.

Since Nathan is a police officer and Jodie is an auxiliary it means that Nathan is her boss while they are at work. Jodie doesn't like being told what to do and is so used to being her own boss that this arrangement does cause a little bit of friction but it is all dealt with in a lighthearted way.

The story-line initially seems pretty straight forward but there are enough twists to keep you hooked. An enjoyable read but I did miss the catering elements of the story as they involve the more eccentric characters.

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A pleasant book to read. The characters seemed very simple and the story easy to read. The book was an okay read, I would read another book by this author.

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It's a hot summer in Penstowan and time for one of the slightly unusual festivals Cornwall is famous for. Jodie Parker has been invited to take part, which is how she finds herself leaving boyfriend, DI Nathan Withers, almost speechless when he sees her in costume.

Unfortunately, festivals don't stop other things going on, and when a body is found nearby, real life has to take over once again. Jodie is working a trial period as an auxiliary detective sergeant, alongside Nathan, while still running her catering company, which means she's being pulled in all directions, and then a second person is attacked.

Book six in this wonderful series has everything you want in a Cosy. The familiar main protagonists and locations, along with a crime that has all sorts of twists, turns, and possible solutions. It is also very funny, and the conversations between Jodie and Nathan are full of the gallows humour you would hope to see between a couple who happen to investigate murders for a living.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the opinions expressed are my own. I loved this as I have the whole series so far and look forward to reading more in the future. Highly recommended.

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An easy read in a conversational, often humourous style which pretty much does what it says on the cover.
Nothing too heavy and reminiscent of Midsomer Murders or Beyond Paradise.
Likable characters and a good plot, this was a good use of my weekend.

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A Cornish Seaside Murder is book 6 in the Jodie Nosey Parker series by Fiona Leitch. Jodie lives in Penstowan, Cornwall, with her daughter Daisy and her Mum. She owns a catering business and is now an auxiliary Detective Sergeant with the local Force under the leadership of her partner DCI Nathan Withers. Jodie volunteers to help at the local mermaid festival and ends up dressed as The Siren, which according to legend, lured fishermen to their deaths. However, the Festival provides an unexpected dead body. Now Jodie needs to fit her police work in with her catering business and this is causing a few problems. This is such an enjoyable and fun read, with great characters, humour and just a bit more than a cozy read.

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Absolutely lovely. I have read all the other books in this series and would really consider myself a fan. Love the characters and the plots. Such an easy cosy read. Brilliant.

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Thank you @netgalley for offering me a copy of A Cornish Seaside Murder in exchange for an honest review!

I love Jodie Parker's murder mysteries! She's a very realistic character, whose dreams and aspirations sometimes clash. In this book she has to face a complicated choice: coming back to the police or honouring a promise to her family and continuing her catering business. Sometimes in life, unfortunately, we can't have everything we want and things don't go our way, so seeing Jodie deal with this was quite interesting.
The murder plot was also very exciting. It kept me wondering all the time. I think other readers will have a great time trying to figure out the killer's motives!
The supporting character are also quite interesting, especially Daisy, Jodie's daughter who cares a lot about social causes and the planet!
I loved this book and I hope there'll be more Jodie Parker novels!

TW: mentions of drug dealing, mentions of human and sex trafficking, murder, torture, coma, drowning.

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Engaging Mystery..
The sixth entry in the Nosey Parker Cozy Mystery series finds a slight change of scene and tone for the protagonist Jodie, as she is now serving a trial period as an auxiliary DS. More so, she is working alongside DCI Nathan Withers on something very sinister indeed. As suspicious occurrences together with victims stack up the pair must face the consequences of exactly what they are dealing with. Despite a slightly darker tone, this is an engaging entry to the series with a likeable protagonist, a deftly drawn cast and a firm sense of place.

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I love this series and this addition was great! Loved reading of new and old characters. Enjoyed the mystery surrounding the deaths as you wouldn’t think of it’s

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I've loved this series from the very start, watching the blossoming relationship between Josie and Nathan as she sticks her nose in when dead bodies fall in her path during outings with her fledgling catering company. I've loved getting to know her friends and family and absorbing the Cornish atmosphere in what until now have been cozy murder mysteries with a feel good touch.

This instalment however has changed the ingredients and to my mind, not for the better. Friends and family are mainly on the back burner as Josie accepts a professional role with the police, thus taking away the charm of her interfering discoveries, amidst the trials of her catering jobs. Several times throughtout the book we hear Josie talk about the conflict between her varying responsibilities in a way that almost feels like an apology from the author. The biggest shift however is the nature of the crime, from cosy village life to organised crime gangs with London links, which changes the whole tone of the investigation.

I still loved the book, the first half in particular fitted well with previous ones in this series, but the darker tone and moralising on a certain topic were a disappointment. Sorry, Fiona.

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A cosy mystery, part of a series set in Cornwall, each stand-alone.

Jodie Parker ex-Metropolitan Police, has returned to her home town of Penstowan and is settled with her boyfriend, DCI Nathan Withers. In this latest book she's become a probationary detective sergeant in the local CID, with Nathan as her boss. At the same time Jodie is juggling family life and running her thriving catering business.

There's a local superstition that when fishermen take their boats in a particular area, a mermaid called the Siren will target them and sink their boats. A fisherman is found drowned in a water trough near the church, this creates rumours that his death is connected with the recent disappearance of the mermaid statue from this same church.

Clues stack up in Nathan and Jodie's investigation, leading them to suspect that the murder is connected with drug smuggling, especially when vehicle tyre tracks are found at an isolated cove.

Slowed down a bit in the middle, then gathered speed towards the end. Effortless reading with a satisfactory end.

ARC generously supplied by One More Chapter HarperCollins UK and NetGalley, this review is my personal, unbiased opinion.

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So I requested book not realizing it was part of a series and of course now I will have to go back and start from the beginning. If you are like me and pick it up without context, it is easy enough to follow along and understand what’s happening without needing to grab the whole series before reading this one. You may have a spoiler or two for earlier books but not anything unexpected necessarily.

I really loved how the author portrayed the life of a working mom and struggle you feel to be good at your job, but also good at being a mother and how sometimes being good at one might cause you to feel lacking in the other. It’s definitely something you don’t always see in a murder mystery, actual logistics of shoot I have to figure out someone to help my daughter and my dog. It made the character more relatable.

Overall, this was a great little cozy mystery that made me want to read the rest of the author’s books. It was pretty fast paced and well written. I enjoyed the story and the characters and it was really engaging. I loved the descriptions of the seaside town. It made me miss living overseas and taking the DART off to a little town for the day. I definitely had an appreciation for the fishermen and their superstitions.

Please be advised I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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It’s Penstowan’s Mermaid week down in Cornwall and the villagers are out in full force! Jodie, the newly appointed Auxiliary Detective, suitably dressed for the festivities, is being chased by the children of the village, playing her part as the evil siren, she reaches the stone circle and sees a man bent over at the nearby water trough! He appears to be drinking the water but he isn’t - he’s dead! And so begins an investigation into possible drug trafficking within the fishing fraternity. Jodie’s other half, the local DCI Nathan, is hot on the case and with her assistance they hope to route out the culprits! This is a nice easy read with a bit of everything, humour, dastardly deeds, friendship and a good plot! Liked the characters though would have liked to have known exactly who friend Tom was? We’re not told! A good holiday tale!

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I really love this series and it’s an auto read for me! Fiona is a great writer. No cheese, realistic dialogue, and great character development. That being said, this one featured less of the side characters I love, such as Jodie’s mom and daughter. I missed some of the family moments I enjoy, as this had a heavier emphasis on the police aspect with Jodie working on police staff rather than her catering business. Still provided a good mystery and ending I didn’t expect. A little spicy humor occasionally but not heavy handed. All in all, I always recommend this series because the characters are so engaging.

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It's always a delicious treat to be spending some hours with Jodie "Nosey" Parker and her joyful gang in beautiful Cornwall!

In this latest addition to this warm and delightful series local folklore, criminal shenanigans and violent murder are coalescing into a very complex police investigation with lots of twisty turns, unexpected surprises and far too many potential suspects....

A cleverly plotted whodunit full of humor, sparkling dialogues and blessed with a terrific cast of exquisitely drawn characters that really deserves to be enjoyed without any moderation whatsoever!

Many thanks to HarperCollins UK and Netgalley for this wonderful ARC!

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A light mystery set in the Cornish village of Penstowan. Local folklore tells the tale of the Siren taking her revenge on greedy fishermen, a legend celebrated at the yearly Mermaid Festival. But this year, the stone statue of the Siren goes missing, and a local fisherman is found dead. Jodie Parker, ex-Metropolitan police officer, and her boyfriend Nathan Withers, local DCI, work together to solve the crime.

This reminded me of British tv series that I’ve enjoyed, but it lacked the depth and charm I love. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

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Another great tale in this Cornish police series. Jodie has to pause her catering company to work as an auxiliary police officer when a murder happens at the start of the village mermaid festival. The family dynamics and the relationships between the police officers make this a particularly engaging book. The Cornish setting makes it a perfect holiday read.

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