I like police procedurals, and this one was good. The pacing was a bit slow, but the story was interesting.

In a small town in Devon, the man who ran the White Hart pub is murdered, and his body is graphically displayed in the middle of a road. Detective Sargent Nicola Bridge, recently returned to the area, and Detective Constable Harry Ward are assigned to the case. They discover that similar murders occurred many years ago, and wonder if there is a link. As they investigate, they begin uncovering secrets that many wish to stay hidden. What was once an idyllic village is now a place where neighbors point the finger at neighbors, and speculation runs rampant.

The beginning grabbed my attention with the description of the victim, but the pace slowed, and I skimmed over the character's navel-gazing. I didn't find Nicola engaging, and often felt sorry for the way she treated Harry. The writing is good, but I figured out who the murderer was well before the reveal. 3.5/5 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and Pamela Dorman Books, for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The publication date is June 10, 2025.

I LOVED Broadchurch so was excited to try this. The omniscient POV and multiple narrators were not my choice for a procedural (even though I think PD James does this and who am I to tell her she's doing it wrong!) I just prefer to follow the methodical cat and mouse game between the investigator and the culprit.

I did love the small town vibe of this, but I also found the ending needed too much explaining. For me.
I think that this has been optioned and it's entirely possible it will be fantastic on screen. For me.

Blog review will be live on June 9

The move had been a last-ditch effort at preserving her marriage. Her devotion to her job led to her husband’s infidelity and emotional distance from their son. Their relocation from Liverpool to the village of Fleetcombe was supposed to free Detective Sergeant Nicola Bridges from the troublesome investigations. This proves to be wishful thinking when Bridges receives the call about the dead body found on a nearby motorway. The initial investigation proves frustrating to Bridges as homicides are rare in Fleetcombe, her resources are slim, and her Detective Constable subordinate is inexperienced. The list of suspects is open for speculation as witnesses prevaricate and a motive seems elusive. However, Bridges and her new partner are persistent in investigating this case, no matter where it leads.

Author Chris Chibnall excelled at crafting a masterful whodunit with the series Broadchurch and brilliantly continues in that vein with his inaugural novel. Death at the White Hart brings both intriguing elements of suspense and drama featuring an outstanding cast of characters and a mystery that keeps the reader riveted until the fulfilling climax. The Fans of Knives Out and Murder on the Orient Express will thoroughly enjoy this effort.

This was such a good story! I love police procedurals centered in a small English village, and this one definitely delivered on its promise! Murder, village secrets, and lots of suspects! I had it figured out pretty early, but not the why because wow, that was a weird murder! (And I do love weird!) It was a lot of fun watching how this played out. The author gave us just enough to make me question all of the suspects, even though I was pretty sure I knew who did it. For me, that’s a win for the author. I really enjoyed see the relationship between Nicola and Harry grow. I also liked the background the author gave Nicola. Talk about a great foundation for a sudden move and a whole lot of baggage. Just my kind of story. I can see this being a series very easily. I’m actually surprised it wasn’t billed as one. If it were, I would definitely read the next one!

Huge thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Viking Penguin | Pamela Dorman Books and NetGalley for sending me this ARC for review! All of my reviews are given honestly!

While the story was good, I found the writing style not really my style. Death at the White Heart was a quick read that kept you guessing until the end.

When I saw that Death at the White Hart was from the creator of Broadchurch, I couldn’t request it fast enough. This fact alone promised quality suspense and well written story as this and more were delivered in Broadchurch. That being said, this novel was a little bit difficult for me to get into at first. Perhaps my expectations were set too high. I did enjoy the twists and turns as the story unfolded and I was satisfied with the end. Overall, it was a job well done once it four going. It will also translate into a phenomenal TV show as I heard it had been optioned for a TV series.

The “Broadchurch” connection is appropriately brought up in the marketing of “Death at the White Hart” — a little seaside English village hiding secrets that brings the local (newly returned from hectic Liverpool) Detective Sergeant and a newcomer Detective Constable, also from Liverpool, together. Hey, it works! This is Chris Chibnall’s debut novel after being an acclaimed television screenwriter, and his thriller does read like a good streaming series.

DS Nicola Bridge and DC Harry Ward have an unusual case in the normally picturesque town of Fleetcombe: Pub landlord Jim Tiernan is found tied, nearly naked, to a chair in the middle of the highway with stag antlers on his head — possibly a reference to his pub, White Hart. Their investigation is a logical one, encompassing a group of locals that they interview: Jim’s older sister Patricia; Irina, Jim’s Ukrainian girlfriend; pub regular and delivery driver Eddie; another pub visitor barber/hairdresser Frankie; Ayesha, landlady of the rival Fleetcombe pub, The Fox; and Deakins, a strange farmer who annoys the customers with his uninvited banjo playing. Plus, there’s an almost invisible nine year old witness.

This is still a clever police procedural with facts that slowly accumulate and layers of secrecy being revealed. In the end, it’s the teamwork between Nicola and Harry that finally uncover the murderer. And, their return for a future case would be welcome. Well-written and paced, with wonderful main characters. 4 stars!

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): YES Mick has blazing green eyes and Shannon has fierce green eyes.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO We do get a sense of the Dorset area as the action moves between various towns.

Thank you to Penguin/Viking, Pamela Dorman Books, and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy!

Title: Death at the White Hart
Author: Chris Chibnall
Publisher: Penguin Group Viking Penguin/Pamela Dorman Books
Genre: Crime Thriller
Pub Date: June 10, 2025
My Rating: 3.6 Stars!
Pages: 352

The villagers of Bradcombe like to think of it as one of the most picturesque spots on England’s seaside.

However, when Jim Tiernan, of the White Hart pub, was found dead the small village is shocked by the
gruesome crime.
Story starts with the crime and it definitely got my attention.
~ A dead body is found in the middle of the road, strapped to a chair with antlers glued to his head. The police identify the body straight away but have no idea why someone in the close knit rural community would want to murder this man who is known to all of them.
Nicola Bridge is a CID detective from Liverpool but grew up in Bradcombe and now has returned to her hometown. She and her inexperienced partner, DC Harry Ward are both eager to solve this case.

This was highly recommended. I read a lot of thriller s- this did not have the twists, turns and big reveals so it didn’t have the – I didn’t see that coming’! However, it was still interesting!

Want to thank NetGalley and Penguin Group Viking Publishing/Pamela Dorman Books for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for June 10, 2025.

If you don’t recognize Chris Chibnall’s name as a mystery writer, you still might know his writing; he wrote the TV series Broadchurch, Torchwood, and the Jodie Whittaker era of Doctor Who. I decided to give his first mystery book a try based largely on how much I liked Broadchurch.

Nicola Bridge has returned to her native Devon from Liverpool, where she’d been a successful police detective for years. The move is fresh start for her, her teenage son Ethan, and her husband Mark, who endangered the marriage in Liverpool and is now willing to do whatever Nicola wants to repair the damage. Nicola knew Devon would be much less active than Liverpool, but she was promised a decent-sized staff and a brand-new police station. But when a murdered man is discovered in bizarre circumstances, no help is available outside a very young, over-eager DC, Harry Ward, their research specialist, Mel, and the able and friendly SOCO, Reeta Patel. Their “temporary” HQ is an empty building next to the old police station.

The murder victim, Jim Tiernan, is the host of one of two rival local pubs, and there are so many potential suspects it keeps Nicola and her team working overtime. There is Jim’s live-in girlfriend, with whom he has a tempestuous relationship; there is the rival pub owner; there are people Jim may have defrauded, including one particularly dodgy character; there is Jim’s hair stylist, who seems to be hiding something; there is a cantankerous farmer with a longstanding grudge against just about everyone and a century-old family history of murder disturbingly similar to that visited on Jim.

This is a well-executed police procedural, not a fair-play mystery. The reader may well guess the perpetrator, but it won’t be based on clues carefully sprinkled throughout the book. Instead, the reader finds out along with Nicola, as she gathers clues, but also analyzes motives she intuits as she gets to know the villagers better.

This feels like the beginning of a series, and I hope to see more of Nicola and her team. (Less so her husband and son, but it’s my personal taste not to be much interested in the home lives of detectives in police procedurals.)

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

3.5 stars rounded down
I liked the very beginning but when it became so slow that I started skimming, I thought I might give up. I'm glad I didn't, but the pace didn't pick up until about 40%. I didn't like the FMC Nicola. I thought she was particularly harsh, for no reason, with Harry - a character I loved - and I'm glad their relationship grew to show more mutual respect. I hated that she believed gossip and jumped to that conclusion about Harry early on, without getting the facts, but kudos to her for apologizing. That happened fairly early on and left a bad taste with me for the rest of the book. I also didn't like that 2 characters were named Mike and Mick - I kept getting them confused. I did like the second half quite a bit and it was a satisfying ending, especially learning what happened to Shannon. If this is the start of a new series, I would probably read another.

Death at the White Hart sounded really promising and exciting. The story is from the creator of Broadchurch, which I loved. However, I had a difficult time getting invested in the characters and the story. There were times when the story was slow, and there were many characters to keep track of. I wasn’t too sure about Nicola at first; she came across as very hard on her partner, Harry.

I kind of had the culprit figured out, but the ending was a bit mediocre. This was just an okay read for me. I’m not sure I would read any more in this series.

#DeathattheWhiteHart #NetGalley @VikingBooks

Nicola Bridges moves with her family to Fleetcombe to start over after a family crisis, and joins the local police department as a detective. She and Harry ( an inexperienced detective), . join forces to solve the grisly murder of Jim Tiernan, the manager of The White Hart, a local pub. Jim was found naked, sitting in a chair with a set of deer antlers affixed to his head. Needless to say, Nicola and Harry are horrified by the brutality, but intrigued by the murder itself. They investigate Freddy, a local hairstylist: Eddie,a driver for a delivery company: Irina, Jim's girlfriend: and Ayesha, Jim's OTHER girlfriend. Lots of twists and turns, and wonderful characters!

Death at the White Hart reads like an episode of
the British TV series Midsomer Murders. The setting … a small English town. The murder… an odd grisly death.
The suspects … a group of townspeople who are keeping secrets and telling lies.
The lead detective …Nicola is the new detective in town … starting over after some problems in her marriage , that is under cutting her confidence.
The mystery wraps up in a neat little bow … not a real surprise of who the murder was.
Overall feeling … meh.
Thanks to net galley for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a great beginning with likeable characters. While this wasn't my favorite mystery, there were twists and turns that kept me intrigued.

This book read like a binge worthy television series. The characters were crisp, the location interesting and the mystery was compelling.

In a coastal English village, a body was found in the middle of the road. Newly arrived DIS Nicola along with her inexperienced DC Harry must unravel this mystery. Village politics and characters add to the fun.

I hope this becomes a series because I’m ready for the next installment.

Detective Nicola Bridge has moved back to her home town in an attempt to work through family issues in a less frantic atmosphere than her previous assignment. That plan swiftly goes awry when the popular pub owner, Jim is found murdered, tied to a chair in the middle of a road with deer antlers taped to his head. Nicola and her small team are stretched thin following clues and interviewing villagers, some of whom are suspects. As Nicola learns more about Jim multiple motives for his murder are uncovered.
This is a fast-paced, interesting mystery with well-drawn characters- even the secondary ones. The author is responsible for the hit tv series Broadchurch and this debut novel is already heading for the screen. Thanks to Netgalley and Pamela Dorman Books for the opportunity to read the advanced copy.

4.5 rounding up because Broadchurch is one of my favorite shows ever and Chibnall was the co writer!
this was really solid and I hope it is only the first in a series with Nic and Harry! I did guess it ( why it was 4.5 to start with) but these characters are still occupying my thoughts! would it be too much to hope they will make a show out of this?
thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

This had a great British mystery feel to it, but with a more contemporary vibe. A sleepy village is shaken up by the murder of a very public figure- the bartender from one of the two local pubs. The local police force has their hands full as any of several locals could be guilty. I really enjoyed it!

A new series with a strong female detective. Nicola is having family issues and they need a change of scenery so she moves to a smaller town for less stress and immediately comes up against a macabre murder. She has fewer resources but is till determined to do a good job on the investigation.

This was well written but not enough action for me. I found myself speed reading through the middle but it did come to a satisfying conclusion. I would read the next one to see what happens to the characters we met.

Thanks Netgalley for an ARC to read and review. 3.5 STARS

I normally would not have picked this book. I love thrillers! But tend to not got for the crime one.

I got asked to read this one and boy am I happy I did. I enjoyed every minute of it and want more.