The Widows Guide to Skulduggery is a delightful cozy mystery that hooks you from the first page and doesn’t let go. This is my first encounter with this author, and I’m thrilled to discover it’s part of a series, with two earlier books to dive into. The story centers on Ginny and her quirky “Murder Club” friends—JM, Tuppence, and Hen—whose amateur sleuthing is as charming as it is relentless.

The plot kicks off with a bang when a Jack Russell bounds into Grace and Theo’s wedding, brandishing a human skull. This grim discovery derails the nuptials, reignites a bitter rivalry between two villages, and sets the stage for a classic whodunit. Ginny, suspecting sabotage, leads her fellow widows in unraveling a tangled web of family feuds, ancient grudges, and buried secrets. When a fresh body surfaces, the stakes soar, and the investigation takes on a life of its own.

What makes this book shine is its infectious energy. The pace is brisk, and the characters are an absolute delight—Ginny and her crew are witty, determined, and wonderfully human. I found myself racing to pick the book up again, a sure sign of its grip. The small-town setting, complete with a helpful map at the start, adds to the immersive charm, though I longed for a character list to navigate the crowded first chapter more easily. (A small critique: why don’t all authors include this?)

The mystery itself is engaging, with enough twists to keep you guessing without feeling contrived. The police’s disinterest in the twenty-year-old skull gives Ginny and her friends free rein, making their meddling both plausible and fun. The interplay of village rivalries and personal motives is deftly woven, culminating in a satisfying resolution.

If you love cozy mysteries with vibrant characters, a touch of humor, and a plot that keeps you hooked, this book is a must-read. I’m already eager to backtrack to the earlier books in the series and join Ginny’s Murder Club for more adventures.

I’m rating this 4.5/5. A thoroughly enjoyable read, with a minor wish for a character guide to ease the early chapters. Highly recommended for cozy mystery fans!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Storm Publishing, and Amanda Ashby for providing me with an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Widow's Guide to Skulduggery, the third book in the Widows' Detective Club series by Amanda Ashby is a solid addition and a book that easily stands on its own, if you haven't read the first two.
This tale has a Hatfield and Mckoy vibe, only here it isn't just families feuding, it's entire villages. There are two mysteries for the club to solve - the current one of who disrupted the wedding of two lovers from opposing villages, and the historical one of who killed the victim to whom the long missing skull belongs. As Ginny and her intrepid partners start to investigate the first, they unwittingly uncover clues to the second, with far reaching consequences for the residents of both villages.
Ashby has written another fast-paced mystery, with compelling characters and plenty of intrigue.
I enjoyed reading the ARC of #TheWidowsGuidetoSkulduggery provided by #StormPublishing and #NetGalley.

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for providing me with this eARC. It was an absolute delight to read this cozy mystery!

The premise was very interesting. When a 20 years old skull disrupts Ginny’s friend’s wedding and a family feud ends up being the center of attention she knows she had to find out whose skull is that and solve the mystery. Especially when police shows almost no
Interest.

So she is in the midst of it with the other widows that are her partner in crimes! It turns out it’s a very deep plot that’s been in brewing for decades.

Really liked the book, easy and interesting read. I will most definitely read the backlogs of this series!

Thanks again NetGalley and publisher for the eARC.

This is the third book in the Widow’s Guide series. They re all fun, light hearted books that fit comfortably into the cosy mystery genre. I’ve loved them all so far, and I’m looking forward to more.
In this book, Ginny and her friends find themselves trying to determine who left a skull in a church garden, where it was found by a dog and disrupted a wedding that was about to take place. Plenty of potential suspects are identified, and the ladies lurch from one difficulty to another attempting to rule them in or out.
These books are well worth a look, and this one comfortably stands alone, without having read the first two.

Two warring villages, a curse, several deaths including historical ones, a cast of many mixed characters and an interrupted wedding. All the ingredients for a classic cozy. And I do love a classic cozy. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Great story, this series gets better with each book, as we learn more about the 4 ladies of the Widows' Detective Club. This time there's a skull dropped at the feet of the bride by the ringbearer dog, a twenty year old murder, a town that never was, and a twist. Ginny and her friends have to dig deep to solve this one! Brilliant.
Thanks to Netgalley, Storm Publishing, and Amanda Ashby for the free ARC. All opinions are my own.

This is the second book I have read in this series. I have thoroughly enjoyed both. As with any good series the characters become more familiar and more interesting. The plot is good and it is a great gentle read.

When a human skull is found on church grounds just prior to a wedding, it causes the wedding to be canceled. Ginny Cole and her three friends seek to find out where the skull came from, and if someone planted it as a means to prevent the wedding. The investigation uncovers a lot more skeletons, literally and figuratively, and the four women are caught up in the middle of a murder investigation.

I've read one other title in this series and once again enjoyed the quirky characters and all the happenings in and around the small village library. These books are not marketed as cozy mysteries, but, in my mind at least, they qualify since they have an engaging puzzle without being overly violent or intense. An enjoyable read with a nice cup of tea.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Ginny, Hen, Tuppence and JM are back as the detective club (“We’re not a detective club!”…) after a human skull is dug up in the grounds of a friend’s wedding and dropped at the bride’s feet by the groom’s mother’s dog.
The bride and groom are from two very different families from two neighbouring villages who really do not mix. Because the skull is found out to be from solved case the police of Walton-on-Marsh are not interested that it’s ruined the wedding and cemented the fact that any mixing of the villages are cursed.
It’s up to the widows to work out who planted the skull in an attempt to break up the wedding and how it relates to a 20 year old murder.

I thoroughly enjoyed this 3rd book in this cozy crime series. Full of humour, twists and turns but beneath the mystery were threads of grief, aging, and widowhood—handled with heart and subtlety. The widows’ bond, their determination, and the small-village secrets made this both a page-turner and a feel-good read.

With thanks to Storm Publishing and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

What do you do when a dog interrupts a wedding holding a skull in its mouth? Of course you and your pals investigate the mystery. What follows is an absorbing, informative plot that uncovers a centuries old mystery and a vengeful murder. There is some grea5 characterisation, not only those who investigate, but even the subsidiary characters are interesting. There is some great world building with the rivalry between two villages brought out well. I liked the way that snobbish attitudes were frowned upon, making this a really enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this arc!

God I love this series. This one might be my favorite yet. The women are crazy and I love the Little Shaw. My only complaint was Wallace wasn't in the book enough! He wasn't stressed by Ginny and the rest of the women.

The books pacing was a lot better than the other books, and I didn't find myself slowing down. I finished it in a day!

Thank you, Amanda, for a cozy mystery!

This was such a good book. I loved the story and the writing so much. The characters were great and the story flowed smoothly. Will definitely read more books by this author in the future.

There is something very appealing about the widows as they Ilive their lives in Little Shaw, they attend their yoga and keep fit, weed the community areas and gather at the library. The idyllic life that could work for so many has a twist as murders keep happening and Ginny and her fellow widows look into things.and see what they can find out. Lives aren’t perfect and there are mistakes made, balls dropped and arguments had, and that adds to the book . Whilst it clearly isn’t real, with older ladies digging into police business and setting up murder boards and taking notes in their address books, there is something fun about it all. A lovely read.

I read this ARC in exchange for an honest review
All thoughts and opinions are mine


Its been some time since I have read this author and I'd forgotten how enjoyable their books were
I really enjoyed this

very much recommended

I requested this from NetGalley before realizing it was book three in a series—but how could I resist a title with the word skulduggery in it?

Set in a mythical English village that could almost pass for rural Ireland with its endless cups of tea, this cosy mystery was a delight. From the moment a human skull crashes a wedding, Ginny and her fellow widowed amateur sleuths—JM, Tuppence, and Hen—get drawn into a mystery laced with old grudges, family feuds, and charming village drama.

Even though I hadn’t read the previous books, I still enjoyed getting to know Ginny, (I will grab any book featuring a library or a librarian) with a wry sense of humour and a job that “literally requires her to read the latest Lisa Jewell” (who is an auto-buy author for me!). I loved her relatable quirks—like preferring bikini shopping over certain encounters (no spoilers), and attending a “shake and shuffle” fitness class—and her friendship circle, complete with duck-egg blue dinner invitations and relatable introvert Connor, who declares “that was way too much peopling for this time of day.” – these characters are my people!

There were only a handful of moments where I felt I’d have known the characters more deeply had I read books one and two, but it certainly didn’t stop me from enjoying the story. The mystery had depth and a little twist, but it was the tone—that warm, witty, tea-and-biscuits energy—that really won me over.

Beneath the mystery were threads of grief, aging, and widowhood—handled with heart and subtlety. The widows’ bond, their determination, and the small-village secrets made this both a page-turner and a feel-good read.

I can’t wait to recommend my book club try this series.

Perfect for fans of: Richard Osman and anyone who loves their mysteries with heart, humour, and a whole lot of tea.

I haven’t read the first two books in this series but I had no trouble getting right into the feel of the town and our main character. The mystery gets going right from the beginning and I was hooked from the first chapter. It’s a cozy small town British mystery, which is always a yes for me. This book is written well and keeps your attention. I love the dynamic of the group of sweet and sassy older women solving crime together. I will definitely be going back to read the first two books in this series and anticipating the next!

When a skull is found at a wedding, the widows suspect that the wedding has been sabotaged. Once another body is uncovered, Ginny and her friends must uncover family secrets and village rivalries to get to the truth. An enjoyable cozy mystery.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me a copy of this book to review.

This was a fun mystery novel, and I enjoyed it a lot. I am looking forward to reading more by this author.

Lacking some of the sparkle of the first two novels in this series it is still an enjoyable addition to the Widows' Detective Club, a truly compelling series. What I really missed was the rapport between Ginny and D.I. James Wallace - which didn't materialise until the very end, but it was nice to see a bit more of Brandon - definitely one of my current favourite canine characters.
The plot didn't really grip me this time either, it wad convoluted rather than complex, and the 'guest' characters were under developed and thus under written.
I can't help thinking that it is always better to spend some time refining plot and characters rather than churning out novel after novel to add to an ongoing series.
I hope the fourth in the series will be a return to form from an author I highly admire.

Little Shaw’s librarian Ginny Cole is attending a wedding which, from the start, has been a little strained! When a skull rolls to a stop at the feet of the bride chaos reigns and it's clear no-one will be getting married anytime soon! After it becomes clear the skull is part of a case years earlier the police lose interest, meaning Ginny and her three friends can investigate to their hearts content. Secrets, village rivalries, and an unapproachable new police inspector mean the four sleuths are left to decipher everything themselves, but when a second murder takes place and the danger increases they find they're once again at the centre of everything!

I was able to read an advanced copy of this thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Storm Publishing, but the opinions expressed are my own. Book three in this fun series is the best yet. It's definitely found its feet and I thoroughly enjoyed it.