Member Reviews

Unfortunately this book was not for me, it was a bit slower than I would like and it just didn't hold my attention. I am sure other people will love it!

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A thrilling read which kept me turning the pages, characters you care for and just brilliantly written. Great novel!!

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Jenny Starling, a traveling cook, has moved on and will be cooking at a small farm for a handful of people during Christmas. Something is definitely awry at the Kelton Farm when it is discovered that a guest has been murdered.

Jenny is not only a brilliant cook, she is an excellent amateur sleuth who has a knack for solving murders. From the outset Jenny knew things were not right. Her employer, Stan Kelton, is as hateful as can be. His family detests him. Furthermore, they all act oddly as far as Jenny is concerned. Despite how unlikeable Stan is, when someone is murdered it is not him.

The police have no shortage of suspects and it takes them no time to develop a grudging respect for Jenny as she becomes instrumental in discovering the circumstances surrounding the murder.

If you love cozy mysteries, grab this and all the other books in this engaging series. Jenny is smart, beautiful and statuesque. I thoroughly enjoyed Jenny’s techniques and thought processes. The discussion of food was a boon too.

The next book in the series is The Riverboat Mystery.

Formerly published as A Fatal Fall of Snow under Faith Martin’s pseudonym, Joyce Cato.

Many thanks to Joffe Books and to NetGalley for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.

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

Faith Martin is not a writer that I have read before so I'm unsure if this is her usual standard of writing. The Winter Mystery was a pleasantly easy read but there was nothing to challenge the reader or keep me engaged. It felt a little slow and flat overall and I wouldn't necessarily seek out other works in this series based on this. Easy to enjoy as a cozy afternoon read when you don't want too many twists and turns.

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I am a great fan of Faith Martin and was sad when her Hilary Green series ended. This is the first Jenny Starling book I've read and it does what it says on the tin! I love the way she gives descriptions and nuances of the characters so you quickly develop a love or hate scenario. These books are easy to get into, easy to read and not too gory. Yes, you can describe them as cosy mysteries but they are so much more than that and Faith Martin has a formula that so obviously works. I look forward to reading others in the Jenny Starling series. Thank you Netgalley for giving me a review copy to read 😊

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The second in the Jenny Starling mystery series from Faith Martin (previously published as ' A Fatal Fall Of Snow' under pen name Joyce Cato). Jenny, self employed cook and sometime amateur sleuth, has opted to take a job over the Christmas period cooking for a family in a country house. Whilst the prospect sounded idyllic to Jenny she soon realises the reality is somewhat different - no seasonal festive joy in
this household and an atmosphere of pure gloom - furthermore, it's not long before events take a murderous turn. An enjoyable, light mystery with some good characterisation, humour and an entertaining plot.

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I love Faith Martin's books and the Jenny Starling series is wonderful. She an excellent, solid female lead character. Intelligent and likable, and able to fit into many situations to solve crimes. I love how the books are set in England but are much more than a "cozy" mystery. They actually make you think.

This book was set at Christmas time and the murder was an interesting one to solve. I definitely recommend this book, this series, this author!

*I would like to thank the author/publisher/Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.*

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Thank you to NetGalley, Joffe Books and the author, Faith Martin, for the opportunity to read a digital copy of The Winter Mystery in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.
I thought this book provided a good, quick read. The characters are well defined and the scenery descriptive. The 'whodunit keeps you guessing in true Ms Martin style. 3.5 stars.
Well worth a read.

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Over recent months I've become a great fan of cozy mysteries so, when I saw this second book in the series featuring Jenny Starling being launched, I knew I had to read "The Winter Mystery." Also, it has a culinary theme which I love and a little light humour. The first book ‘The Birthday Mystery’ was so good, I knew it was likely that Faith Martin had written a winner with this book, too, and I was right!

Best-seller author Faith Martin has also written the ‘Detective Hillary Greene’ mysteries.

First, we are introduced to Jenny Starling who is spending Christmas in a snowed-in country house cooking all the traditional food she loves, however, the family she’s working for are not full of the seasonal spirit. On Christmas Eve, someone is found dead on the kitchen table and the head of the family is blaming Jenny! But with an incompetent detective called in, and seemingly no motive for the murder, Jenny will have to turn amateur sleuth again. She will stop at nothing to clear her name and find the perpetrator.

Faith Martin’s writing skills set the scene beautifully for this novel. The house is a large, charming, Cotswold-stone, Georgian farmhouse in rural Oxford, complete with stables, outhouses, a cobbled courtyard and a resident sheepdog.

Faith Martin’s character development is wonderful, particularly that of Jenny who is an impressive woman and in her late twenties. Curvaceous and sexy, she’s a modern single woman, living and loving life as a travelling cook. She is happy travelling the country catering for different events and cooking great food. She doesn’t like having to divert her attention from baking delicious cakes or creating a new sauce recipe by having to solve murders. She is great at reading people and unmasking killers, always with a good dose of humour.

There are many suspects in this mystery, with clues and lots of red herrings to keep the reader guessing. It was a thoroughly satisfying read and I often found myself asking the same questions as Jenny and I was kept in suspense to the end. The pacing in "The Winter Mystery" was very good and I never lost interest, as it wasn't long before something intriguing would happen. Things came together for a fulfilling finish and wrapped everything up very neatly.

I'm definitely looking forward to the next novel featuring Jenny Starling and other books by the author, Faith Martin. "The Winter Mystery" whets your appetite for more to come.

My thanks to #NetGalley, Joffe Books and the author for providing me with a free advanced copy of #TheWinterMystery.

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I have never read anything by this author before. I enjoyed it and the chatacters. The plot kept me wanting to read more and more. Great book and a must read

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Updated review: I suppose one has to be in the right mood for a slow paced who-done-it because I did come back to the book, and finished it, a month later. And the murderer was hard to determine. This book could be considered cozy mystery as there was nothing gruesome about it, and the lead character was fun and toward the end you were rooting for the quiet ones.

Original review: I wanted to like this book, I did. It had great elements and an enticing cover: a remote English farm cut off by deep snow, a temporary hired cook, a family bullied by a ham fisted relative, secrets, a murder. I kept waiting for the pace to pick up but after 75 pages I gave up. I'll try again in another week.

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Truly captivating and gripping, the storyline is totally intense and intriguing. Detective Morton and Inspector Ford are two of the most inept law enforcers I have ever met. It was up to Jenny to do the investigating and seek out answers to the many puzzle pieces they were dealt. Pure greed, the root cause of this mystery, and the murderer was willing to do anything and pay any price to get and keep what he desires most. A great and exciting read that captures your all until the very last page.

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Another excellent mystery from Faith Martin that didn't fail to please! The book features Jenny Starling, the cook who goes to work at a farm for two weeks at Christmas, and a murder happens in the kitchen. It is a pleasure to read this book, and would recommend it to anyone.

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Traveling cook and amateur sleuth Jenny Starling has been hired by the Kelton family to cook meals for the Christmas holidays. The Keltons live in an isolated, snowed-in country house and Jenny soon notices there are simmering feelings and tension amongst the family members. Then on Christmas Eve, sickly eldest brother Sid Kelton is found stabbed to death at the kitchen table. With an inexperienced detective called in to lead the investigation, it is up to Jenny to give the police a hand. Genetics and eye colour and inheritance of the family farm to the eldest son provide the clue behind the motivation to the murder.

This is the second book in the Jenny Starling mystery series. This is a revised edition of a book that was previously published as "A Fatal Fall of Snow" by Joyce Cato.

I received an eARC via Netgalley and Joffe Books with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and provided this review.

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I enjoyed this amateur sleuth mystery. My rating: 4.25.

Traveling cook, Jenny, accepts a job in a small village to cook over the Christmas holidays. She arrives after struggling through the snow to get to the house. There she finds that no one knew she was coming except the gruff, tyrant head of the household, Stan Kelton.

Jenny meets the family and learns that the household consists of Stan’s elder brother, Sid, who has been frail after an accident years before; Stan’s two grown sons, Bert and Bill; his daughter Delia; and his grandson, Jeremy, Bert’s son. Although the eldest son of the family is the legal owner of the farm, it is clear that Stan is in control… and no one is particularly happy. There is a local woman, Mrs. Jarvis, who comes in daily to clean and cook under normal circumstances. She is more than willing to explain that Stan is a brute who caused the death of her husband and ran off Bert’s wife.

Jenny is only at the home a day or two before she steps into the kitchen, turns to the table and finds Sid, (not Stan), sitting with a knife in his chest. Jenny hurries through the snow to get authorities to come to the house. When she returns, she steps in to have Stan accuse her of the crime. The inspectors are congenial, but Jenny realizes that they are not overly experienced at murder investigations. On the other hand, Jenny has gained a small reputation as she has already helped to uncover two other crimes.

If it had been Stan who was killed there would be plenty of people with motive. But who would want to kill sweet, gentle Sid? Fortunately the inspectors are willing to follow Jenny’s suggested steps to protect the scene, gather evidence and interview witnesses.

I found Jenny to be a lovely character and I liked how she handled the investigation. There are several side issues to make the reader ponder. However there are other clues for the reader to pick up so I was able to guess the motive and killer before the reveal. Still it was fun to follow the investigation. The writing was clear, easy going and moved along well. There were nice descriptions (including yummy meals) that contributed to the natural feel of the story without dragging it out. I would be glad to read more by Ms. Martin and I recommend this to reader’s who enjoy a nice cozy mystery.

Source: 2018 NetGalley.

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Being a cozy mystery, The Winter Mystery was fairly typical. Beautiful setting, a little mystery, disagreeing yet loveable characters. It's all around charming of course. The story is cute and engaging. It's a good fast read for cozy mystery fans. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

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I read both this book and the first one in the series, The Birthday Mystery, back to back.
In both of these books, the protagonist, Jenny Starling, is catering a special event - the first a birthday party for a pair of wealthy twins, the second, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dinner for a remote farmhouse. In both of them, someone ends up murdered. And in both of them, Jenny has already earned a reputation for solving a crime, so is engaged by the local police to help solve the case.

I really liked Jenny as a character! She's independent and is comfortable with who she is. In one book, she meets a woman brought up to believe a woman could never be too think or two rich, two things that Jenny appears to have never even considered needing. She really knows her way around the kitchen, not only where to source the best food, but food safety, what type of food someone would like, etc. Very competent, very intelligent.

The books themselves, however, I liked much less. At times, in fact, I got frustrated with the writer who kept referring to Jenny being a big girl; I felt like I liked her and appreciated her more than her creator did. I also thought there wasn't much 'whodunit' in either book; in one, only one person had opportunity, and in the other, only one person had motive. I did enjoy watching Jenny investigate (with the police's blessing), asking just the right questions in a bar, for example. It was also interesting to see how others viewed Jenny and how skillful she was at getting answers.

Both books have been published previously under the pen name 'Joyce Cato' as Birthdays Can be Murder and A Fatal Fall of Snow back in 2010 and 2011. There's a number of references to a previous case; I'm assuming it was published as Joyce Cato, but Ms. Martin doesn't have the rights to publish?

All in all, I'd recommend reading them, if only to get to know Jenny.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley.com and voluntarily chose to review.

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I read the Hillary Greene series as fast as I could and was sad when those books ended, so I was truly delighted when I found the Jenny Starling series. I might like this series better because it reminds me of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple series, which I devoured as a kid. I love a good, clean mystery!I

Jenny is a strong woman who knows her mind, a talented cook, a wonderful friend, and one heck of a sleuth. I look forward to her next adventure. I'm hoping she lands herself a royal job!

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This time Jenny Starling is hired to cook for a wealthy farmer over the Christmas period. Thee’s not a lot of festive spirit as the family seem to hate each other. Then a murder occurs on Christmas Eve and the police sent to investigate don’t seem to have a clue and when they realize that Jenny has past experience in solving crimes they begin to include her in their investigations.

This is a well written old fashioned murder mystery. Although it is the second in the series it reads well as a standalone. The plot follows the usual format with lots of suspects and many red herrings. I did guess who the murderer was this time, but it didn’t stop me from enjoying the book. The winter setting was perfect and Ms Martin’s description of the snowy landscape made me shiver, and her descriptions of the food made my stomach rumble. I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much as the Birthday Mystery but it is still an enjoyable Winter read.

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Jenny Starling came to the Kelton farm for Christmas. She was to be their cook over the Christmas period. Snow played a part in cutting the farm off when murder in the family is committed. The police are baffled it looks like an inside job. With Jenny on the inside her experience in observing people comes into play. You will love this winter fireside mystery that you will love to curl up with and follow alone in Jenny’s footsteps.
I was given an ARC of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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