Due to a passing in the family a few years ago and my subsequent health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for years after the bereavement. Thank you for the opportunity.

I have missed Sukey, our SOCO  and I am very pleased to be allowed to accompany her on a new adventure.

I would not like to be in her shoes. Well, to be honest I would not like to be in the shoes of the police or anyone in the medical world. Blood is not my best friend and I am afraid I would faint each and every time. Not the best colleague to have around, right? 😊

But back to Sukey. She has a very important job, because she finds clues to help to solve the cases the police are dealing with. Her dream is to become a detective too, but not yet.

She is certainly clever enough to fill that role. She has eyes and ears everywhere and the fact she works for the police, but is not an officer, make people rather talk to her.

She often puts two and two together and thus comes up with very reasonable answers to the questions, but the DI does not always believes what she says. So Sukey would not be Sukey if she would let it be. No, no, no, no. She takes the matters in her own hands and starts sleuthing.

Often the detectives have to admit she had the right end of the stick, but sometimes she also comes to the wrong conclusion and that’s when it get very tricky…

This case was a very complicated one with a lot of characters.

DI Castle should sometimes step down from his high horse and stop sulking too. Good for Sukey for not giving in.

I enjoyed this puzzle a lot. 4 stars

Thank you

I didn't realise this was a series and that really threw me while I was trying to read. The story didn't flow as well as I hoped, and the characters didn't gel with me either. Ultimately, this book was not for me.

Death at Ivy House by Betty Rowlands is the fifth book in the Sukey Reynolds series. Reynolds is an intelligent woman working as a Scene of Crime Officer while wishing she had been able to follow her original career path and become a police officer instead. Another enjoyable mystery.

Sukey Reynolds finds herself going against the advice of her colleagues in this story as she investigates another mystery to try to find the truth.

This has quickly become one of my favourite series, and the author is definitely up there in my top ten.

Sukey Reynolds is a Scene of the Crime Officer with the Gloucester Police. When she is called to the scene of a brutal murder to photograph the body of a young woman, it’s all in a day’s work. That is, until she goes to another crime scene to collect evidence and realizes that there could be a link between the two. After Sukey finds it difficult to convince the detectives that her theories might have some merit, she decides to do a little investigating on her own.

I thoroughly enjoy this cozy/police procedural series. Not only are the mysteries well-plotted and the characters interesting, I also enjoy her descriptions of the Gloucester area. In addition, Sukey’s relationship with her college-age son is so refreshing and the series itself just seems to get better with each book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for review.

I did not get on with this .. stiff writing, derivative ideas and flat characterizations (for me) flattened and distanced the story. Homeless kids' murders and sleazy male-female related stories involving gang rivalry and war between them is convincing enough but again, derivative gangsters etc Not for me...

A police procedural and cozy mystery involving SOCO Sukey Reynolds of the Gloucester Police.

What it's about: A woman, known to be a former prostitute, is found bludgeoned to death at Ivy House. She'd been set up as mistress there by Trevor Blackton whose had a couple of run-ins with police in the past. Did he kill Evie Stanton in a jealous rage? The police can't seem to find Blackton nor any evidence that he committed the crime. There are some other factors that lead DI Jim Castle to believe that someone else may be behind the murder. Then another victim is found, one with some strange links to the Ivy House murder. And how is a homeless man, a magazine street vendor, connected -- but they can't find him either. The bodies pile up, there are multiple suspects, and wouldn't you know, it's Sukey who starts piecing it all together. NO SPOILERS.

Should you read it? If you like detective novels that are complicated and require them to chase down a lot of leads, interview many different people, and put all the information together to close a case, then this is a series for you. You have to accept that Sukey Reynolds, divorced mom to teenage Fergus, secret girlfriend of Jim Castle, was meant to be a detective but due to circumstances, ended up being a SOCO, a civilian, instead. Given her interest in helping to solve the crimes, which is definitely beyond her remit, she often goes off and makes discoveries on her own. I like her as a character but she needs to stop listening to her boyfriend and get herself qualified as a police officer or detective in her own right. DI Castle is quite protective and patronizing and Sukey is always getting put down for her efforts even though they always result in her finding something important. I've read all of this series, in order, to date and will continue on with the rest of them as they come available as I like the writing style and the interesting cases. In fact, I'd love to have her job!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC to read and review. Keep them coming! I know these were published years ago, some with different titles, but they are still timely and I'm sure that other readers will love discovering these gems.

Death at Ivy House by Betty Rowlands is the fifth book in the Sukey Reynolds series. I have just loved reading these books by Betty. They're a cosy mystery easy read.

Sukey Reynolds is a brilliant photographer, and a SOCO Plus helps out to solve murders etc. She is enjoying the quiet period of her work life by pottering in her much loved garden. Cooking great meals and spending time with her much loved son.
Sukey is called out to the charming Ivy House to photograph a dead body of a young woman. Whilst Sukey os collecting all the evidence for her colleagues her mind starts to wonder to a recents break-in around the same time as this murder. She wonders if these cases maybe linked to each other? and how!
Sukey voices her theories to her detective colleagues and they do not want to hear what she is trying to tell them!!!
Jim Castle tells her to leave things alone! they can deal with it. But, we know Sukey once she's got the bit between her teeth there's no letting go. She has to go and do her own thing and start an investigating herself!
She has also become concerned about a homeless young man called Matt who seems to have disappeared.

I highly recommend these books By Betty Rowland if you love a cosy mystery read with lots of twists and turns.

I love these books.

Big Thank you, NetGalley, Betty Rowlands and Bookouture, for granting my request to read this book in exchange for my honest review. The opinions and thoughts are my own

This was much better than the last one for me. A bit less tangled but the end seemed out of nowhere considering everything else that went down

Another great read from Betty Rowlands. This is the fifth in the Sukey Reynolds series. Sukey is a conscientious SOCO for Gloucester police. The first case she is sent to is the brutal murder of a woman. A few days later, it's the murder of the woman's boyfriend. Sukey has ideas about how to proceed, but they are brushed aside by her boss and boyfriend, Jim Castle. Sukey investigates on her own, which results in new leads in the case. Eventually, Sukey's investigation leads her into danger.

I love the character of Sukey, and her relationship with her college aged son Fergus. I will continue to read this series until I've read them all, I know!

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of the book to review.

If you love cozy mysteries, you'll love Betty Rowland's Sukey Reynolds books. The characters are well developed, they grow and mature with each book. The back stories are well developed, you can see the crime scenes and feel the apprehension when things get tense. Sukey may not be a detective, but she has eyes and ears and common sense so her input should be sought. But she ends up looking into things with her long suffering friends and family to again solve the crimes and stop a killer.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was the 5th visit with Sukey Reynolds and with each mystery we learn more about her, her work, family and friends. In this book she once again places herself in grave danger as she tries to do the right thing by helping a homeless person.

When she is called to several crime scenes she feels that there is a link between them. As usual she is told by DI Jim Castle to leave her amateur sleuthing and stick to her job as a SOCO (Scene of Crime Officer) because she'll get hurt. Sukey admit it or not has her hear set on returning to the CID as a detective, not just a civilian employee.

There are different pieces to this puzzle.... stolen art, murder, people sneaking about, homeless youth selling papers around Gloucester..... Sukey and her son Fergus set about piecing together all the bits of the case ..... they may have the answer or they may have made a fatal miscalculation.....

Once again a wonderful read worth more than the 5 stars available for allotment. Looking forward to the next adventure!

Sukey Reynolds is not a detective. She is a photographer of crime scenes but that does not prevent her from having her own ideas of how and why murder happens. Her instincts have proven her right before but it does not go down well with her superior officer who thinks she is giving in to her fancies of how and why things should be done.

When a young woman is found battered to death in a gruesome way, many incidents at the same time seem to be linked to this crime but not in an apparent way. The links are hard to find and sometimes surface accidentally, and in some cases after a long time but there are many links and Sukey manages to connect the dots.

Sukey going off on her own investigation however brings with it, its own hidden dangers and the killer is now on guard knowing that the net is drawing closer and closer.

Old fashioned detection, though I did not care very much for the attitude of the senior detectives towards the women working in the force!

Sukey is called to photograph the scene at a cottage where a woman has been brutally murdered. This eventually leads Sukey to suspect that one of the homeless men in the area, with whom she was acquainted, was somehow involved and that his life is now in danger. Her private investigations may put her own life in danger. A good mystery, hard to put down!

Another Exciting British Cozy Whodunnit
This is an excellent addition to the Sukey Reynolds Mystery Series. There are many crimes to solve, plenty of suspects and lots of danger. The story is full of logical thinking, light humor, and police procedure. Each book in this series seems better than the last. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.

Five books into the Sukey Reynolds series and I'm really enjoying this scene of crime officer who spends a little too much time investigating things herself. Although unlike some amateur detectives, Sukey has a reason to be involved in the crimes that she investigates, really she shouldn't be looking into them the way that she does. Fortunately for us, the fact that she ignores that and does get involved makes for a good read.
Again with this book, we know a little bit more than Sukey and her detective boyfriend Jim do. If you haven't read any of this series, I should perhaps mention that while Sukey is romantically involved with the lead detective on most of the mysteries that she gets involved in, it isn't really with his blessing, or often even his knowledge. She does seem to have an uncanny knack for getting to the bottom of things.
This was an enjoyable read. The plot did have quite a few twists, turns and players which made me a little confused. I have to admit though, that despite having the extra knowledge to the detectives, I didn't guess who done it until it was revealed.
I'm loving this series and will be reading the next very shortly. If you're looking for a good detective story that isn't too dark, but doesn't have that frothy rubbish that you often get with so-called 'cosy' mysteries, then this may well be one for you.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is my first read of the Sukey Reynolds mystery series and it won't be my last. I took a chance as was aware this was book 5 in the series but did not feel lost with the characters at all. I will read the first 4 now in order to catch up.

I felt it was a well written mystery with a very good plot and plenty of twists and turns. I enjoyed the characters and the author's style of writing.

I received this book for an honest review which is what I have given. If the first 4 books are as good as this then I recommend this series of books.

I thoroughly enjoy Betty Rowlands books, always well written with a good plot and fabulous characterisation.
Just perfect for a few hours of escapism.

This is the 5th in the Sukey Reynolds Mystery Series by author Betty Rowland's.. I have read most of the series and the four books previous to this . I highly recommend this series. If you have not read the previous in series you can read this book as a stand alone. I understand the author is no longer writing but this series has 13 books so I am pleased that I can read more about Sukey Reynolds and her charming village life .

Sukey Reynolds had her sights set on being a police detective but when she married and became pregnant she downgraded her career to photographing crime scenes and collecting evidence. She has a natural talent for investigating and has solved crimes in the past with her excellent detective work. I like that she is smart savvy and investigates on her own when she often has a hunch. I am a fan of the series .

In this next in series. Sukey is on a crime scene with her fellow officers. She overhears information that puts her on the right track but no one will back her theories up . She investigates on her own and soon is on the track of the killer. The theories she had were right and soon the clues are leading her in the right direction.

I love this series and wish it had continued . The author has a talent for weaving a great sleuth and creating wonderful authentic charcters. The authentic English village life depicted here is charming. I highly recommend this series.