A Killer Christmas at Honeychurch Hall by Hannah Dennison

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Constable and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

Following the butler's death and the cook's retirement, the ever-gullible Lady Lavinia replaces them with a power couple who are determined to thrust the crumbling estate into the 21st century. The Dowager Countess reluctantly agrees to hold a big-ticket Christmas gala and silent auction with a mystery celebrity flying in from Monaco as the guest of honour.

Needless to say the newcomers' make a few enemies in their quest to change the status quo and when one body is discovered in the Victorian stumpery and a second, in the ha-ha, it seems that their high-flying past is catching up with them.

Meanwhile, Kat is dealing with the theft of a valuable doll that had been earmarked for the auction. When it turns out that all the ticket money has vanished and there never was a celebrity guest, it's up to Kat to save the day and bring the cold-blooded killer to justice.

My Opinion

I have read this book as a standalone but I don’t think it has spoilt my enjoyment. I thought that this was a relatively quick book to read. The main focus of the book is the missing doll, but there is so much more going on. An intriguing plot, with some great characters.

Rating 4/5

This is an engrossing page turner with striking imagery and breakneck twists. The author has a crisp writing style which guides readers through this layered and innovative mystery. It was a treat to read.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is a really fun cosy mystery.

This story sees Kat dealing with murder, the theft of a valuable Barbie Doll and the possibility that her mother’s secret identity as a famous romance author is in danger of being revealed by the murder victim.

Kat also has some relationship problems as her romance with Shawn hits a rocky patch.

Although this reads ok as a standalone, there are quite a few characters to keep track of and it definitely helps if you’ve read some of the previous books.

I would like to thank the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for my review.

Agatha Christie for the 21st century. Funny, clever, well written and great characterisation. Antiques road show meets Downtown Abbey.

This was my first Honeychurch book even though it is number 9 in the series. This plot revolves around a valuable Barbie doll which goes missing prior to a charity auction. I really enjoyed getting to know the characters and the location which was beautifully described. This book can be read as a stand-alone as the writer made sure new readers quickly became familiar with the recurring characters including Kat and her crazy secret author mother. This is cosy mystery writing at its best; the sort that leaves you with a warm fuzzy feeling. I shall certainly read others in the series. A great read, especially at Xmas.

I haven't read any of the other instalments in the Honeychurch Hall series of which this is #9 but I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Kat Stanford in A Killer Christmas at Honeychurch Hall. Kat runs Kat's Collectibles and Mobile Valuation Sevices in Little Dipperton in the Devonshire countryside. Well written with some great characters.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Little, Brown via NetGalley and this review is my unbiased opinion.

It’s always fun to return to Honeychurch Hall and its surroundings for another mystery. This time around, a rare Emerald Barbie is stolen, and then dead bodies start appearing.

This book was another fun and easy read from Hannah Dennison. I enjoyed following Kat as she tried to find out what on earth is going on, yet again! However, I’m beginning to find Kat’s relationship troubles rather tiresome. It’s about time she had some happiness in (or out of) a relationship. I also enjoyed Edith’s shenanigans, though I do feel concerned about her health.

The plot was a good one, and I didn’t work out who the culprit was until almost the big reveal (mostly because there were so many shady characters!). It’s always enjoyable when I don’t have it figured out early in the book.

Overall, this was a fun murder mystery, full of shady characters. A good way to while away a few hours.

I was given a copy of this book, my opinions are my own.

This is a light, seasonal read. A valuable Barbie doll is stolen before a fund raising event. I hadn’t read the previous books in the series and felt like a lot of characters were introduced very quickly, so it may be better to read the earlier books to appreciate this one. I found the subservient attitude of people towards the owners of ‘the big house’ dated, and this treated on me but other readers may be fine with it.

Kat Stanford is back in the latest book in the Honeychurch Hall series , and as usual there are murders afoot.
The writing moves on at a fair pace , and the usual characters are back with their idiosyncrasies .
A new husband and wife team have been hired to bring Honeychurch Hall up to date and they decide to an auction with a celebrity guest should help put the hall on the map.
Just as you’d expect things don’t run to plan , bodies are found , an expensive doll is stolen and mysteries are aplenty.
Kat is in the thick of it and this leaves her relationship with Shawn strained , will they remain a couple?
Iris Kat’s mother is a great character ,acerbic at times and really funny and her relationship with Kat is heartwarming ( at times! )
This series is great for cosy mystery readers , and I highly recommend it.
Looking forward to the next in the series.
Thanks to NetGalley and Little,Brown Book Group UK .

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is a cozy crime and the characters were all likeable my thanks to #netgalley and the publishers for this arc I look forward to reading more in this series

A most enjoyable "Cozy,Crime" novel. I did not realise these were a series so am looking forward to getting to know the Honeychurch Hall characters a little better! A most excellent read.

P Fowler

Farcical Country Romp…
Another enjoyable countryside romp at Honeychurch Hall and the ninth in this very entertaining series. Farcical fun, frolics, murder and mayhem abound. In between power couples, Christmas galas, silent auctions, unexpectedly missing celebrities and theft there lurks a killer and bodies soon begin to pile. Can Kat save the day once again? Suspend reality and just enjoy the ride. This latest instalment is just as entertaining as the preceding books in this series and, although could easily be read as a standalone, huge enjoyment is to be had in reading from the start of the series in terms of both timeline and character development. All jolly good fun.

Too many characters for me makes it too much like hard work to read. Slightly unbelievable in parts. Not really for me. Thank you netgalley for the advanced copy

Moves at a fast pace with large cast of unlikeable characters. I found I just did not care who got murdered! Only the lead character Kat and one policeman come out with any hint of likeability.

Kat is an expert on ‘Fakes or Fortunes’ so the idea is good. A key item of an upcoming charity auction is stolen when in her possession, though the security is very lax. The plot revolves around this but is fairly preposterous. It was more Midsummer Murders than a mystery novel. Especially grating is the portrayal of Kat’s unloveable tax-dodging mother. Spoiler, unfortunately she is not murdered.

A quick read. I was provided with a copy by NetGally and the publishers. I did not like it but others might.

This is the latest book in the Honeychurch Hall series. I have not read any in the series, and I think this was probably a disadvantage. There are many characters and I had a hard time keeping everyone straight. The writing style seemed very erratic and the characters were not likable. A tax dodging mother, an overbearing and judgmental boyfriend, suspecting a “close” friend of stealing from you. I couldn’t warm up to the characters and found the whole plot too far fetched. Perhaps it’s all tongue in cheek and I was not reading with the spirit intended, but I’ll not pursue the rest of the series.
Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this advance copy.

Published on November 10, antiques expert and former TV star Kat Sandford is preparing for a Christmas gala and silent auction on the local estate. But when the ‘help’ have gone, the lady of the house, Lady Lavinia, has replaced them with a power couple that have had more than their fair share of the limelight. Kat has her own problems, apart of the new arrivals – who have a keen sense of doing things their own way – her prize Barbie (with an emerald necklace) has been pinched. When a stranger rocks up to the village, and is later found, dead, in the Victorian stumpery, swiftly followed up with another dead body and suddenly the neighbours have a lot going on, irrespective of suspicious rashes and romantic fiction authors. And what about the mystery celebrity who is flying in from Monaco as the gala’s guest of honour? One thing is sure: no one’s live experiences smooth sailing in Honeychurch Hall.