When I picked up Murder at the Allotment from NetGalley, I didn't realise it was the 10th book in the series. Thankfully, that didn't take away from my enjoyment of this delightful cozy murder mystery. The premise immediately grabbed my attention, and I'm so glad I gave it a chance.

The story follows Pearl Nolan, whose coastal Allotment has always been her serene escape—a place to grow special ingredients for her restaurant, The Whitstable Pearl. However, tensions arise when the council, overwhelmed by demand from "DFLs" (Down From Londoners), begins dividing plots into smaller sections. What was once a peaceful gardening community turns into a bitter turf war, exacerbated by the formation of an Allotment Association led by a particularly pushy DFL. When anonymous complaints target local allotment holders—excluding the DFLs—Pearl is called in to investigate. But things escalate quickly when what started as petty drama takes a deadly turn, with gardening tools becoming weapons of Murder.

This book is a classic, cozy mystery, and there's a lot of comfort in that familiar formula. The story is charming, suspenseful, and filled with memorable characters. While I hadn't read the previous books, I found this one easy to follow and engaging. Pearl is a compelling protagonist; her wit and determination shine through in every scene.

Jennifer Kirby's narration was superb. Her pacing was perfect, and she easily brought the characters and setting to life. Her performance had me hooked, making it difficult to pause the audiobook.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bolinda Audio for providing me with an audio-ARC of Murder at the Allotment. I'm excited to explore the first nine books in the series and immerse myself further in Pearl Nolan's world!

Not really reading/listening to these in the correct order but most enjoyable. This is the 10th adventure for Pearl to investigate. Jennifer Kirby has a clear and distinctive voice which adds to the enjoyment. Quite different from the tv series, more serious. Thanks to NetGalley.

What a lovely book. Great as a standalone, the characters are wonderful and the mystery is very entertaining. Highly recommend!

Although this book is part of a series, it's a great stand alone title. Highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley aan the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Lively listen, with great characters. Keeps you entertained and enthralled, and there is no need to have read/listened to any of the previous books in this series, to be able to enjoy this one.

An enjoyable cosy mystery to listen to. Although I was not familiar with the Whitstable Pearl series this was a part if, it didn’t matter as it stood its own ground very well. The story is based around the allotment, where there are tensions between the locals and the incomers, referred to in the book as the DFLs or Down from Londoners. After a number of anonymous complaints were made to the Council about some of the established allotmenteers, the person suspected of being the author is found murdered and dumped in the allotment’s hot composter. The book is full of interesting characters and is told with warmth and humour.

Thanks to NetGalley, author and Bolinda audio for the opportunity to listen and review this audiobook.

I started this series after seen some seasons on tv, I read a couple of books so this was a sort of auto-spoiler.
Non, je ne regrette rien as I had a lot of fun in following the discussions about the allotment, the us-vs-them, and the eveolutions of Pearls life.
I loved the narrator that always kept my attention alive.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This was an excellent cozy murder story. For someone who hasn't yet read any of the first books in the series, I found that I could follow all the characters and plots easily enough. Nothing missing felt so essential that the story became a problem. I would definitely consider picking up other books in this series in the future. The audio narrator did an excellent job.

Murder at the Allotmemt a cozy mystery from Julie Wassmer. This book is part of Whitstable Pearl Mystery series. However, it can be read as standalone books as well. As someone who jumped into the series from this book I would say it’s definitely more impactful to have back stories but you can pick up at any point in the series and understand the plot well.

After receiving complaint notices many of the local allotment owners become disgruntled with the Down From Londoners, DFLs, who want the allotment to be more refined and aesthetically pleasing. When a certain DFL is found in the bottom of the hot composter, Pearl is on the case.

The twists and turns in this book are riveting to say the least. Will Pearl solve the case or will she be the star suspect?

This review is based off a free ARC audio received from NetGalley. I want to thank the author, publishers for allowing me the opportunity to listen to this book.

Lovely cosy crime novel with lots of twists and camaraderie in the little sea side village.

When many on the allotment receive notice of a complaint from the council, suspicion immediately goes to the outsiders from London who've recently gotten a plot and started issuing orders about how things should be run. Following denials, however, a disappearance and discovery of a dead body, provides Pearl (and the allotment keepers) with a new mystery to unpick.

Uncovering hidden truths, affairs and health issues (and possibly burgeoning relationships), many red herrings and eventual dead ends lead us to the solution.

Having discounted my early suspicions, I was pleased to see I should have stuck with my gut, albeit I may not have had the right reasons.

Keen to see what happens in the village next, as well as if Maguire and Pearl do get their special day.

Cozy mystery. Perfect comfort book! I'm 100% looking into the rest of this series and more from this author on my own.

I didn't entirely enjoy this book as I found it difficult to really care about the characters and I thought the ending was rather "blah" instead of being the dramatic grand reveal it was supposed to be. It was easy to learn who everyone was despite this being part of a series that I hadn't otherwise read, which was a pleasant surprise. The victim was predictable, as was the suspects list, and I struggled to care about who killed who given that all of the characters were one-dimensional and none really stood out.

A cute easy read murder mystery. Even though this was a book from a series it was very easy to follow.

The characters, location etc were very well explained. There were some mentions of plots of the previous books but they were just mentioned in passing so it didn't matter that I was jumping in in the middle.

Will definitely go back and read previous books as I enjoyed this one.

Murder At The Allotment is the 10th Whitstable Pearl mystery by Julie Wassmer. Released 14th May 2024 by Hachette on their Constable imprint, it's 304 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. Audiobook format released by Bolinda.

This is a long running, genuinely warm, and well constructed series with relatable and appealing 3 dimensional characters who are (mostly) realistically rendered. The latest installment sees escalating drama at the allotment when weekenders vs. locals heats up over the availability of the allotment spaces and not fitting the Down From Londoners' aesthetics. The ringleader of team DFL is soon found deceased in the composter, and Pearl (and her fiance, a DCI with the local police), try to untangle the mystery.

Although it's the 10th book in the series, the books are self-contained standalones, and readers can jump in at any point.

The unabridged audiobook has a run time of 7 hours 9 minutes and is beautifully read by Jennifer Kirby. She has a nuanced earthy voice and does a good job with the various and varied regional character accents. She's easy to listen to and enunciates very clearly. Sound and production quality are high throughout the read.

Four and a half stars. Entertaining and well written cozy with appealing returning characters and a solid narrator.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Thank you to NetGalley for an audio copy of this in exchange for a review.
I've watched the Whitstable pearl TV series so was looking forward to hearing this and I really enjoyed it.
Pearl has always enjoyed her allotment and also growing things for her restaurant.
Yet all of a sudden out of towners from London are swarming and claiming allotments for themselves.
Tension arises when th local council actually gives in by dividing up existing lots into smaller sections for the new arrivals.
Things get nasty as Carolyn, a "newbie" takes over the reins and make some unpopular announcements as regards the rules.
Suddenly that newbie is no more when her body is found at the allotments.
Pearl is quick off the mark trying to find out whether it was foul play...
This is my first time trying a book of this series but just as enjoyable as the TV series.

I jumped into this series with this book and really enjoyed it...but really want the backstory. So now I have to add all of Julie Wassmer's books to my TBR so I can catch up on what's going on! I can't wait to see if Pearl and her Detective actually tie the knot!

#MurderattheAllotment
#NetGalley

Thank You, NetGalley and Bolinda for the book.

I really enjoyed listening to Murder at the Allotment by Julie Wassmer.

Bolinda audiobooks rarely disappointed.

It was a small-town murder mystery that I thoroughly enjoyed.

It is your cosy mystery that you can read in one setting.

Definitely worth a pick.

Thanks.

I'd read all nine of the previous books in Julie Wassmer's Whitstable Pearl series, and I've always found them to be charming - they definitely fall onto the 'cosy' side of murder mystery, rather than anything gruesome or particularly dark, more Midsomer Murders than Silence of the Lambs.

As hinted by the title, Murder at the Allotment is no different. Small town murder, and little group of new suspects making a locked room mystery of sorts for Pearl to unpick - I thought this one was a good mystery and a satisfying conclusion.

I also thought the non-murder side to the books continues to impress, I like that her relationship with McGuire develops throughout the books rather than there being a reset of sorts every time.

Overall another good addition to the series!

Murder at the Allotment is the latest fantastic cozy mystery in the Whitstable Pearl Mystery series by Julie Wassmer. In it, we find Pearl, now engaged to her detective who is a Down From London newer resident of Whitstable.

Pearl, along with most of the other allotment tenders, received a notice of infractions on their individual patches of allotment that could spell out loss of their individual lease. One of the allotment tenants is another Down From Londoner, Caroline, who everyone suspects for all of the complaints.

When one of their tenants and neighbors ends up in the new and fancy composter, will the new DI find the true killer, or will his lazy and presumptive detecting end up with the wrong person being arrested? Maybe even Pearl herself?


Thank you so much to NetGalley and Bolinda Audio for this wonderful audio ARC!!

A fun cozy mystery. This is the 10th in the series and clearly walks a well-worn path. I like that the characters are more mature but still have a sense of humor and are figuring out their lives. The mystery kept me guessing. I really enjoyed it!