Pearl, the local private detective and her friends love their allotments - a place to not only grow flowers, fruit and veg but also to socialise and relax. This piece of calm in their lives is set to be disrupted when complaints about their activities are made to the council then Caroline, a DFL, or down from Londoner to the uninitiated proposes the formation of a proper Allotment Association with herself as chair. Naturally there’s a level of dissent so when Caroline turns up dead in the composter they’re all under suspicion, even Pearl.
I listened to the audio version of this book which was well read and easy to listen to, and whilst this is book 10 in the series, I could still fully enjoy the story despite not being aware of the previous 9. For potential viewers, I’d liken this to an MC Beaton book; Agatha Raisin or Hamish MacBeth - both of which were also made into TV shows. It definitely falls into the cosy crime genre and is a nice easy read.

I wasn’t aware of the Whitstable Pearl books, nor of the TV spin-off, until I had finished this audio book, so it was a surprise when I read that this is novel number ten. I certainly don’t feel that I had missed any of the background setting of the series; characters (none of whom I liked very much) and places were introduced as though this were a one-off novel. Maybe this might be a bit repetitive for someone familiar with the books, but it worked for this first-time “reader”.

However, although the narrator was excellent and plot had enough twists and turns to keep me interested, there was so much detail about Whitstable’s history and geography that the book could have been either written for or taken from the local tourist board. I wanted this mystery story to amuse me rather than educate me about Whitstable, and in the end these details felt very much more like unnecessary padding than anything else.

In Murder at the Allotment a murdered body is found in the new composter just recently purchased. Pearl soon attempts to find the killer and some interesting and memorable characters along the way. She soon discovers the allotment owners have recently had a few anonymous complaints filed. The murderer comes as a surprise at the end of the story. I listened to the audiobook and had no problems following along, even though this is the tenth book in the series.

A lovely cozy mystery set in the glorious garden of England. The pacing was a little rushed at the end and the character of Pearl had an unforgivable penchant for wasting good food, but a nice lazy afternoon read.

Pearl loves her allotment it’s where she can relax away from the restaurant and her private detective agency .
Although things on the allotments aren’t as calm and quiet as they used to be .
There’s a new lady in town Carolyn and she wants to get things done including an allotment association, which ruffles a few feathers as well numerous complaints against some of the allotment holders leaves a few people in turmoil and lay the blame firmly at Carolyn’s door .
Carolyn seems to be lying low and misses an important meeting, this leads her husband to become worried and wants to emplPeral to locate his wife .
Unfortunately she does , she finds her dead .
This book flows along quickly and I really enjoy Pearl’s thinking she’s very methodical.
An enjoyable easy to read book .
Thanks to NetGalley and Bolinda Audio.

Murder at the Allotment pretty much delivers what the title promises.
It is a cosy small-town story about a group of allotment gardeners who all become suspects when one of them is murdered after a series of threats were made to take the allotments.
Pearl, a restauranteur and hobby private detective is investigating,
Apparently, the characters are established. I did not read any previous books and it works on its own.
For the topic of murder it is quite calm, maybe due to the small town setting and the drama and gossip amongst the people feeling natural.
The narration is done well and the story nice for a few rainy spring evenings!

Except for the fact that among all the main characters in this murder mystery I got quite confused, I liked the story rather a lot, especially the ending. I'm sorry I missed Pearl's penultimate book but I can always make up for it. Also, the narrator does a great job of trying to differentiate all the "voices" of the various characters.

Se non fosse che tra tutti i protagonisti di questo giallo ho fatto parecchia confusione, la storia mi é piaciuta parecchio, specialmente il finale. Mi dispiace aver saltato il penultimo libro di Pearl ma posso sempre rimediare. Inoltre la narratrice fa un ottimo lavoro nel cercare di differenziare tutte le "voci" dei vari personaggi.

I received from the Publisher a complimentary digital advanced review copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.
What a fun book!!! I really loved this audiobook filled with some interesting and quirky characters who come together to save their allotment and to solve a murder. The narrator was great and the book was fun to listen to. I am now excited to listen to or read more books in this series. I am not sure if this is the first one or not but I am going to check.
Great job!

I've found a new series to binge! This is book 10 of the Whitstable Pearl series and I couldn't be more delighted to discover I can go back to the previous 9 books :).

Pearl is approached to find a missing wife and discovers her down at the allotment. There's a lot of politics going on with regard to the allotment too and everything gets tangled quite quickly.

Pearl runs a restaurant in Whitstable but since she's at the heart of the community,she knows everyone,so is well placed to find out what's going on.

Jennifer Kirby does a fabulous job with the narration. She's not slow (like so many can be) and she uses clear and distinct voices to each character.

I was so excited to find out that this is a book series. I can’t wait to go back and read the others. I love the show and this is even better. Since watching the show I was able to visualize everything while listening to the story. The series is a cozy read and easy to read. A great rainy weekend or beach read.

This was the tenth Whitstable Pearl mystery by Wassmer, but my first - and what an enjoyable first it was too. The weather is sunny and warm and I'm listening to this murder mystery that takes place in an allotment which puts me in mind of the flora - budding plants and vegetables - (love the cover by the way) and all the fauna that comes with it. A bee tried to get in my house today, and there were bees in the story. A family with a Faith, Hope, and Charity (like my own daughters!) This book could not have been more perfect The narrator has such a gorgeous voice too! A friendly, British voice, and on such a beautiful day as today, all seems right in the world. I have nine previous stories to catch up on now! A heartfelt thank you to NetGalley and Bolinda audio xx

This was the first book I have read in this series. I loved everything about it. I am going to read the backlist books next. The characters are redeeming and well-written. The details about the town make you want to jump on a plane and go visit. I cannot wait to read more.

This audiobook was made available for me to listen to and review by JulieWassmer, Bolinda Audio, and NetGalley.

This delightful cozy mystery is firmly set in small town life. There's the stress of Whitstable being DFL or down from London as a convenient vacation area for wealthy entitled Londoners. The tension between the townies and the weekenders seem to be sticking at the allotment plots. The allotment plots are a holdover from Enlightenment Era politics and increased in importance with the world wars. Originally the plots were for townsfolk without enough yard space to comfortably house a garden. Now its about posh folks who don't find a food garden fits their backyard aesthetic. These folks are generally wealthier and more connected and in the form of Carolyn Lindsay, entitled and bossy. After someone has made a series of complaints about current allotment holders, a tense town allotment holders meeting is called by Carolyn. The next day Carolyn is reported missing by her handsome husband Franko to Pearl who later found her body in the recently added hot composter at the town allotment.
This is my first novel by Julie Wassmer but likely won't be my last. I quite enjoyed this cozy mystery and am interested in reading the earlier installments in this series. The main character is Pearl who is in her early 40's, with an adult son who does not make an appearance in this novel and a fiancé who is a DCI at the local police department. She owns a local restaurant in town that she started when she left the police academy two decades ago. A few years ago Pearl started a side hustle as a private detective in town. Most of Pearl's cases involve missing persons/pets and possibly straying spouses. This is also a TV show on Acorn TV and I'll likely check that out at some point.
11% in chapter 3 a racial slur is used as a description of hair. I'm somewhat surprised as it was completely unnecessary to the story and jarring. I'm sure what the author described could've been described as Bohemian or even hippy, no need for the slur. I can't imagine my white husband describing my hair as n-word curly. Just a deeply uncomfortable description. This impacted my overall book rating.
This charming story was narrated by Jennifer Kirby and she did an excellent job. I sincerely hope the earlier novels in this series are also narrated by her.

Thank you to Julie Wassmer, Bolinda Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own.

This was my first foray into the series but even at book 10 it was easy to pick up and get stuck in.
Although there’s a murder I’d still consider this a cosy mystery and a relaxing and enjoyable read to pick up and perhaps enjoy in the garden!

How well do you know your allotment neighbors? Could one of them be a killer?

This is my first read of a Julie Wassmer’s Whitstable Pearl Mystery. I was a little concerned about jumping in at book 10, fearing I would be a little lost not knowing the character backstories. It was not a problem. I was fascinated by the primary character being a restaurant owner and a private investigator, not just a village busybody as so many cozy mystery lead characters are.

There are a LOT of characters and at first it might seem a bit overwhelming but as the story progresses that thought fades away. Detective Mike McGuire, Pearl’s fiancé, is sidelined from the investigation due to a squash injury.

Nearly all of them received complaints from the council, one even has been told they are in jeopardy of losing their plot. An aggressive DFL (down from London) transplant is accused of being behind them, but they deny. When they are found dead at the allotment. So in addition to friends being suspects, Pearl has to deal with a newly promoted DI Hale who has her high on his suspect list along with the other allotment owners. Fingers are pointing to one allotment owner in particular and they are not helping their innocence with their actions as they deal with personal challenges.

Pearl’s thought process and approach to the case had me hooked. The secondary storylines about relationships was very well done. I found I could not tell who the culprit was. I seemed to fall for every false lead and when those were exhausted, I just didn’t know and had to keep going to find out, I just had to know.

The audio was done very well. I want to go back to the start of the series to enjoy the full ride.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the opportunity to do an early read and share my thoughts on the story.
Happy Reading!

England, cop on sick leave, local-law-enforcement, small business, small-town, cafe owner, private investigator, strife, cozy mystery, suspense, secrets, entitled-attitude, unputdownable, family, relationships, murder, investigation, friends, friendship, unpleasant victim, gardening, series, lies, Kent*****

Pearl missed out on going to the police academy (and other things) to give birth to and raise her son while living with and working for her mum's cafe. That was over twenty years ago, and now she is a private investigator (still working at the cafe) and in a relationship with DCI Mike McGuire, currently on leave due to a casted sports injury and crutches. There seems to be some strife over the demands of a wealthy/entitled newcomer from London regarding things at the town allotment, but everyone is flabbergasted when Pearl finds the woman's body in the composting drum. Now many of the friends are under scrutiny by the temporary DI (who's a real Bozo) and Pearl is in his sights. Excellent read!
Would I buy this one? No, but now I've bought book 1 in series and have the rest on Wish List!
I think that Jennifer Kirby does a great job as narrator with good differentiation of the main characters.
I requested and received a free temporary audio EARC from the fantastic studios of Bolinda Audio via NetGalley. Thank you!

Whitstable Pearl Mystery #10

Murder At The Allotment is the tenth book in the Whitstable Pearl series; it is possible to listen to this story as a standalone; the mystery is complete, with well-described characters and relationships. Pearl is a complex character, a single mum, restaurant owner and private detective. The cast of characters in this book are complex and relatable. The narrator brings them to vibrant life, which is a pleasure to listen to. The story is easy to follow, full of false leads and suspects with viable motives. The interface of Pearl's personal life with the investigation makes it authentic and adds depth and variety to the story. The narrator capitalises on vivid sensory imagery, which makes the characters, events and settings easy to visualise. They also deliver believable dialogue, clearly making individual characters easy to discern. The narrator brings atmosphere to the suspenseful, well-plotted mystery. I enjoyed this easy-to-listen audiobook and look forward to listening to the next one in the series.

I listened to an audiobook of this story from the publisher.

Unfortunately I was unable to write a review on goodreads as I usually would, as this title is simply not there, which is a real shame as I enjoyed it immensely.

I loved the narrators voice, it was clear and concise and made it simple to differentiate between characters and set a great tone.

I loved the style of writing and the storyline, sharp; funny and extremely entertaining. The authors passion for the environment, biodiversity and nature came through in abundance, but I never felt preached to, that can be a fine line, infact I thoroughly enjoyed learning some new things. The novel had a very cozy made for tv drama feel to it, think Murder She Wrote or y Murders. Always feels odd to call murder cozy but it’s definitely apt, What a wonderful thing it must be to live in such a place.