Book Review: Murder at an English Pub by Alice Castle

Alice Castle’s Murder at an English Pub is a cozy mystery set in the seaside village of Merstairs. The story follows Sarah Vane as she relocates following the death of her husband. She has not long been in the village when she finds a body and begins to investigates the suspicious death of a pub landlord. With a sharp wit and an eye for detail, Sarah delves into the quirky village characters and hidden secrets lurking beneath the surface of the seemingly peaceful community.

Castle blends humor, charm, and intrigue, creating an engaging mystery filled with twists. Fans of cozy mysteries and small-town whodunits will enjoy this lighthearted yet satisfying read.

AH! Sarah and Daphne were such fun characters to spend time with! The narration was perfect, Jilly Bond did an excellent job bringing the characters to life. I am so excited to continue spending time with them! I love a good cozy mystery and I usually go for the food or book store themed ones.--sometimes paranormal. This is my first with this age demographic and I am here for it!

A wonderful, quintessentially English who done it. A lovely English village, some quirky characters and a loveable dog! A great listen.

A light hearted cosy crime plot set in the fictional town of Merstairs with retired doctor, Sarah Vane. Sarah moves to the seaside town to enjoy a quiet retirement, but when a body is found in a beach hut, Sarah starts looking into the mysterious circumstances.
Very Midsommer Murders.

I really enjoyed the characters of this book, and Sarah especially, but I felt very let down by the plot. Although the premise of the story was interesting, the murderer was glaringly obvious - especially since the book is called "Murder at an English Pub". That gave it away immediately, and I was even more convinced I'd guessed right when none of the murders themselves actually took place in a pub. The fact that the very title of the book refers to the killer is frustrating to me and I struggle to understand just why the author did it. But as I said, the characters themselves were sufficiently developed, each with their own backgrounds and motives, and the little twists and turns in their own personal lives is what kept me listening until the end.

Quintessential Cozy Crime!
I really enjoyed the lovable characters, the many meals they ate and the many walks along the seafront they did. I felt like I was in a cute little town by the seafront. This was just the right amount of restful, dare I say "boring" while still keeping a little bit of that crime tension going underneath.

I thought the speaker was just doing too much, honestly. But then, I am very new to audiobooks and may just have to get used to it.

DNF 50%

I try to finish books even when I don't like them but this one broke me. It was boring, unengaging and I can't even remember what happens 'cause it's so unmemorable

Cozy mystery that had me engaged from beginning to end.

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

One Liner : Cozy read !

Synopsis : Sarah Vane, a retired doctor moves to Merstairs with her dog Hamish after the death of her husband Peter. Merstairs, a seaside quaint town also houses her best friend Daphne. Sarah's stuff was received by Daphne at her beach hut. Sarah doesn't expect her first day in the new place would begin by finding a dead body in a trunk at Daphne's beach hut. Sarah is determined to help and solve the case since the cops on scene didn't seem to do much and also to help her friend Daphne since the body was found in her beach hut. Is Sarah successful in solving the case?

My thoughts
* I really loved the setting of the story. Merstairs seemed to be such a quaint and beautiful town with lot of places to eat and the description of the sea was marvelous. Any day I would love to settle down in a place like this for my retirement
* I couldn't connect with Sarah's character much. She seemed too judgmental and seemed to be trying to be center of attention most of the times
* Hamish was my favorite. His presence felt so nice in the story including his love for Tinkerbell, the chihuahua
* I also felt that Sarah judged her best friend Daphne way too much for her eccentric nature. She would have surely known about that side of her given that they were friends since long.
* The sleuthing abilities of Sarah really did not seem as great as she thought which kind of made the mystery drag on a little. It did not have that "Oomph" factor in it
* I went with audio book for this and the British accent threw me off a little bit. There were many places where I had to rewind and listen, especially when the narrator was making deep throat voices for men. I think this book would have worked better if I had this instead

All in all it was a decent listen for me. I look forward to more in this series. My rating is 3.2 rounded to 3

My sincere thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture, for this audiobook. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

Such a quaint and interesting story of a widow who moves to the country after the death of her husband. She is brought into the middle of two murders and she works to find out what happened and who is responsible. I loved the way she picked a part everyone's stories and then finds the clues that lead to the answers. The narrator was perfect for this book. Thank you #NetGalley for the ARC.

Excellently narrated small-town cozy mystery with a retired GP as the amateur sleuth. A dead body in the boot of the car is the perfect start to this addictive mystery. Sarah is good at asking questions and working through all the clues. She is accompanied by her friend, Sarah, and her dog, Hamish. I enjoyed all the twists the story took, which certainly kept me guessing and entertained. A good start to the series and I look forward to the next one.

Murder at an English Pub" by Alice Castle is a cozy mystery. It is set in modern day in England in a small fictional town.

Following the death of her husband, Sarah Vane moves to Merstairs, a small oceanside village where her college friend, Daphne, lives. As they are cleaning out Daphne's storage shed, they find a deceased body in it.

Sarah was a medical doctor, but now she fancies herself a detective. She goes around asking everyone lots of questions. Daphne is supposed to be funny, but mostly, she is just annoying. I liked that the main character and most of the rest of the cast are 50+, probably 60+ in age.

The narrator, Jilly Bond, did well in some aspects, but I had difficulty telling the female voices apart at times. I also didn't like her voice for Charles at all.

There is a lot of drinking in this book. No cursing. No romance. 2 murders.

Characters - 4/5
Writing - 3/5
Plot - 3/5
Pacing - 4/5
Unputdownability - 3/5
Enjoyment - 3/5
Narration - 3/5
Cover - 3/5
Overall - 26/8 = 3 2/8
Rounded to 3 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture Audio, and Alice Castle for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Murder at an English Pub - A completely gripping and addictive cozy mystery by Alice Castle and narrated by Jilly Bond is utterly fantastic! I am really excited to get into this series as Jilly Bond is a wonderful narrator and absolutely perfect for cozy mysteries

Sarah Vane is a retired Doctor. She pootles of to a quiet life (or so she thinks) in Merstairs, a quaint seaside town of gentle sensibilities and small community vibes. However, when moving in (with the help of her incredibly vibrant friend Daphne, whom I absolutely adore) the pair come across a trunk stuffed with a dead body. Not really the best start to moving in, especially when you know the victin#m

The murder of Gus the pub landlord immediately creates an investigation which changes everything Sarah thought she knew about her new home. Who did it? What's going on?

A fantastic cosy, very well narrated, perfect

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture Audio, Alice Castle and the narrator Jilly Bond for thishighly entertaining ALC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

Murder at an English Pub by Alice Castle is the first in a new cozy series about a retired doctor. The retired doctor is recent widow Sarah Vane, who recently moved to the fictional town of Merstairs, a lovely seaside town near Kent, England. She moved there at the behest of longtime friend Daphne.

Sarah is renting Daphne’s beach hut and almost immediately discovers a dead body. Sarah decides to play detective to find the real murderer as her best friend is one of the prime suspects. There are several suspects and even another body. In the end, Sarah solves the murders and even helps out the police with her doctoring skills.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Jilly Bond who did a fantastic job. All in all, I enjoyed listening to this audiobook and enjoyed Sarah’s character, but Daphne, was a bit too bizarre and kind of an unbelievable character. I think of this as a summer escape and good way to pass several hours. And, I look forward to the next book in the series.

Retired doctor Sarah Vane, recently widowed, has just moved to Merstairs, a lovely seaside town that should be the perfect place to settle down. Instead, even before she could get settled, Sarah and her old friend Daphne discover a dead body in a trunk. It was soon learned that it was the landlord of a pub and his name was Gus Trubshaw. Completely unimpressed with the local police, Sarah decides to discover for herself what happened to poor Gus and how he ended up in the trunk.

It doesn’t take Sarah long to realize that Merstairs is not the sleepy little town she thought it was. Also, her quickly growing reputation as an amateur sleuth begins putting people on guard. Along with Sarah’s predilection for demanding answers, she is often accompanied by her long-time friend Daphne, who also lives in the quaint little town Between the two of them, this first book in a new cozy mystery series is off to a good start. Sarah’s no-nonsense manner and the references of her past career as a GP work well together when it comes to looking for answers.

As in many cozies, there is the presence of beloved pets. In this case, one of those pets is Sarah’s dog Hamish. I look forward to joining Sarah, Daphne and even Hamish in future installments in what looks like a promising new series.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

What a refreshing and enchanting tale! Seems a cosy was just what I needed, because I thoroughly enjoyed it.

In a nutshell, it's about Sarah, who moves to a small English village after her husband dies, and finds a body in a beach hut.

Let me start off by saying that I listened to the audio, and the narrator, Jilly Bond, irritated me a little in the beginning, but I very soon got over that, and by the end I loved her particular way of telling a story. Charles Diggory is simply the best, I was mad about him and his languid drawwwwwl. She really brought the characters to life, from Sarah's pragmatic and careful way to Daphne's flamboyant eccentricity.

Oh and Francesca, she is just too good to be true. And truly, has there ever been a better name than Mephistopheles for a black cat? I love it. The real star of the show however, is Hamish. I can picture him in my mind, he is the life and soul of this party.

And for all those wondering 'does anything happen to the dog?' (always my first concern), no. The dog (dogs, if you include Tinkerbell), and cat are just fine. I look forward to the next one.

4 bright, sparkly stars.

I love a cozy mystery and this was definitely one. I liked how the ladies went about trying to find the killer and loved that it was an Audiobook so I could hear the different voices it really made the story come alive. For me I would have loved more to the story and more to the other characters.

Alice Castle has released the first installment of her new Sarah Vane series, Murder at an English Pub, a light cozy that introduces new characters – retired ladies – that are unique.

Sarah, the protagonist, is widowed, and has just moved to Merstairs, a quaint little village by the beach, near her old friend Daphne, who offers to let her store some of her things at her cluttered beach house. While cleaning things out (Daphne isn’t particularly neat), they come upon a trunk that contains the body of pub owner Gus Trubshaw.

Castle is a good storyteller, and the British aspects make the story delightful. She is able to capture the culture, and readers will feel like they are there. Sarah Vane is a likeable character, and readers will enjoy reading about her. Castle does an excellent job developing and introducing the characters in this book. Sarah Vane seems to be a good detective, and her investigative skills are viable.

All told, cozy aficionados will find that they have a fun, new series to read. The writing is good, the story is good, and this book is a fast read. I used the audible version, and the narrator was very English and very excellent. Those who like audible books will like this one. Bookouture, the publisher, publishes several of my favorite authors, and Castle may just be another one.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

One of the trends I’ve seen a little of that I love is an older main character. Sarah is in her 60s and is widowed and making a fresh start by moving to a seaside cottage. It’s a beautiful setting for this cozy mystery. It really adds character to it. One of my favorite characters was Hamish, Sarah’s dog. Every cozy should have a pet front and center.

As an amateur sleuth Sarah brings her doctoring skills to the table, which was a new one for me. Sarah and her pal Daphne go off searching to find out who killed the pub owner. She’s in your face as she takes over where she feels the police have lagged at their job.

A lot of the book is setting up the story and the characters for the series and based up on the author’s other series, we are in for a treat in this new start.

Jilly Bond was an excellent choice for narrator. She really sounded like a 60ish British doctor and also did a great job bringing the other characters to life. I especially liked her incorporation of Hamish into the story.

Cozy readers itching for an older lead and an adorable dog will love Hamish and Merstairs.

Thank you to #NetGalley for this book. This was a good start to a series. I hope to read more from this author and this series. I think that the character development was good.