2.5⭐ rounded to 3⭐

Alice runs the Good Household Management Agency, providing discreet domestic staff to extravagant townhouses and sprawling country piles. So when Camille Messant calls in urgent need of a new housekeeper, Miss Beeton sends out new hire Enya. In the early hours of New Year’s Day, Alice finds out that Enya has been found dead. As the police struggle to drum up an adequate investigation and the wealthy family and their party guests close rank, Miss Beeton takes it upon herself to solve the crime…

The writing style made this book a very easy read, which turned this book into a quick read despite the slow start. Although, I did feel like my interest lessened as the actual plot doesn't start to take place until around 24% in as throughout the book, it doesn't feel like a lot is happening as a lot of the action seems to happen off page, which I thought was odd as it makes it hard to be invested in the story. This is because some of the main 'detective' work is only revealed at the end in an attempt to wrap everything up. There were quite a few things that lacked logic for me but I guess without those things, we wouldn't have this book.

I was so confused about Alice's and some of the other character's ages as there would be times where they came across as quite young (in the sense of being a young soul), but then they would say something and they sounded like they were in their 50's, which caused such a disconnect for me. The same could be said for the time period as it mentioned Covid-19 which started 5 years ago but then it mentioned the beast from the east which was 6 years ago, so I was confused when this book was even set. Then the love interest aspect to this book was so strange to me - the female love interest falling in love seemed to happen way too quickly, like love at first sight, whereas the male love interest acts so disinterested right up until the end? Then the way that he starts magically appearing wherever she was, came across as if he was stalking her. To me, the chemistry between these characters was as flat as a pancake. It comes across as forced. To add to this, I became tired of the constant references to Mrs Beeton throughout, like at first I thought it was a nice touch but then it grew very repetitive.

The ending felt rushed to wrap everything up as it felt like all of the remaining questions were left too late for them all to be answered in the detail that they needed, in order to provide sound logic. Another issue was the formatting of the recipes - I know this is just an ARC so I hope that when it comes time for publication, that the formatting is corrected as it made it impossible to read the recipes or to even know what the recipe was for as it was a bunch of broken up words. I do think that if this is fixed, it would be a nice touch to the book to make it feel more cosy, although I do think they're better suited at the end of the book rather than throughout as it often took me out of the story.

Thanks to HQ and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book early, in exchange for an honest review.

⚠️ CWs: cursing, alcohol use, murder, dieting, gun, physical assault, body injury detail; mentions death, covid-19 pandemic, car accident, comments about weight, ageism, mental health illness (OCD), past drug use, gambling⚠️

I’m afraid this story was so painfully slow and meandering that I got bored and gave up before I finished it. I didn’t need to know the decorations our heroine liked or her fashion choices etc. In the first 10% of the book literally nothing happens other than the victim gets a job. Sadly I can’t recommend

A very enjoyable read, lovely characters and a twisty tale with a lovely ending. I hope it becomes a series.

Alice Beeton is a distant relative of the Miss Beeton of Miss Beeton’s Book of Household Management fame. She runs the Good Household Management Agency providing domestic staff to the rich and famous. When she employs a new hire named Enya on the same day that she is asked to provide the Messant household with a housekeeper immediately, it seems too good to be true. When, only a few days later, Enya is found dead, Alice Beeton feels responsible. With the police investigation not going anywhere, Alice decides to do some investigating of her own. After all, she’s a huge fan of murder mysteries. How hard can it be to unmask a murderer?

Alice with more than a little help from her friends Jinx, Helly, Barney, Jacques, and Massoud, to name but a few, soon discovers that investigating a crime is much harder than it looks between the covers of a book. And much more fraught with danger too. Going undercover in the Messant household to replace Enya, Alice Beeton finds herself taking risks and not getting anywhere fast. But, as she reflects 49% into the book: “Being stuck in the middle was part of the process.”

There’s a lot going on in this book apart from the murder which is not surprising since this appears to be the first book in a planned series which means that several characters and backstories had to be established. If I’m honest, it was a bit (too) much for me at times. More than once, I found myself wondering ‘who are you again?’ about secondary characters, and some plot developments were outrageous enough that I found myself rolling my eyes. At the same time, the writing was smooth, and the story was intriguing enough to keep me turning the pages.

There are recipes in this book, some going back to the original Mrs. Beeton and others more modern. These recipes are placed right behind the place where a dish is mentioned right in the middle of chapters, and I’d love to tell you more about them. Unfortunately, the formatting of the ARC the publisher provided me with meant that they were literally unreadable. That is a shame since most of the dishes mentioned in the story sounded very yummy and I wouldn’t have minded trying my hand at recreating one or two of them.

Overall, this was a fast-paced, thrilling mystery, and captivating crime-caper with a few too many wtf moments for me to rate if five stars. If you like your cosy mystery with a large dose of mayhem, a host of larger-than-life characters, a cute little doggo, as well as plenty of action, and you don’t mind suspending disbelief once or twice, you’re going to love Miss Beeton’s Murder Agency.

It was a pleasure to read this wonderful mystery crime book. The characters were great along with a storyline that kept me hooked from start to finish. I’m hoping this may be the first of a series!
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Written more like a rom com than a murder mystery this book does not take itself seriously. This cozy book is ideal to read in one sitting. Agatha Christie meets Mrs Beeton. I did find it a tad slow to begin with as it took some time to identify all the characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for the advance copy of this book.

Cosy crime is obviously a very well populated genre at the minute, and is difficult for an author to really stand out. Ms Lloyd tries hard with Miss Beeton and her culinary connections - sadly my e- book had problems with the recipes and they were unreadable but I imagine they add to the enjoyment. However, it didn't quite work for me and I did find it slightly tedious at times. It feels the ending is setting this up for a series and it maybe if this happens the author will be able to expand on the characters and make them more rounded.
Thank you to netgalley and HQ for an advance copy of this book.

What a gem of a book. The characters are well drawn and the story pulls you in from the beginning. I really liked Miss Beeton and her fellow work colleagues. This is a cosy Agatha Christie type book which was the author’s intention but set in modern day London. Please, Josie Lloyd write more stories about Miss Beeton and her new agency - I would definitely be an avid reader of them.

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for this ARC.

Alice Beeton, in her 50s, a distant relative of THE Mrs Beeton, runs The Good Household Management Agency which supplies staff for rich people. Her useless brother Jasper has inherited the family pile, Hawthorn Hall, which is a moneypit that even Alice's loans can't help much. She loves baking and murder mysteries and has a dog called Agatha after Agatha Christie.

One day, a new woman on Alice's books, Enya, that Alice rather hastily supplied due to an emergency, is found murdered at the clients' house, the Messents, during a posh New Year's Eve party. Alice decides it is her duty to find the murderer as the police don't seem to be terribly interested, so she inveigles herself into the household in question and begins sleuthing. She finds out soon that nothing in this case is as it seems.

The pace of the book is slightly uneven, with the first quarter being used to introduce the characters. I'm sure this won't take up so much time in further books. The more the story progresses the more things happen at once and the tension ramps up.

Alice is an interesting, well-liked character and has friends everywhere so when she needs their help they all rally around and help devise a daring plan to catch a murderer.

The setting is London at Christmas time, and the feel is distinctly Victorian though people have air fryers and everything. It might have to do with Alice herself who is a rather old-fashioned single and childless woman and a stickler for politeness and good manners.

The chapters are interspersed with old-fashioned recipes directly from Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management. As the measurements were in imperial, I mostly skipped them, but they are a nice touch. They might have been better collated at the end of the book though as they interrupt the reading flow.

This is a new cosy murder mystery series and the sequel is already expertly set up when dishy Detective and potential love interest Darren Rigby who she impressed in this case, asks for her help. I will happily read new instalments to see how this evolves!

This book is incredibly entertaining. I couldn't finish it fast enough! The characters are mostly lovable and warm, there's a cute dog and the mystery isn't too taxing, plus the cover is lovely. Recommended if you like cosy murder mysteries with a slightly Victorian feel and a likeable sleuth.

4.5 stars

Alice Beeton, proprietor of the Good Household Management Agency provides housekeepers to clients and when a new housekeeper for one of her clients is found dead she decides to investigate the murder herself much to the annoyance of detective Rigby..
Loved the character Alice and her colleague Jinx and her dog Agatha sounded lovely.
A real murder mystery with lots of twists but funny in parts and I did not guess who the killer was so a real surprise.
Would highly recommend.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

Alice Beeton never meant to end up single and childless on the wrong side of fifty. Like her distant relative Mrs Beeton - yes, that Mrs Beeton - she had hoped to have her own spic and span household by now. In reality, she lived in an immaculate but dingy basement flat in a rather shabby block in Kensington with Agatha, her fiercely intelligent, if over-territorial corgi-Jack Russell cross. Alice runs the Good Household Management Agency, providing discreet domestic staff to extravagant town houses and sprawling country piles. Camilla Messant calls in urgent need of a new housekeeper, Miss Beeton send her Enya. But in the early hours of New Year's Day, Alice is rudely awakened to the news that Enya is dead.

We get a bonus of recipes. Alice Beeton is a distant relation to Mrs Beeton. Alice runs a Good Household Management Agency. When Camilla Messant phones for help, Alice sends her Enya. But by New Year's Day, Enya is dead. Alice goes undercover to investigate.

The story starts slowly, and it takes a little while for the story to begin. There are lots of characters to try and remember. It's quite obvious who the killer is. At first, I didn't realise that this story is set in the modern day, I thought it was set in the 1950s.

Published 24th October 2024

I would like to thank #NetGalley #HQStories and the author #JosieLlyod for my ARC of #MissBeetonsMurderAgency in exchange for an honest review.

Quite enjoyable, with a great sense of humour. I think I struggled reading it in the middle of cosy autumn though, it felt a bit early for Christmas stories. Likeable characters all the same and a lovely read. Thanks for sending me a copy in exchange for a review.

Thoroughly enjoyed this story with some larger than life characters in it (and a very cute dog). A great cosy crime idea - reminding us how some people can be invisible to the people that employ them.

Hoping this may be the start of a series where Alice and Agatha solve crimes.

It took me a while to get into this book. There are a. Lot of characters as Miss Beeton draws on her contacts to solve. A mystery. The. writer is building a whole world that I think will grow in future books.
This is a modern twist on coat mysteries that manages to feel quite vintage. There some great characters - Agatha the dog was a favourite, and recipes included.
I had to suspend my disbelief and enjoy the fun sometimes, but this was a very enjoyable read and I would definitely read more in the series in the future

3.5 ✨

I've been reading this author for more years than I care yo remember, and I'm fairly sure I've always been entertained.
That continues on, with this cosy crime book.
Alice and Jinx were like a pair of school girls, madcap ideas and enthusiasm galore.
It's a nice little story, and I enjoyed their adventure.
I also enjoyed the bonus recipes.
I'd like to think I might try at least one, but I think I'll be reading the (hopefully) next book before that happens.

What’s not to like about this book, absolutely nothing. It is a brilliant start to what will, hopefully, become a cosy crime series. The link to the redoubtable Mrs Beeton piqued my interest and I loved it.
Alice Beeton, a huge lover of Agatha Christie books, runs the Good Housekeeping Management Agency, supplying help to the large houses and estates around England. Everything is fine until one of her employees is found dead and Alice along with her faithful dog, Agatha, sets out to solve the crime.
This book had me hooked, it is well written with an interesting cast of characters and I really hope there are more stories to follow.

Alice Beeton has a famous relative, you know Mrs Beeton - the one who wrote that book!! Alice runs The Good Household Management Agency where she is helped by Jinx and Helly. One morning, Enya Fischer arrives for an interview, when Alice is called by Camille Messent asking for a replacement housekeeper. Alice arranges for Enya to take the post. Alice receives a call from Detective Rigby telling her that Enya has been found killed. This prompts Alice into doing something she wouldn't do - she goes to investigate the circumstances and discovers more than meets the eye! It's a quick read, entertaining, moments of humour, a few red herrings thrown in, with twists and turns that led to an unexpected but surprising ending.

A perfect cosy crime story for a cold evening. Alice Beeton runs an agency placing highly qualified staff into rich homes as housekeepers, chauffeurs and chefs and she prides herself on her own knowledge and gut instincts, in her spare time, she walks her dog Agatha and reads or watches crime shows. Deciding she would make an excellent detective via her knowledge, she is unprepared for this role to find her on New Years Eve.

Placing Enya in the Messents home, Alice feels pleased in trusting this new person for such a big role. When a call comes in saying Enya has been involved in an incident, Alice knows she must figure this out, What she doesn’t account for is the handsome detective, an undercover mission, stolen artwork or Interpol!

Alice, who lives a rather small and calm life, is suddenly thrust into being two people and deceiving those around her all in the name of catching a murderer!

Really well written and with bold and brilliant characters throughout- it may keep you guessing through to the conclusion!

I thoroughly enjoyed this and devoured it in one sitting. Would love for more from this as a series.

Miss Beeton's Murder Agency is a charming cosy murder mystery. The story follows Alice Beeton, a descendant of the famous Mrs. Beeton, who runs a high-end household management agency. When one of her new recruits, Enya, is murdered at a wealthy client’s home, Alice with her trusted sidekick Agatha (great name for a dog!!) go “under-cover” as a housekeeper to uncover the truth.

This book is best suited for readers who enjoy light-hearted, character-driven cosy murder mysteries.

**The formatting of the recipe pages is awful.**

A Christmas story with a twist! Alice Beeton runs a household employment agency and after successfully placing Enya as housekeeper to the Messants is shocked to learn that she's been murdered! Alice and her dog Agatha together with her friend Jinx decide to find out who did it