The Chianti Case

 The Chianti Case

The Vineyard Mysteries #2

H L Marsay

Reviewed by Helen

The second book in this series and it was fabulous catching up with Emma, Kiara, Paddy and Nico again this time in Florence, Tuscany as they meet up on another wine buying trip for their respective family based companies, I loved my first trip to Bordeaux let’s see how this trip pans out in Florence will all go well, will Emma need to solve another murder?

Emma King is fabulous with her taste and smell for fine wine that is why she is the buyer for the King Family Wines based in England, Emma is half French as her mother is French, father English although she can be very disorganised she is loyal and caring, she is looking forward to catching up with her friends to purchase the famous Chianti Classico wine.

But when Kiara’s ex-stepmother arrives in Florence to put on a musical concert and then is poisoned apparently at Kiara’s Italian boyfriend Gino’s new wine window Kiara becomes the primes suspect and Emma will not give up until she proves it was not Kiara and she finds the real culprit and as we have found before Emma has a long list of suspects and comes up with some very interesting scenarios. With suggestions from her friends and getting to know the inspector Cesare Romero who seems very flirty and happy to quote Shakespeare Emma is soon on the trail but can she convince the bumbling inspector of her suspicions?

Can Emma get to the truth before it is too late for Kiara? Another fabulous story in this series fabulous characters and a beautiful setting, I do highly recommend this one to any lover of a good mystery, I love Emma’s absolute determination to clear her friends’ name and I was cheering her one. I do hope that there is are more stories coming in this series.

My thanks to Tule Publishing for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars

January 12, 2026 by Tule Publishing

Kill Your Boss

 Kill Your Boss

Jack Heath

Reviewed by Helen

I loved Kill Your Brother and Kill Your Husbands and I loved this one, it is witty and a very smart mystery and had my mind turning in so many directions and I thought I had it all worked out till the very end, it was good catching up with Detective Kiara Lui who has just come back from her honeymoon to her wife Elsie, enjoy your visit to Warrigal.

DS Kiara Lui has just broken up a fight between two locals outside the publish library when a body falls from the roof and hits the bike rack and it is only her first day back and she has a new probationary constable Ben Higgins to help with the investigation, is it suicide, did he fall or was he pushed.

The more people who are questioned the more questions she has it appears that the murder victim, Neville Adams is the library boss and is not a very nice person so the main suspects seem to be the people who work for him, if it was murder is there only one perpetrator or is there more, are they working together? Oh the twist and turns in this one is this death linked somehow to the young woman who went missing a few months before?

This one is twisty and witty with so many suspects all with good reason to kill their boss, the characters are fabulous and DS Lui has her work cut out for her she gets herself in danger a few times and her new probie Ben is learning fast he too gets in the path of danger with Kiara, this is one that I highly recommend it certainly had me turning the pages and I do hope that we visit Warrigal again.

5 stars

November 4, 2025 by Allen & Unwin

Of Funerals and Feuds

 Of Funeral and Feuds 

A Travelling Celebrant Mystery #2

Phillipa Nefri Clark

Reviewed by Helen

Book two in this fabulous new series and it was such a great read, I love Daphne Jones and her husband John, they are so easy to get along with as they travel around country Victoria in their caravan Bluebell so Daph can perform marriages and funerals in her role as celebrant sleuth because as Daph and John have found out that sadly there seems to be a murder mystery or two to solve on the way, come along for a witty and fabulous journey.

Daph and John have arrived in a small town Shady Bend to perform a funeral for local woman Edwina, this town is known for its crafts, preserves, local produce and a beautiful garden or two, but when they discover that the casket is empty and Edwina is missing this is not what Daph was hoping for seeing as she made this stop to perform this funeral as a special request on their way to officiate at a wedding.

Things get worse when two more people die and Daph’s suspicions grow as to how they died and on more uncovering there are lots of secrets and plans for uncovering a secret recipe that add to the mystery. Daph and John are very impressed with the local police officer Adam and are soon taking notes and digging deep into this strange town and the people who live here and as the mystery grows John is also researching his own mystery that is hopefully going to make Daph happy.

This really is another great cozy mystery, Daph is such a great sleuth, caring and meticulous with her research into uncovering the culprit, this one had me thinking I can tell you, there are so many great characters and anyone of them could have been the killer, but Daph and John nailed it and their help was much appreciated. This one had such a great ending as well and of course I do look forward to the next adventure with Daph and John.

I do highly recommend this book and the series if you are looking for a totally enjoyable story that is witty and fabulous, I loved it, MS Nefri Clark writes such awesome characters and stories it is like being with family.

Previously released as The Shadow of Daph

5 stars

My thanks to Storm Publishing and Booksprout for my copy to read and review.

Of Marriage and Murder

Of Marriage & Murder

A travelling Celebrant Mystery

Phillipa Nefri Clark 

Reviewed by Helen

This is an awesome start a series from Phillipa Nefri Clark, this is the first installment and I thoroughly enjoyed it, I have fond memories of Daphne from previous books and she is lots of fun to be with, now Daph and husband John are touring in their caravan, Bluebell while Daph performs weddings and funerals as a travelling celebrant, she is very much enjoying her new life, I do hope that you come along for the ride.

Daph and John have arrived in the small town of Little Bridges so Daph can marry Lisa Brooker and Steve Tanner she is just about to meet them for the first time and she is not feeling too good about it, not sure but that strange feeling she has that something isn’t quite right is with her and very strongly.

Although things don’t go as planned on the first meeting Daph is back the next day to perform the wedding and then things really go pear shaped when within minutes of saying you are now husband and wife the groom ends up in the pool dead, this brings to life Daph’s excellent sleuthing skills and sets her on a trail of discovering the murderer, and here she uncovers a family feuds and secrets that go back generations and some nasty family members, but Daph never stops investigating no matter what.

This one had me guessing till the end lots of twists and turns in this page turner, I loved the way that John was always there for support and the way Daph talks things through, a small town and two big families and Daph gets to the bottom of the puzzle I think this cozy mystery is a fabulous start to the series traveling around Victoria and going to new towns is going to be wonderful and Daph and John are great people to hang around with, can’t wait for the next one.

My thanks to Storm Publishing and Netgalley for my copy to read and review

January 6, 2025 by Storm Publishing

Forgotten Shadow

 Forgotten Shadow

Chief Inspector Shadow Mystery #5

H L Marsay

Reviewed by Helen

Another fabulous story in this series which I am loving, this time Chief Inspector John Shadow and Detective Sargent Jimmy Chang are investigating a death of horse trainer Flynn FitzAllen who manages the Duke of Kirkdale’s horses this is Shadow’s old stamping grounds the place he was living before his policeman father was shot on the grounds of Kirkland Castle a case that was never solved, when another employee of the first victim is killed in the village Shadow is convinced they are both linked but his boss sees it otherwise and of course the inhabitants of the castle are not helping with his enquiries, but Shadow and Jimmy are determined to get the answers they need and as they dig deeper could he even uncover what happened to his father all those years ago?

I came to this series late and have nearly caught up one more to go and I have loved everyone of them Shadow and Jimmy are such awesome characters and I am loving my visits to York, I do highly recommend this book and the series.

5 stars

August 4, 2022 by Tule Publishing

Murder for Shore

 Murder for Shore

Saltwater Bay Secrets Mystery Novella #1

Beth Prentice

Reviewed by Helen

Daphne Wright has just lost her beloved grandmother and is moving to Saltwater Bay to live, although she knows she is going to miss her she is looking forward to her new life, but her first day neighbour Grayson meets her with the news that a skull has been found under her beach shack washed up after a storm and high tide and it appears to be a local who went missing some time ago, what a start to her new life.

When her grandmother is the police’s main suspect Daphne and now Grayson start investigating themselves and what they uncover will put Daphne in danger will she find her way out of this as she uncovers the truth?

This is such a great short mystery after reading The Write Way to Die I got part of this story during that one and was looking forward to getting the whole story and it is one that I can highly recommend, short, witty with twists a fabulous story, fabulous characters and I loved it, and look forward to book two.

My thanks to the author for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars

October 14, 2025 by Gemma Halliday Publishing

The Write Way to Die

 The Write Way to Die

Murder by the Book #1

Beth Prentice

Reviewed by Helen

I do love a good cosy mystery and this is the start of a new series, yay, a writers retreat a New York Best- selling author running it and then a fall from a window or was it a push?
Aubrey Jackson is an aspiring mystery writer and she has spent all of her savings to attend this retreat run my Willow Fox, famous author she is determined to finish her first book at this retreat she has support of a few fellow author friends Ellie, Spencer and Jenna, who also co-writes stories with Willow Fox but when Aubrey finds Willow in the garden after a fall this getaway changes direction very quickly but what else can a group of writers do but investigate?

There are many suspects in this case and the more that the friends uncover the more red-herrings that are thrown their way, blackmail amongst the clues and discovering Willow’s personality and secrets, the head detective Tate is onto Aubrey and her friends instantly when he uncovers their nosing around this of course is sure to bring danger to Aubrey but Tate is determined to stop them interfering, but will Aubrey get the answers first?

This is a fabulous start to a new series one that had me turning the pages and guessing all the way through, twists and turns that I did not see coming and we get two stories as we can read a long with Aubrey’s story that she is writing, the characters are fabulous I loved Aubrey and Detective Tate, could there be a friendship growing between Aubrey and Tate? I do highly recommend this one to any lover of a good cosy mystery, and as a bonus there is another book that will be available soon which is Aubrey Jackson’s story Murder for Shore which I am looking forward to.

My thanks to the author for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars

October 7, 2025 by Gemma Halliday Publishing