Times are difficult for Edwina Davenport, and she is forced to advertise for a lodger. Her old friend, the adventurous Beryl Helliwell, sees the ad, coming to her friend's rescue and attempting to alleviate some of the village gossip about her friend's circumstances by implying she works as a spy. The two end up becoming a pair of detectives when the local constable refuses to see a murder as a murder. It suffers some of the typical problems of first installments, but it is an enjoyable read in an English village setting which is always a win! I listened to the audiobook read by Barbara Rosenblat. ( )

1920 and in the village of Walmsley Parva Edwina Davenport gets more than she bargained for when old friends Beryl Helliwell replies to her advertisement for a lodger. Trying to help out her friend Beryl insinuates that they are detectives looking into the secrets of the village, not helped by the total ineptitude of the local untrained constable.
An unlikely pair, but a delightful pair, a well-written easy to read mystery and look forward to reading the next in the series
A NetGalley Book ( )

Murder in an English Village - Ellicot
Audio performance by Barbara Rosenblat
3 stars

Of course there’s murder in an English village. Dangerous places those villages. This is the first book in a series set in 1920. The amatuer sleuths are two women of a ‘certain age’, one an aging spinster and the other her vibrant American friend. The friend, Beryl Helliwell, adds her energy and outrageous fabrications to sleepy Walmsley Parva where there is indeed a murder. It’s a predictable cozy mystery, but Barbara Rosenblat makes it entertaining. ( )

A good mystery but not very exciting ( )

It's 1920. England is recuperating from The Great War. In the quiet village of Walmsley Parva, American Beryl Helliwell seeks rest, relaxation and escape from Prohibition. There will be no bathtub gin for Beryl Helliwell! Her former school chum, Edwina Davenport, advertises for a boarder and Beryl jumps on the chance. The English countryside is just what she needs. The only problem is that Beryl is quite vivacious, brash and well, just un-Edwinalike. Edwin is prim, proper and .... very British. But all is not quite so simple and safe in Walmley Parva. Beryl mentions that she and Edwina will be looking into some shady dealings in the village....and maybe she even exaggerated a bit in her insinuations that they were in Her Majesty's Service.....but she didn't expect it to lead to Edwina being attacked. When the attack is followed by the murder of their housemaid.....well, things might not be all sunshine and roses in Walmsley Parva after all. Edwina and Beryl need to find out what's going on in their little village, before one or both of them end up dead.

This unlikely duo makes for a fun cozy mystery. Their personalities are so different, but together they make quite the team. I liked the mix of humor and mystery. The story moves along at a nice pace and there were plenty of suspects. A few times I wanted to grab hold of Beryl and shake her....but other than that, loved the characters and the story! I can't wait to read about their further exploits!

To find out more about the author, check out her website: https://www.jessicaellicott.com/

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Kensington via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.** ( )