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The second in the series of Coombesford Chronicles.
Stanley Wentworth was no saint. He’d had his fair share of trouble with the law. He’d upset his former partners in gangs across the Midlands. And he’d abandoned more than one woman in his time. But did he really deserve a cold and lonely death in the Country Park?
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Amazon Customer –
Secrets, Lies, and Murder in a Cozy English Village.
VILLAINY IN THE VILLAGE SHOP, Elizabeth Ducie’s second cozy set in the charming village of Coombesford, is happily just as lethal her first. With a body waiting for us in the first sentence of the first page, this delightful whodunit starts off at a gallop and doesn’t stop until the clues are sorted, the mystery solved, and the murderer revealed!
Secrets and lies abound in this picture perfect English village, with a cast of reluctant witnesses and shifty suspects, deceptions, confessions, broken relationships and the answer to a long-ago mystery. What I love most about the series is getting to know the warm and wonderful people who live in Coombesford. And worrying about what villainy might happen to them next! Highly recommended!
Carol A –
Murder in an English village!
I enjoyed Murder at Mountjoy Manor so much that I was excited to be an advanced reader for the next book. And this one doesn’t disappoint. When Amelia, an employee at the village shop, enters a contest to win recognition for her employer, she sets off a powder keg, leading to a series of unexpected events.
All my favorite characters return in this one, with a few new ones added to spice things up. While it has that comfortable, small-town feel, the author keeps the pace moving, sprinkling clues and red herrings throughout. I look forward to more local antics in Coombesford.
Michelle O-D –
Another Great Cozy Strikes Again.
The village is in an uproar when murder strikes again and the list of suspects is growing. I always appreciate Elizabeth’s Ducie’s stories and Villainy at the Village Store is no exception. Her world creation is so lovely and detailed, I feel like I know the Village of Coombesford and want to go for a drink in the pub, but not until they catch the murderer. Pick up a copy of this cozy mystery and settle into your favorite chair with a hot cup of something. I dare you to figure out who did it before the murderer is revealed at the end.
Sally Warr –
Very cleverly written.
I thoroughly enjoyed this compelling mystery set in the charming village of Coombeshead. I loved the first in the series and the second didn’t disappoint. Elizabeth Ducie spins a great tale full of vividly drawn characters, clues and rabbit holes in order to intrigue her readers. There are several unexpected twists and turns that had me guessing all the way through. I particularly liked how the beautiful Devon countryside and wildlife is so deftly described. Roll on no 3!
Amazon Customer –
A Cosy Little Mystery.
Having enjoyed Murder at Mountjoy Manor, the first book in this series, I was delighted to read Villainy at the Village Store, as an advanced reader. All my favourite characters from the first book reappear in this one, along with some new ones. A cosy little mystery, the book is well-written and draws the reader in from the very first page. I’m looking forward to the third book!
Suzanne –
A story that doesn’t let you go until the final page.
With Villainy at the Village Store, we plunge straight back into Coombesford, that dangerous community in deepest Devon, meeting up with familiar and new characters. It’s a place where everyone gets on together – on the surface – but secrets are kept and past lives are concealed, and it doesn’t take long before something occurs to upset things. In this case, three years after the first one, there’s a new murder, and Stanley Wentworth’s death unleashes a whole series of unfortunate events. Once again, Charlie and Annie’s pub, that hotbed of local gossip, is at the centre of village events and these two amateur sleuths are able to get involved in the investigation.
Some intricate plotting forces you to consider and then abandon each suspect in turn, until you are left with only one possibility. If you are enjoying following life in this village, you will be rewarded by the tense story that unfolds in the epilogue.
Amazon Customer –
Great pace and plot.
I enjoyed this read . . . and was eager to know what happened next! Having read the first in the series it was lovely to reconnect with familiar characters. Cleverly constructed, good characterisation and a pace which kept me engaged.
Amazon Customer –
Return to Coombesford for another exciting read.
A fast paced second book in the Coombesford Chronicles series. The very engaging trio of Charlie Jones, Annie McLeod and Rohan Banerjee solve a series of murders in Coombesford. Once again a very enjoyable read.
Welsh Annie –
Such clever writing – the story kept me totally hooked throughout…
Stanley Wentworth certainly wasn’t a saint – the book begins with the discovery of his body in the country park, and it’s soon clear that he won’t be greatly missed. But with the number of secrets in his past, and the appearance of a few strangers in the village, there are quite a few individuals who might just have their reasons for finishing him off. And Amelia, who works behind the post office counter at Stanley’s village store and might be one of the few people who’ll mourn him, feels particularly guilty – she’d entered him for a competition in the local paper, something he really didn’t appreciate, and wonders if that might have started the chain of events that led to his death.
Every individual in this book is just wonderfully drawn – the favourite characters from the first book (although you’d have no problems reading this book as a standalone), and the new ones who certainly add an extra level of interest and intrigue. The story slowly unfolds, with a number of subplots and diversions that help us get to know them all – and those back stories move suspects in and out of the frame, as Charlie, Annie and Rohan conduct their own background investigation that makes far more progress than the efforts of the police team. And the whole story moves at a perfect pace – with quite a few surprises along the way – along with quite a few moments of particular drama, and some even more grisly discoveries.
It’s a relatively short read, but there’s so much packed into its less than 200 pages – and, as the individuals’ stories become clearer, the many clues and red herrings begin to multiply and delight. There were times when I was convinced I’d worked it all out – but I was looking in totally the wrong direction, and the story’s final outcome was both extremely satisfying and totally unexpected. This is such clever writing – the perfectly drawn community, the relationships between them, the vividly described setting, the warmth of the writing, the frequent touches of humour, but also some particularly compelling storytelling and a complexity to the twists and turns of the story that kept me totally hooked throughout. Yes, the Midsomer Murders comparison is certainly a fair one – but the author does it far better. Highly recommended by me – I’m looking forward to my next visit already.
Susan Robinson –
Lovely winter cozy mystery.
Really enjoyed reading this book over the Christmas period. It was an easy read and kept me enthralled. The characters are developing and I can’t wait to see what they face in the next book.
Mr. Stephen F. Male –
A Second Super Instalment for the Series.
Elizabeth Ducie has followed up her first book in this series of cosy mysteries with an excellent second volume. Highly recommended.
Pam Keevil –
Perfect winter reading.
A delightful read, perfect for a winter’s evening snuggled up with a drink of whatever you choose. The characters are a charming mix, well drawn and very believable. The plot rocks along at a decent pace with enough twists and turns to keep the reader guessing and it’s well written with the perfect balance of description, inner thoughts and dialogue.
Caroline –
I couldn’t put it down!
Villainy at the Village Store is a captivating story which I enjoyed even more than Murder at Mountjoy Manor. Getting to know the characters from the previous book in more depth is part of its appeal for me as well, of course, are the references to all the places that a Chudleigh resident knows so well. It has all the twists and turns one would expect from a murder mystery which kept me guessing right until the end. I would thoroughly recommend this story to all lovers of mystery thrillers. I look forward to the next Chronicle in the series!
Claire M –
Another Gripping Instalment.
A thoroughly absorbing and gripping read. Well paced with some well rounded characters. Great local settings and a satisfyingly unguessable denouement.
Georgia Rose –
Super cosy mystery series to get your teeth into.
It is telling as to how much I enjoyed the first in this series that I’ve gone back for the second so quickly. The village of Coombesford is fast becoming the Midsomer Murders of the book world and if you liked that television series you are bound to enjoy this.
The body is revealed terrifically early and it was fun to be back in this lovely village again with Charlie Jones, Annie McLeod and Rohan Banerjee soon on the trail of the murderer. Again, there are plenty of suspects, motives, dodgy backgrounds and even dodgier characters lurking in the background. There is also plenty of intrigue, even among some of the village’s dearest inhabitants.
The writing, as always with this author, is excellent and kept up a good pace throughout. Highly recommended.
M Adams –
I enjoyed this story.
2nd in the series, interesting storyline, engaging characters. Hopefully there will be more to come from Annie, Charlie & Rohan.