A Murder of Crows: A completely gripping British cozy mystery (A Dr Nell Ward Mystery Book 1)

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A dark, stormy atmosphere pervades the book and just adds to the mystery and tense feeling to it. I loved it. Tig, along with her friends Max and Wyn, steps in to help, but the stakes are getting higher and the hunt more deadly. Someone's willing to kill to keep the town's secrets buried, and if Tig's not careful, she'll be the Murder of Crows' next victim. It was a good read in a novel where we appeared to have two good 'guys'. The first was Nell the ecologist with much to keep secret and the other was James a Detective Sergeant who was given his first lead in a murder case for which Nell was prime suspect. To further complicate matters was there a spark of something between them? This is very obviously being aimed at, what could possibly be described as, "The Richard Osman Market". Even the cover (which I think works well) is stylistically reminiscent of those used on The Thursday Murder Club series. Will "A Murder of Crows" also emulate the success of Mr Osman's books? Well, I suspect not - although it is intelligently written and generally avoids the excessive cheesiness of many cosy mysteries. Sir Robert’s father is Henry Carey, Lord Hunsdon,generally believed to be the bastard son of Henry VIII and Mary Boleyn, making him a powerful first cousin to Queen Elizabeth.

A Murder of Crows: A completely gripping British cozy mystery

He’s a freelance inquisitor. . . I don’t want him after me. Because he’s completely insane and kills for fun and Heneage protects him, gives him completely free rein.’ Despite those quibbles, I found myself looking for more opportunities to listen to the book rather than read my physical one. I got home from work one evening and immediately cleaned the kitchen! The story was engaging and of course, Kristen Atherton’s excellent narration helped. I was listening to it through my library’s digital loans app, and it was the first time in a long time I didn’t need to extend a loan beyond the initial 14-day period. There's no shortage of suspects for the murder, and it's planning and execution is actually quite clever. Unusually for a cosy, there are chapters written from the investigating officers points of view, which I quite liked.

A Murder of Crows was an enjoyable read, revolving around a British ecologist’s efforts to extricate herself from suspicion of murder. I think Murder of Crows is a great book for people who don’t read many mysteries but would like to start. It’s fast-paced and easy to get pulled into the world. I don't think that this is yet as accomplished as Richard Osman or Faith Martin as the blurb suggests but I would definitely be interested to read the second book to see where this goes. DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Embla Books via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of A Murder of Crows by Sarah Yarwood-Lovett for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

Mike’s review of A Murder of Crows - Goodreads

I love action and K. Ancrum makes sure that the reader is never bored during this story. I also liked the relationships between the characters. I listened to Ian Skewis narrate this book which I think certainly added to the experience. His mellifluous Scottish voice is perfectly suited to a tale set on the west coast of Scotland.Filming began in December 1997, across Key West, Florida, Los Angeles, California, and New Orleans, Louisiana. It has been released on DVD. I believe there is a follow up in the works for which I am truly grateful. Detailed, lyrical and imaginatively done, A Murder of Crows was a huge hit for me.

a murder of crows Collective nouns for birds: Why we call it a murder of crows

Sometimes the collective noun applied to a particular bird was a marker of rank. Berners gave a list of which birds were suitable for hunting based on one's station in life, and the names for those groups were also class-specifics. So hawks came in casts, for two kept in a nobleman's hawking tower, or leashes, for three kept in a tower. Cast was used to mark technique: Berners notes that one should always cast a hawk at prey, and never let it fly. And a leash of hawks was modeled on the name for a group of hunting greyhounds, another animal favored by the gentry.

Why only 3 stars? I found the plot very convoluted, and I was very unhappy with the end. And what was the point of the crows? Where they to add a sense of foreboding and mystery, with a tinge of magic thrown in? Not sure, as it was never revealed. However, there were certain elements which I thought were outstanding. Sophie had a meeting scheduled with ecologist Dr Nell Ward on the afternoon she died, but never turned up. Nell had spent all day doing a survey of Manor Park Farm, and was somewhere in that tunnel when Sophie was murdered, so now she’s a suspect. Sir Robert is Hunsdon’s youngest (eighth!) son, a clever, handsome charmer, who has expensive tastes, so is always broke. He’s also a gallant courtier and a ladykiller, but his heart belongs to a married woman, sigh . . . (and we don't like her husband). I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.