Murder in a Scottish Shire

Scotland, cosy-mystery, murder-investigation, family-dynamics, friendship**** Interesting cosy set in Scotland. I was pulled in by the yarn and the sheep who provided it and held to the end by the mystery. Paislee had a REALLY bad day. There was the cantankerous constable bringing her the reprobate grandfather she had never met from sleeping in the park, the notice of eviction from the landlord who had sold all the buildings on the block, the yarn that was late, and the former employee who didn't answer her mobile because she was dead. And then things got really messy! All told in a clear Scottish brogue and filled with characters who most certainly are. I requested and received a free ebook copy from Kensington Books via NetGalley.

Murder in a Scottish Shire by Traci Hall is the debut of A Scottish Shire Mystery series. Paislee Shaw lives in Nairn, Scotland with her son, Brody and their dog, Wallace. Her grandmother taught her to knit and encouraged her dream of opening a shop. Cashmere Crush is a specialty sweater and yarn shop where each week the ladies gather to knit, chat, and sip wine on Thursday evenings. I enjoyed the setting of Nairn and the authors lovely descriptions of the village. Thankfully, the accent was easy to read. Cashmere Crush sounded like a cozy shop with sitting area and beautiful yarn especially the ones utilizing natural dyes. Murder in a Scottish Shire has an eventful beginning when Paislee finds DI Zeffer on the shop’s doorstep with Grandpa Angus, her landlord serves an eviction notice, and she finds Isla dead in her apartment. There are two side stories happening in the book. Grandpa Angus lives with his son, Craigh who never showed up for an assignment on the oil rig, Mona. He wants to find out what happened to Craigh. Mr. Shawn Marcus, Paislee’s landlord, serves her with an eviction notice stating he has sold the property (which voids the lease). However, no record of the sale can be found. After finding Isla dead in her apartment, Paislee has her doubts regarding the cause of death. To change DI Zeffer’s mind, Paislee sets out to prove the woman was murdered. Paislee begins questioning Isla’s friends, former employer, and former boyfriend. There are a couple of suspects and misdirection. One clue, though, gives away the identity of the killer. I wish the mystery had been the primary focus of the book (took a backseat to Paislee dealing with Grandpa Angus, Brody’s problems at school, knitting sweaters for customers, Spring Fling) and there had been more activity. Paislee also needs to work on her questioning technique. She comes across as rude and pushy. As a friend told Paislee, you catch more flies with honey. I like that the author took the time to establish the main characters and the setting. The secondary characters still need work. There was a repetition of information (I got it the first time) and the pacing was sluggish. I liked the humor involving the headmaster of Brody’s school. I believe this series is off to a good start, and I am curious to find out what happened to Craigh. Murder in a Scottish Shire is a cute cozy mystery with a grumpy grandpa, a busy boy, an extinct employee, sweater sales, yummy yarn, surprising secrets, and a snoopy shop owner.

Great read. A perfect cozy mystery!