Reviews

Murder in a Scottish Shire by Traci E. Hall, Traci Hall

dgood04's review

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

theavidreaderandbibliophile's review against another edition

3.0

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.

darcerenity's review

funny mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

Good overall a bit repetitive and the pace seemed glacial. 

mtnest's review

emotional lighthearted mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

ethanzo's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a surprisingly fun read for me. I loved the ratio of cozy, to mystery, to family. The setting was amazing, I'm a sucker for small-town mysteries, and the backdrop of a murder made it even more interesting. I loved that the characters felt like real people, and I loved that the conclusion to the story made sense and didn't come out of nowhere. I also really enjoyed the cozier elements of the story, like knitting, family relationships, and parenting. The narrator did a fantastic job, and I'd listen to her narrate anything, if I'm honest. I think that above anything, this is a perfect book to escape some of the more dramatic and heavy books I personally like to read (while murder is heavy, the book is much more lighthearted than any other murder mystery I've read). I'd be more than open to continuing the series. It really scratches that itch for a comforting and soft story about normal people put into hard situations. 

bibliocatts's review

funny lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Cozy mystery featuring a yarn shop set in Scotland? Sign me up! Looking forward to what the gang gets up to in the next book.

cookhorn's review against another edition

4.0

I won a kindle version of this book from Goodreads. It seems like I don’t really like “cozies” but this was a quick, enjoyable read. I liked the setting and the main characters. I don’t mind a mystery where I’m a bit ahead of the sleuth but I solved this one [maybe a spoiler?] as soon as one of the characters was introduced. Anyway, if you like cozies and small village settings, it’s a nice way to drink some tea and spend a quiet afternoon.

gamz's review

funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

pagesandplannersabroad's review

lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

starathena's review

Why did I read these out of order?! I went 2, 3, 1. But now I’m caught up so when 4 comes out all will be right as rain. I like Paislee, Brody, Grandpa, and the Shire. I knit. I’m going to read this series until they stop coming or until they become unreadable. Are they cozy? Yes. Are they going to change your world? Probably not. Not all books need to be all things. I like the series and if Amazon could stop recommending pun-based mystery titles to me now that would be great. ONE BOOK. I read ONE book like that. Thanks. I do enjoy a cozy style mystery from time to time though.