Murder in a Scottish Shire

By: Traci Hall

Narrated by: Beverley A. Crick

Known as the Brighton of the North, Nairn is both a charming Scottish town and a popular seaside resort - but to Paislee Shaw, it's simply home - unfortunately to a murderer....

For a 28-year-old single mum, Paislee has knit together a sensible life for herself, her 10-year-old son, Brody, and Wallace, their black Scottish terrier. Having inherited a knack for knitting from her dear departed grandmother, Paislee also owns a specialty sweater shop called Cashmere Crush, where devoted local crafters gather weekly for her knit and sip. Lately, though, Paislee feels as if her life is unraveling. She's been served an eviction notice, and her estranged and homeless grandfather has just been brought to her door by a disconcertingly handsome detective named Mack Zeffer. As if all that wasn't enough, Paislee discovers a young woman who she recently rehired to help in the shop dead in her flat, possibly from an overdose of her heart medicine. But as details of the death and the woman's life begin to raise suspicions for Detective Zeffer, it's Paislee who must untangle a murderous yarn....

©2020 Traci Hall (P)2020 Recorded Books

Cute first in series…but

Give this a pass if fat shaming irks you.
Otherwise it’s a fun read with interesting supporting characters.

Loved it!

I really enjoyed the twists and turns in the story, the characters, and the narration!

Cozy and easy to listen too

Just a sweet, charming, easy listen! The narration is good, and the story interesting and well paced!

Knitting

Learned a lot about dyeing yarn, story improved at the end, Paisley’s voice always sounded like she was whining…. A detriment.

A very good one!

Very enjoyable. There is excellent character development, a good story (I didn’t know who did it!), all performed in a lovely Scottish accent. I highly recommend this one!!

Wonderful Cozy Mystery

I loved the narrators voice and accent. The story is great and the characters are lovable. Definitely want to read more from the author.

Easy listening

I loved everything about this. Clean and easy to listen to. No gore, no excessive violence, just a great cozy mystery. Just finished this book and I am rolling right into book 2.

Everyday people

So what I initially like about this is that they got to the point in the first part. It wasn’t a long drawn out explanation of the background and details. It was something simple that can happen to anyone. And I know the struggles my mom had as a single mother. She was never in a situation where she was accused or had to be a witness to a murder, but if she did, we would definitely find out what happened. I really like the fact that the grandpa is there because this particular dynamic is different from most of the mysteries I read. I do recommend this ok. this is definitely what I consider a Cozy mystery. I really like it because I can share this with a preteen or teen and I don’t have to worry about language and promiscuity. 

Not fae Nairn

Where should I start? The positives - the whodunnit element was well done. The negatives:
1. The performer has obviously never been to Nairn, or even the Scottish Highlands. The accents were awful.
2. In Scotland, a law degree is an undergraduate degree. “Law School” in the way it was continuously referred to - as an expensive professional graduate endeavor - does not exist.
3. Scattered American English terms throughout also made it difficult to listen to. For example, in Scotland, school children have playtime or breaks or lunch, not recess. Also, Paisley is much more likely to have a fringe and not bangs.

Enjoyable cozy

Most ratings are partially dependent on the reader's mood. It so happens that I was in the mood for this sort of slow moving, cozy type of Scottish mystery with a strong village feel. I liked the cast of characters and their interactions. I look forward to more. My only complaint was the repetitive pointing out that her son was her whole world. First, no need to keep repeating it, I was paying attention, and, second, that's nothing to brag about! But, I liked the main character, and I liked the secondary characters.