Belinda Penshurst and retired detective Harry Powell are the amateur sleuths of this cozy in the village of Little Challham. 21 years ago, Belinda at the age of 23, was arrested by Harry at a protest at the Dover Docks. Now Harry is retired from the police force, delivery associate for Doggie Delight, and is residing in the Gatehouse owned by Belinda's family. Belinda makes the connection of their shared history but has to call it to Harry's attention. There are many secrets kept between the two during their investigation even though they are together most of the time. A few times it seemed believable that Harry was a retired police detective but in most other moments he acted like an immature boy with his first crush. However annoying Belinda's personality is at times she stays true to self as the big sister to Marcus, her love of the village, the well-being of all the residents regardless of age, and her investments in various local businesses.

A young barman named Freddie is described as "He was in his late twenties, tall and thin, with short black hair, a goatee and black-framed glasses that made him look like a young Colonel Sanders before he found out he loved chicken more than low cholesterol." I realize that the Kentucky Fried Chicken chain has crossed the Atlantic for availability in England but the reference simply took me by surprise in an English cozy. In the moment of reading it didn't feel authentic to me.

I enjoyed the link as Belinda suspected between the investigations of dognapping and murder but am doubtful of continuing this series. ( )

Murder in the Village by Lisa Cutts is the first book in The Belinda Penshurst Mystery series. I like that this cozy mystery is set in Britain. We get that cozy English village charm. The author provided detailed descriptions that allowed me to visualize the village, Belinda’s home, and the characters. Our two amateur sleuths, Belinda Penshurst and Harry Powell work to solve two crimes. They must catch a murderer and figure out who is behind the local dognapping’s. The two run around asking questions and trying to outdo each other. The mysteries were straightforward. For a detective, Harry failed to question the right people with regard to the dognapping. I felt the story got bogged down in the details. The endless detailed descriptions made for slow reading along with the repetitive details. I had a hard time wading through this whodunit (it is great if you are suffering from insomnia). I could not get into the story (I really tried). It did not feel that this was the first book. The author did not provide the backstory that I wanted on our main characters especially Harry. We are told that Harry is a retired detective inspector who has moved to Little Challham and now works for Doggie Delight delivering kibble (I want more information). Of course, Harry may no longer be a detective, but it is hard to give up old habits. Belinda has her finger in a number of pies in the village plus she is trying to find out what mischief her brother, Marcus is up to this time. The last time the family almost lost their home. She is also having trouble with her latest investment. Belinda finds the cause of her latest problem dead which is how she gets involved in solving the crime. The author was trying to establish a romantic relationship between our two protagonists, but it missed the mark. Why Harry would like someone who looks down on him and sneers, I do not know. The dialogue between them makes a person cringe. Personally, I was not a fan of either one of them. Belinda is a bossy, forceful woman with attitude (big chip or should I say boulder on her shoulder). Harry is a quiet man who pays attention to details. There are times, though, when I felt he missed the mark. The book moved at a snail’s pace (I felt like I was traveling on a glacier to get to the resolution). The best thing about the story was the cute dogs. Murder in the Village was not the right fit for me. I suggest you read a sample to see if this cozy mystery suits you. Murder in the Village is British whodunit with dognapped doggies, pub problems, a troublemaker brother, a mysterious murder, and two squabbling sleuths. ( )

law-enforcement, amateur-sleuth, England, small-business, small-town, murder, murder-investigation, dognappers, dogs, family-dynamics, ex-cop, friendship, situational-humor, verbal-humor*****

What great fun!
Belinda is hyper, shares an estate with her unrealistic brother, and is devoted to her village and does everything she can to help everyone in the community. Harry has been recently retired as a homicide detective after thirty years on The Job (and got dumped by longtime girlfriend), works as a home delivery man for a dog food company, and doesn't really know how to adjust. All the characters certainly are.
Odd things are happening around town and dogs are going missing. Then the landlord of the pub owned by Belinda is found dead and the whole tangle begins. So do the laughs! When something is this good I don't want to say too much for fear of running on or doing the evil spoiler thing. Just get into the book and it will keep you there and roaring with laughter just as it did to me! Loved it and am waiting for more!
The audio is actively performed by Lucy Paterson who is so great that she didn't crack up even once!
I requested and received a free temporary audio copy from Bookouture Audio, Bookouture via NetGalley. Thank you! ( )