• Author: Paula Sutton
• Series: Vintage Hill Murder Mysteries #2
• Genre: Murder Mystery
• Star Rating: 2.5 stars
• Gifted by Publisher: No

Plot: Pudding Corner is the enigmatic Lord Hugh Darlington has returned to his crumbling ancestral home after years away. With his fiancée, he plans to revive the grand Darlington Hall – and who better to help than vintage aficionado Daphne Brewster? Daphne is enchanted by the estate’s stained-glass windows, regal turrets, and sprawling kitchen garden. But amidst the overgrown greenery, she stumbles upon something far less a body. A body that nobody can identify. As the shocking murder rocks the village, Daphne dusts off her sleuthing skills – despite the local PC’s warnings to stay out of trouble. When Lord Darlington is attacked and a string of burglaries shakes Pudding Corner, it’s clear that no one is safe. With secrets buried deep and loyalties more tangled than ivy, Daphne must unearth the truth… before the killer strikes again.

This, I will be honest, is quite disappointing. After reading the first book in this series, absolutely loving it and recommending it to anyone who would listen, I was excited to read the second instalment. Unfortunately, all the things that I loved so much about the first book just fell flat in this book.

The setting and the eclectic residents of Pepperbridge were great and I always enjoy Sutton’s writing of the inhabitants and their idiosyncrasies. But I felt more connected to the setting in the first one and all the side characters introduced. The side characters in this book were flat and I knew their motive from basically the first 50 pages. The first book made you feel like you were truly their with the characters but the second one felt too light and less enveloping.

Daphne, as a detective, was somebody that I felt was missing in the crime genre. Leading with kindness and an open mind. I loved her conversations with the residents and her intelligence and compassion. While she still leads with kindness and compassion in this book I felt that the actual investigating was non-existent. Daphne was not in charge of the narrative in this book but just reacting to things happening around her. I can’t think of anything in the book apart from the visit to the library where I truly felt she was being active in this novel. This book had a severe lack of deducting, which was incredibly disappointing. 

The plot. Everything was just too obvious this time around. Normally I don’t mind figuring out the motives and plots of mysteries but this was just way too obvious and easy. As I said earlier, it took me about 50 pages to suss out the new characters and the trajectory of the plot. I just really wish more time was spent in this book to pad it out and give time and detail to it.

Overall this was a big dip in quality after how amazing that first book was.