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  • A Body in the Village Hall: An Utterly Gripping Cozy Murder Mystery

  • A Kate Palmer Novel, Book 1
  • Written by: Dee MacDonald
  • Narrated by: Jane McDowell
  • Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (23 ratings)

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A Body in the Village Hall: An Utterly Gripping Cozy Murder Mystery

Written by: Dee MacDonald
Narrated by: Jane McDowell
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Publisher's Summary

Kate Palmer has relocated to Cornwall for a quiet life. Moving into picturesque Lavender Cottage with her sister, Angie, the little village of Lower Tinworthy should be the perfect place for their fresh new start. But within weeks of their arrival, there’s a death in the close-knit community....

A woman is found dead in the village hall, with her own kitchen knife next to the body, covered in blood. Kate, a practice nurse at the local medical center, begins to piece together the clues. Fenella was at the center of village activity, and there seem to be plenty of people who had reason to dislike her. But did any of them hate her enough to kill her? 

As Kate gets drawn into life in Lower Tinworthy, she begins a close friendship with Detective Inspector "Woody" Forrest, who is near to retiring - and determined to crack his last case. Together, they set about solving the mysterious crime. 

But when someone breaks into Kate’s home and leaves a warning note on her pillow, it becomes clear the murderer is prepared to do anything to keep their identity hidden.... Will Kate work out who’s responsible before she becomes the next victim? 

If you love murder mysteries by Agatha Christie, Faith Martin, or Joy Ellis, then this novel will have you listening late into the night! 

©2020 Dee MacDonald (P)2020 Bookouture

What listeners say about A Body in the Village Hall: An Utterly Gripping Cozy Murder Mystery

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A nice cozy mystery told by a very good narrator

I'm on my second listen of this audiobook. I am enjoying it as much as on the first listen. The story is engrossing, the plot is interesting, the characters are intriguing and I enjoy the narrator's style very much. I hope nobody is put off by the review that says the narrator's American accent is not good, because right at the beginning of the book, the detective is introduced as having "a trace of an American accent", which is exactly what my ears heard. I will be purchasing the remaining books in the series because I enjoy listening to this author and narrator.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
  • ML
  • 2022-10-30

Worst American accent ever

The story was good, but utterly ruined by Jane McDowell’s pathetic attempt at an American accent. I found it increasingly difficult to listen to her voice, and will not be listening to any more books with her as narrator. Most British actors have a problem with North American accents - Canadian and American, but Jane McDowell is one of the worst.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Good and cozy Mystery

This was a good story lots of suspects. romance beginning to flourish and an almost Agatha Christie feel to it.
Jane McDowell did a nice job of the reading.

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  • Katherin Clemmence
  • 2022-03-22

Suspense created through the heroine's stupidity

So disappointing. Another story about a man coming to the aid of a stupid female.

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Cindy
  • 2020-11-22

Kate is a different kind of sleuth: fun

I find I love the "cozy" series of books, and this new series is no different. Characters are unique and fun. The mystery is well-laid-out.

Even with 2 murders in the book, there is no horrible gore. The story is the characters' interactions and relationships.

Good fun, and a good read

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3 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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  • Mary K. Horner
  • 2020-08-24

Characters grated on my nerves

Weak story, characters not believable, especially main female character. Her stupidity hard to take. will probably return.

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3 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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  • Sal9k
  • 2021-10-09

I've read worse...

The main character is an "enabler" who constantly whines about alcoholic sister she lives with.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Zeeta
  • 2021-12-31

Great cozy mystery

I like the main character and enjoyed this first book in the series. Narrator was good, but was a little stilted at times. I am hoping her narration flows more effortlessly in the next book, as I will definitely be listening to more of this series.

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1 person found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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  • Cheryl Price
  • 2021-12-03

A simple who done it mystery

This story was easy listening, but not particularly gripping. This book was nice for a change of pace, but lacked the suspense of other mysteries.

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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  • Kinsey Roberts
  • 2023-04-10

Mediocre Storyline & Characters, Narration is Bad.

This storyline and the characters are mediocre at best. I couldn’t care about any of the characters. Audiobook listeners: the narration, particularly when she tries to do an American accent, is hard to listen to. It’s truly awful and sounds robotic.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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  • Christy
  • 2022-08-20

Dismally underwhelming...

worst American accent ever! overall she was a great narrator but that cop's voice was uncomfortable to listen to.....

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    1 out of 5 stars
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  • Mary
  • 2022-08-18

Not worth the buy…

Not worth it. I knew who the murdered was easily… and I’d be fine with that if the book had a good character development or a good plot … this one has neither. Seems like the author just desperately wanted something published.
The narrator only makes it worse…but I don’t think it’s the narrator‘s fault, it’s just really hard to narrate this in any way emphasizing either the plot or the characters (although the American accent she put on for one of the characters was just so fake it made me put the speed up)
The setting is cliche but generally a good one for a murder mystery (a small village in England) - just VERY poorly executed. I’m sure a seasoned author could have made this into a good story with more in depth characters.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Denise Vilim
  • 2020-08-02

Brilliant New Series!

If you like Betty Rowlands, especially her Melissa Craig series, then you'll like this first Kate Palmer book.

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