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limeykiss's review
5.0
By far one of the best cosy mysteries I’ve ever read. Valor and Bish’s relationship is so beautiful, and I love the found family and biological family that forms their support network. I already downloaded the next in the series, because I can’t get enough of these two!
bre_louise's review
5.0
This cozy little mystery was exactly what I needed. I was in a reading slump and this picked me right back out of it.
I absolutely love Valor and Bishan. They are such a cute couple! I love that they met at boarding school and found themselves in a long-term relationship. I also love that Bishan is a functioning adult with autism. It shows a different side to the spectrum that is not portrayed very often. All of this mixed together with family complications and amazing friends creates a cozy plot line.
Add in a little "Who Done It?" mystery and this book turns into a complete page-turner! I couldn't put this down once I started it. It sucked me in and had me guessing at every new development.
This is my first book by Ms. Donovan and I cannot wait to start the next!
I absolutely love Valor and Bishan. They are such a cute couple! I love that they met at boarding school and found themselves in a long-term relationship. I also love that Bishan is a functioning adult with autism. It shows a different side to the spectrum that is not portrayed very often. All of this mixed together with family complications and amazing friends creates a cozy plot line.
Add in a little "Who Done It?" mystery and this book turns into a complete page-turner! I couldn't put this down once I started it. It sucked me in and had me guessing at every new development.
This is my first book by Ms. Donovan and I cannot wait to start the next!
mikeelik's review
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
What a delight.
I can't wait to continue the series.
I can't wait to continue the series.
ferns80's review
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
clacksee's review
When Valor and Bishan find a corpse in their front garden, it triggers a series of events designed to frame Bishan as the murderer.
This is my third book by Donovan (one in each of 3 different series). As always, the writing is decent and the casual diversity and the sense of found family are top-notch.
Unfortunately, what keeps me from loving Donovan's books more than I do is the lack of authenticity. To someone who doesn't live in the UK, maybe they would be less inclined to notice the things that make me shake my head with disbelief.
The book is set in the Lake District. Yet characters repeatedly drive between Grasmere, where the couple lives, and either Manchester or London. They make this drive on a moment's notice, as if it were nothing. A few days after finishing this book, one of my neighbours (in London) mentioned he'd just returned from Grasmere. It should be a 6h drive but bad traffic made it a 10h drive. Even Manchester is at least 3h away.
And Valor's background… To anyone who's ever spent time with people from a wealthy background, nothing about Valor's family rings true. I mean, yes, they might disown a family member for behaving in a way they disapprove of. That's feasible. But for that sort of family to disown a beloved son merely for being gay? In the 2020s? Not likely. And everything else about the school and the family… It all just lacks a bit of realness.
I'm sure a few small, targeted changes could turn this into a knockout series. But then, I guess if the target audience isn't British, maybe it doesn't matter.
This is my third book by Donovan (one in each of 3 different series). As always, the writing is decent and the casual diversity and the sense of found family are top-notch.
Unfortunately, what keeps me from loving Donovan's books more than I do is the lack of authenticity. To someone who doesn't live in the UK, maybe they would be less inclined to notice the things that make me shake my head with disbelief.
The book is set in the Lake District. Yet characters repeatedly drive between Grasmere, where the couple lives, and either Manchester or London. They make this drive on a moment's notice, as if it were nothing. A few days after finishing this book, one of my neighbours (in London) mentioned he'd just returned from Grasmere. It should be a 6h drive but bad traffic made it a 10h drive. Even Manchester is at least 3h away.
And Valor's background… To anyone who's ever spent time with people from a wealthy background, nothing about Valor's family rings true. I mean, yes, they might disown a family member for behaving in a way they disapprove of. That's feasible. But for that sort of family to disown a beloved son merely for being gay? In the 2020s? Not likely. And everything else about the school and the family… It all just lacks a bit of realness.
I'm sure a few small, targeted changes could turn this into a knockout series. But then, I guess if the target audience isn't British, maybe it doesn't matter.
raeanne's review
5.0
I received this book for free from Silver Dagger Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.Happy Saturday everyone! I know you've all been anxiously waiting for this post since last Saturday. Finally, here's my review of the Grasmere Cottage Mystery series #1 and a tour giveaway!
Check out book two, Dead in the Pond, and Dead in the Shop on Goodreads.
Content Warning: Murder, Attempted Murder, Stalking, Arson, Kidnapping, Ableism, Racism.
So, I was actually only supposed to review the first book, Dead in the Garden. Instead, I totally read all three back to back in quick succession. Great reading experience for me, harder to review as I think of all three books as one, like seeing the forest instead of the trees. Which leaves me to review the whole in general terms. I HIGHLY recommend reading this series and you're going to want the next one right away anyways.
Valor is a typical English lad, grew up privileged but was disowned for being gay and falling in love with an Autistic Asian Indian man, Bishan. He and Bishan met in at their boarding school, which comes with an old boys network that isn't the usual terrible scum.
They're life is pretty good until someone murders the former school bully, leaves the body in their garden, and frames Bishan. Not so good.
Valor and Bishan aren't the typical bungling amateurs. They work with the police. They listen and follow the detective's instructions. I love their partnership and cooperation with the detectives and the system. I'm not saying their perfect citizens or are necessarily happy about it, but they do it like most people actually would.
This series stays with the pair while they're trying to survive a murderous terror campaign. Because of the lengthened timeline, it does feel slower and longer than most cozies I've read, The stakes here are real. There's no one really off limits or acts out of bounds for this killer. It makes it more suspenseful than the typical cozy mystery. A particular murder or two was legit shocking and hurtful.
And in the end? Scars remain. Valor and Bishan get their happy ending for now like any good romantic suspense and cozy mystery. But not exempt from real world consequences. I want more of this pair, but it would be difficult to continue the series with more killers.
I will so be keeping an eye out for more of Donovan's work though.
There was this one particular moment I will never forgot. If it was seen through Valor's eyes, it'd be an easy sell as a romantic gesture and the gap between readers and allistic readers would have grown. BUT because it was in Bishan's POV, I was legit confused why Valor thought it'd be romantic! With Valor sputtering and trying to explain and talking about it, it really drove how how different and difficult navigating an allistic world is for autistics.
Brilliant code switching between the two perspectives. I think the Autistic aspect is authentic, but I'm an allistic so YMMV. I can confidently say it really helped me see his POV clearly, the differences, and raise my consciousness going forward.
Bishan's family is soooo cute!! They're supportive but not perfect. They remind me of Simon's family in Simon Vs. actually. I can totally see Valor & Bishan as an older English version of Simon & Blue too.
But I love Valor's found family a little more. That's the stuff I know and love seeing reflected in books. I can never get enough.
My fave though? Their cat, Staccato. He was not harmed during this series. Frogs were only mildly inconvenienced when thrown back over a fence where they below. (Fun article to explain how frogs fly) Birds, not so lucky. Sorry :/
The killer doesn't get a lot of spotlight in the end, and I get why. If this was a standard psychopath, I'd be okay. But the sweeping dismissiveness of "craziness" when there's clear treatable mental health issues and how they lash out with the blame...I am not okay with that. Bishan has trouble navigating an allistic world but it gets explored. The mental illness of the antagonist, not so much. Hence the ableism tag. If you're having a bad or sensitive mental health day, my fellow neurodivergents, wait a bit before finishing this one until you're looking up again.
$5.00 Amazon Giftcard, 1 copy of each book in the trilogy
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive content and a giveaway!
ICYMI: Last Saturday I had another diverse/non-homogenized cozy mystery, The Last Note, which follows a Cuban American twenty something woman in Miami.This review was originally posted on The Layaway Dragon
About Grasmere Cottage Mystery #1, dead in the garden
Check out book two, Dead in the Pond, and Dead in the Shop on Goodreads.
IMHO: grasmere cottage Mystery Series:
Content Warning: Murder, Attempted Murder, Stalking, Arson, Kidnapping, Ableism, Racism.
So, I was actually only supposed to review the first book, Dead in the Garden. Instead, I totally read all three back to back in quick succession. Great reading experience for me, harder to review as I think of all three books as one, like seeing the forest instead of the trees. Which leaves me to review the whole in general terms. I HIGHLY recommend reading this series and you're going to want the next one right away anyways.
Valor is a typical English lad, grew up privileged but was disowned for being gay and falling in love with an Autistic Asian Indian man, Bishan. He and Bishan met in at their boarding school, which comes with an old boys network that isn't the usual terrible scum.
They're life is pretty good until someone murders the former school bully, leaves the body in their garden, and frames Bishan. Not so good.
Valor and Bishan aren't the typical bungling amateurs. They work with the police. They listen and follow the detective's instructions. I love their partnership and cooperation with the detectives and the system. I'm not saying their perfect citizens or are necessarily happy about it, but they do it like most people actually would.
grasmere cottage mystery series isn't a weekend or two week romp on the wild side.
This series stays with the pair while they're trying to survive a murderous terror campaign. Because of the lengthened timeline, it does feel slower and longer than most cozies I've read, The stakes here are real. There's no one really off limits or acts out of bounds for this killer. It makes it more suspenseful than the typical cozy mystery. A particular murder or two was legit shocking and hurtful.
And in the end? Scars remain. Valor and Bishan get their happy ending for now like any good romantic suspense and cozy mystery. But not exempt from real world consequences. I want more of this pair, but it would be difficult to continue the series with more killers.
I will so be keeping an eye out for more of Donovan's work though.
bishan's perspective is perfection
There was this one particular moment I will never forgot. If it was seen through Valor's eyes, it'd be an easy sell as a romantic gesture and the gap between readers and allistic readers would have grown. BUT because it was in Bishan's POV, I was legit confused why Valor thought it'd be romantic! With Valor sputtering and trying to explain and talking about it, it really drove how how different and difficult navigating an allistic world is for autistics.
Brilliant code switching between the two perspectives. I think the Autistic aspect is authentic, but I'm an allistic so YMMV. I can confidently say it really helped me see his POV clearly, the differences, and raise my consciousness going forward.
Family Is Important
Bishan's family is soooo cute!! They're supportive but not perfect. They remind me of Simon's family in Simon Vs. actually. I can totally see Valor & Bishan as an older English version of Simon & Blue too.
But I love Valor's found family a little more. That's the stuff I know and love seeing reflected in books. I can never get enough.
My fave though? Their cat, Staccato. He was not harmed during this series. Frogs were only mildly inconvenienced when thrown back over a fence where they below. (Fun article to explain how frogs fly) Birds, not so lucky. Sorry :/
Killer Ableism
The killer doesn't get a lot of spotlight in the end, and I get why. If this was a standard psychopath, I'd be okay. But the sweeping dismissiveness of "craziness" when there's clear treatable mental health issues and how they lash out with the blame...I am not okay with that. Bishan has trouble navigating an allistic world but it gets explored. The mental illness of the antagonist, not so much. Hence the ableism tag. If you're having a bad or sensitive mental health day, my fellow neurodivergents, wait a bit before finishing this one until you're looking up again.
About the Author:
Giveaway:
$5.00 Amazon Giftcard, 1 copy of each book in the trilogy
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive content and a giveaway!
ICYMI: Last Saturday I had another diverse/non-homogenized cozy mystery, The Last Note, which follows a Cuban American twenty something woman in Miami.This review was originally posted on The Layaway Dragon
lolasreviews's review
3.0
When I saw this book and found out it was a cozy mystery with a gay couple as main characters I immediately knew I had to read this one. I am pretty sure this is the first cozy mystery I heard of with a gay couple and the story sounded pretty interesting too. I would categorize it more as a cozy mystery first and a romance second as the romance doesn't get as much focus due to certain events.
Dead in the Garden is a pretty unique cozy mystery. The set-up doesn't follow the common pattern of a cozy mystery and I kinda liked the different approach. I had read a few reviews before I started this one so I already knew the murder wouldn't be solved in book 1 and I think this helped adjust my expectations. The pacing of the mystery makes a lot more sense if you know there are two more books before things get resolved.
There isn't a clear pool of suspects that you get to know early in the book like with most cozy mystery. In fact the main suspects you only meet toward the end and even then you don't get to know that much about them and the motive isn't clear. But as the mystery isn't resolved yet I find it hard to say much more about it at this point. The progressing was different from most cozy mysteries, which I liked, but it did take some time before we got some suspects and it doesn't quite feel clear who is doing this and why.
It made sense how Valor got involved in the murder, but at times it didn't feel like they were progressing much or that he was doing much. The biggest clues and changes actually were because of what the murderer did. Part of the puzzles he had friends help solve, which was nice to see he had help, although the puzzle wasn't as interesting as it got basically solved off screen and you couldn't solve it yourself. There wasn't as much snooping or talking with people, but more research and thinking about who would be behind this and piecing some clues together.
I thought it was a bit weird how they arrest someone without much evidence and continue to keep him for 3 weeks, I think it was, while the evidence keeps building and it seems clear he isn't the culprit. It also was just sad how this affected all the parties involved. There were also parts where things seemed to move a bit slow and it didn't fully keep my attention at times. For the most part it was a fun read tough.
I am not sure if I like how the story is broken up into three parts, as now you can try out the first part for cheap, but at the same time the story doesn't feel quite complete. And I am not sure if I am curious enough to buy the other two parts.
I liked the romance. It's an already established romance, which works here. Valor and Bishan seemed like a great couple and I liked how much Valor cared about Bishan and also worked with his autism well. We don't get Bishan's point of view, but he seemed to care about Valor a lot too, even tough he doesn't quite articulate it in the same way other do. i thought his autism was handled well form what I can tell. It also was a nice touch how Bishan was Indian and there are some mentions of his close knit family. And it's actually Valor's family who don't like him being gay and now don't speak to him anymore. The focus isn't really on the romance tough, due to events in the book they aren't together as much, but even with them separated it was clear how much they cared about the other.
I liked Valor as a main character, although I would've liked to get a better feel of his personality. It was a bit hard to get a full idea of his personality. I did like how he had a bunch of people who helped him and supported him. There are a bunch of fun side characters, who come alive to varying degrees. I felt like some of the side characters could use a bit more depth as I had sometimes trouble remembering who as who at times.
To summarize: all in all this was a fun start to this cozy mystery series. I liked how it had a gay couple as I haven't seen many cozies with a gay couple before. The mystery and how it progresses doesn't fall in the traditional cozy mystery pattern, which I kinda liked for the most part. The story is split in 3 parts, do the mystery doesn't get resolved here. It also takes some time before we get some suspects, which we don't get to know too well and the motive is still unclear too. The story didn't fully grab me at times, but for the most part I had fun reading this one and I am curious how the mystery will progress. the romance was sweet and well done, but the couple is apart for most of the book, so there aren't as many scenes with them together. I did like them both and they seemed to care about each other. I would recommend this if you're looking for an unique cozy mystery.
Dead in the Garden is a pretty unique cozy mystery. The set-up doesn't follow the common pattern of a cozy mystery and I kinda liked the different approach. I had read a few reviews before I started this one so I already knew the murder wouldn't be solved in book 1 and I think this helped adjust my expectations. The pacing of the mystery makes a lot more sense if you know there are two more books before things get resolved.
There isn't a clear pool of suspects that you get to know early in the book like with most cozy mystery. In fact the main suspects you only meet toward the end and even then you don't get to know that much about them and the motive isn't clear. But as the mystery isn't resolved yet I find it hard to say much more about it at this point. The progressing was different from most cozy mysteries, which I liked, but it did take some time before we got some suspects and it doesn't quite feel clear who is doing this and why.
It made sense how Valor got involved in the murder, but at times it didn't feel like they were progressing much or that he was doing much. The biggest clues and changes actually were because of what the murderer did. Part of the puzzles he had friends help solve, which was nice to see he had help, although the puzzle wasn't as interesting as it got basically solved off screen and you couldn't solve it yourself. There wasn't as much snooping or talking with people, but more research and thinking about who would be behind this and piecing some clues together.
I thought it was a bit weird how they arrest someone without much evidence and continue to keep him for 3 weeks, I think it was, while the evidence keeps building and it seems clear he isn't the culprit. It also was just sad how this affected all the parties involved. There were also parts where things seemed to move a bit slow and it didn't fully keep my attention at times. For the most part it was a fun read tough.
I am not sure if I like how the story is broken up into three parts, as now you can try out the first part for cheap, but at the same time the story doesn't feel quite complete. And I am not sure if I am curious enough to buy the other two parts.
I liked the romance. It's an already established romance, which works here. Valor and Bishan seemed like a great couple and I liked how much Valor cared about Bishan and also worked with his autism well. We don't get Bishan's point of view, but he seemed to care about Valor a lot too, even tough he doesn't quite articulate it in the same way other do. i thought his autism was handled well form what I can tell. It also was a nice touch how Bishan was Indian and there are some mentions of his close knit family. And it's actually Valor's family who don't like him being gay and now don't speak to him anymore. The focus isn't really on the romance tough, due to events in the book they aren't together as much, but even with them separated it was clear how much they cared about the other.
I liked Valor as a main character, although I would've liked to get a better feel of his personality. It was a bit hard to get a full idea of his personality. I did like how he had a bunch of people who helped him and supported him. There are a bunch of fun side characters, who come alive to varying degrees. I felt like some of the side characters could use a bit more depth as I had sometimes trouble remembering who as who at times.
To summarize: all in all this was a fun start to this cozy mystery series. I liked how it had a gay couple as I haven't seen many cozies with a gay couple before. The mystery and how it progresses doesn't fall in the traditional cozy mystery pattern, which I kinda liked for the most part. The story is split in 3 parts, do the mystery doesn't get resolved here. It also takes some time before we get some suspects, which we don't get to know too well and the motive is still unclear too. The story didn't fully grab me at times, but for the most part I had fun reading this one and I am curious how the mystery will progress. the romance was sweet and well done, but the couple is apart for most of the book, so there aren't as many scenes with them together. I did like them both and they seemed to care about each other. I would recommend this if you're looking for an unique cozy mystery.
zombi's review
1.0
DNF @ 50% — other reviewers have noted almost everything that made me quit reading this, too, but man am I disappointed. I love a cozy mystery, and I love an MM romance, but this was not a good representation of either of those things. The clunky and repetitive insistence on mentioning Bishan’s autism certainly didn’t help, and he read more like a list of tumblr autistic traits than a real character. I’m going back to a historical romance after this to get the ‘taste out of my mouth’ so to speak.
mollymahli's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5