The Beatrice Stubbs Boxset One

DI Beatrice Stubbs #1-3

by J.J. Marsh

Three European crime novels featuring Beatrice Stubbs: detective inspector, bipolar sufferer, metaphor mixer and serial survivor.

Behind Closed Doors

“Did their conscience get to them? Or did someone else?”

An unethical banker suffocates. A diamond dealer slits his wrists. A media magnate freezes in the snow. A disgraced CEO inhales exhaust fumes. Four unpopular businessmen, four apparent suicides. Until Interpol find the same DNA at each death.

Beatrice Stubbs, on her first real case since ‘the incident’, arrives in Switzerland to lead the investigation. But there’s more to Zürich than chocolate and charm. Potential suspects are everywhere, her Swiss counterpart is hostile and the secretive world of international finance seems beyond the law. Battling impossible odds by day and her own demons at night, Beatrice has never felt so alone.

She isn’t. Someone’s watching. Someone else who believes in justice.
The poetic kind.


Raw Material

Bank Holiday weekend. Sunrise on a secluded Welsh beach and Beatrice Stubbs takes some innocent snaps. The scene contains more than just cliffs and seagulls, and someone wants those pictures destroyed. But Beatrice’s mind is on other things.

Assigned to the London Transport Police, she’s pursuing the Finsbury Park Flasher, trying to pre-empt a serious sexual offence. While Beatrice is distracted, neighbour Adrian and companion Matthew decide to play Poirot, and investigate the mystery of the disappearing photographs. Amateur detectives and professional criminals are a dangerous mix.

From deserted Pembrokeshire beaches, through the shadowy underpasses of North London, to the remote Irish countryside, Beatrice discovers the darker side of human nature.


Tread Softly

Disheartened by her recent performance, Beatrice Stubbs takes a sabbatical from the Metropolitan Police for a gourmet tour of Northern Spain. In Vitoria, she encounters a distant acquaintance. Beautiful, bloody-minded journalist Ana Herrero is onto a story.
Beatrice, scenting adventure, offers her expertise. The two women are sucked into a mystery of missing persons, violent threats, mutilated bodies and industrial-scale fraud. They are out of their depth. With no official authority and unsure who to trust, they find themselves up to their necks in corruption, blackmail and Rioja.
Beatrice calls for the cavalry. The boys are back, and this time, it’s a matter of taste.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime

675 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 19, 2013

About the author

As a child, Jill read so obsessively she got kicked out of the school library. But her passion for words continued. She graduated in English Literature and Theatre Studies from the University of Wales and set up a theatre company. Since then, as an actor, director, teacher, writer and journalist, she’s worked in fifteen countries. She learnt something from each one.
Now, with her husband and three dogs, Jill lives in Switzerland, a country with four languages and mountains of new words.
She works as a language trainer all over Europe, collaborates with Nuance Words and Triskele Books, and contributes regularly to Words with JAM magazine. But most of the time, she writes. And reads.

Behind Closed Doors is the first Beatrice Stubbs novel, a European crime series set in compelling locations all over the Continent.

Reviews

[Liza Perrat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 1. Behind Closed Doors.
A brilliantly-crafted crime story in which, via the expert hand of JJ Marsh, we move through one high-profile murder after another. The plot is intricate, inspired and the conclusion daunting. I identified and sympathised with the detective, Beatrice Stubbs who, with her flaws, strengths and determination to track down this elusive killer, is a refreshing change from the usual tired-out, detective hack of so many crime novels. If you enjoy high-quality crime novels, you will be as gripped as I was, and I’ll be diving straight into the next Beatrice Stubbs story.
Book 2. Raw Material
As in Behind Closed Doors, JJ Marsh had me hooked right from the beginning of Raw Material.
The story opens with Detective Beatrice Stubbs and her partner, Matthew, taking photographs on a beach holiday in Wales. When their cottage is burgled and Beatrice's camera is stolen, it is evident this is no meaningless petty theft. However, when she returns to London, Beatrice must turn her attentions to the sinister Finsbury Park Flasher, who is becoming more dangerous as each day passes.
Reading about Detective Beatrice Stubbs once again felt like meeting up with an old friend; we know her strengths, her weaknesses, her foibles. We empathize with her as we accompany her in the battles of her personal and professional life. Amateur detective Adrian also shines again, he and Matthew becoming entangled in a bleak and horrific crime.
I would highly recommend Raw Material to readers who enjoy excellently-written, intelligent crime novels with fast-paced, original plots. I’m impatient to start the next in the Beatrice Stubbs series!
Book 3. Tread Softly
After Behind Closed Doors and Raw Material, JJ Marsh has again excelled in the international crime field with Tread Softly, the third in the Beatrice Stubbs series, and final in this boxset.
On leave from the Metropolitan Police, Beatrice Stubbs is taking a gourmet trip in Northern Spain. In Vitoria, she meets the beautiful and determined journalist, Ana Herrero, and, unable to ignore a missing person’s case, she finds herself in the midst of violent threats, corpses, blackmail and Rioja. As her partner, Matthew, tells Beatrice: “You don’t attract trouble, you go looking for it.”
Apart from the fast-paced, suspenseful and brilliant plot, the author also hooked me with her wonderful evocation of the sights, tastes and smells of the Basque Country.
Another excellent novel from JJ Marsh, which I would highly recommend to lovers of intelligent crime.

[Lis Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beatrice Stubbs is a detective inspector with the Metropolitan Police, middle aged, graying, suffering from bipolar disorder--and her career somewhat stalled since a suicide attempt a year or so ago. In the first of these first three books of the series, her superior officer, Hamilton, has arranged for her to lead an international team in Zurich. The team will be investigating what look superficially like a series of unconnected suicides by prominent businessmen with shady reputations. Yet there seems to be a theme; the men have all died in ways that look like poetic justice for their particular vile actions. And when the team looks at the DNA evidence from each of these deaths, happening on average a year apart over nearly a decade, the only DNA not belonging to the dead men is the same at each scene--an unknown man who is otherwise not in evidence at all.

After the end of that assignment, she's back in the UK, on holiday with her longtime partner, Prof. Matthew Bailey, when they take some pictures on a beach in Wales. When Beatrice's bag, Matthew's camera, and subsequently Beatrice's work laptop are stolen, neither the Welsh nor the Met police believe this is anything other than coincidental, opportunistic theft, and would Beatrice please just concentrate on the case she's been assigned to with the London Transport Police, finding the Finsbury Park Flasher? The Flasher seems to be building toward more and more serious offenses, and he needs to be caught before someone is seriously hurt or potentially killed.

When that case comes to a successful but traumatic end, Beatrice takes a sabbatical to consider whether she's still cut out for being a police detective, and takes a nice, relaxing vacation in Spain, where a friend of a friend, now an investigative journalist, lures her into a case involving fraudulent wine sales, and two dead bodies so far. I think the term "busman's holiday" has fallen out of use, but if it hadn't, it would certainly apply in this case.

Very little fiction that isn't specifically about mental illness deals with it at all seriously. These books do. The characters are also interesting, diverse, and fascinating to get to know. Hamilton is cranky, demanding, unreasonable, and has no idea how to respond to Beatrice's bipolar disorder, yet does show continuing if not always transparently obvious confidence in her value and abilities as a senior detective. Matthew and Beatrice have a relationship that is solid, satisfying, and durable, without marriage or even living under the same roof--an arrangement that suits them both. Beatrice's other colleagues and friends are interesting mix, and she learns from all of them as they learn from her.

It's a very engrossing, satisfying mystery series. Recommended.

I bought this audiobook.

[Patti Miinch · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to enjoy these books; I hoped when starting the first one, that I’d found a new series that I could begin following. Sadly, that wasn’t the case.

There were several issues that kept these books from being outstanding, or even better than average. The first and most important was the fact that the title character is simply not believable. Stubbs is an experienced detective with Interpol, but she doesn’t act like one most of the time. Her lack of confidence in her skills is well-deserved, as she makes obvious rookie errors. These can’t be explained away by her recent emotional breakdown, either (more on that in a minute). She retires because of her errors, but even her resignation is a knee-jerk reaction not expected by a supposedly top-notch investigator.

Her emotional issues take up far too much of the storyline. Between the repetition of material, the tedious discussions of her feelings and doubts, etc, I found myself wanting her and her counselor and her boyfriend of 20 years to buck up and move on.

Implausible plot points are also problematic.

All in all, I’m sorry I purchased this boxed set and sorry I kept reading after book 1. I kept hoping they’d get better, but they just didn’t.

[Jessica Bell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 1:
What a breath of fresh air. JJ Marsh brilliantly weaves the genres of crime/thriller and literary fiction with a unique flair. Perfect balance of suspense, and seamless beautiful prose. I loved all the characters, even the ones I wan't supposed to. So glad I bought the box set. Moving straight onto book two, "Raw Material".

Book 2:
Fabulous sequel to Behind Closed Doors. A little less punchy in pace than the first book, but still equally as brilliant in style. One thing I just noticed in this book (which was probably done in the first book too, but I was too stupid to not pick it up) was that Beatrice always gets her idioms wrong, for example, "mutton dressed as ham" instead of "mutton dressed as lamb." Such a fabulous quirk for someone who is clearly very intelligent and switched on. Loved it.

I was going to read a book by another author before diving into book 3, Tread Softly, but I don't think I can help myself. Especially after the unexpected ending!

Book 3:
Fabulous addition to the series. There's a lot more action in this one which was a very nice contrast to the slightly slower-pace of the previous book. What a fabulous series, honestly, I could keep reading about Beatrice Stubbs forever. Thankfully there is a book 4 on the way, and it's set in Athens, Greece, where I live. VERY excited about that one!

[Heatherinblack · Rating 4 out of 5]

brilliant mystery

it seems too fast. perhaps i was just so taken with the story i didn’t notice? tons to learn about each character, but then, suddenly they solve an insanely complicated murder. something about pacing for me. brilliant mystery really.

[Raymonde Vautour · Rating 4 out of 5]

Want more!

Loved these books. Amazing writing. Couldn’t put it down and didn’t want the stories to end. Can’t wait to read more Beatrice Stubbs book. Keep them coming.

[Dawn Gill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Behind Closed Doors #1
I discovered Beatrice Stubbs, accidentally as part of a collection, which meant I started by reading #2 in the series.
I enjoyed that so much I bought this box set and fed my completest compulsion by reading Behind Closed Doors, re-reading Raw Material. It’s stood up unusually well to what’s been a relatively recent re-read. I’ve now completed #3 Tread Softly.
My favourite thriller / procedural novel type has a strong female lead. One that is convincingly human and real, who isn’t the classic maverick detective, but works as a cog in a team, supporting her colleagues, just like in real life. Oh, and she needs to have some flaws. I need them to be written honestly, with interactions, opinions and emotions that echo people I know. As a bonus I’d like to find them entertaining enough to spend time with in person (it’s fiction; I can pretend she’d want to spend time with me). I don't think this is too demanding of me (!) but I do struggle to find novels that tick all those boxes
Beatrice has all this in spades. So, JJ Marsh can create the perfect (in her imperfections) character, but can she write plot? Or create a sense of place? Or suspense? Yes. This she can do, excellently. Beatrice’s partner works and lives in Devon. Rather close to me as it happens. I can vouch for the sense of place. Plot? Suspense? Well. The first novel has a serial killer that would appear to be acting as an assassin, and doing so with a sense of morality. Despite the majority of the killings having happened already, there is another in the planning. Spoiler alert – I wasn’t sure who the target was going to be and I stayed up later than I should have at night, and neglected my jobs in the morning to try and squeeze precious moments of extra reading in. Always a good sign.
That was the case for all three of the novels
Raw Material #2 is another really well written police procedural/whodunnit/thriller. All the characters are convincing and well rounded. Two lines of enquiry, both properly gripping. I wanted to stop everything else to keep reading. Particularly joyful to have a novel filled with strong and realistic women
Tread Softly #3 again was a novel that I couldn’t put down. It picks up where Raw Material ended, and we have even more insight in to Beatrice’s mind, which, I feel is really insightfully written. It’s rare to have a lead who’s bipolar and the thought patterns and coping processes are written with understanding and knowledge. This has been done incredibly convincingly and demonstrates, that mental illness is a condition that one can live with, successfully provided one pays proper attention – in the same way that, for example, diabetes is a condition that people live with, successfully and daily. Neither should be, nor needs to be a barrier to a successful career. This is demonstrated in an extremely effective and subtle way throughout all these 3 novels. JJ Marsh should be incredibly proud of having achieved this.
The plot in this novel has another woman pairing up with Beatrice (this happens all the time in reality – why’s it so rare in literature?!) who is everything a young woman would aspire to be. Again I didn’t want to put the book down as I was terribly worried for Ana at a couple of points, with one of them being really well drawn out.
I’m posting this review and then I’m downloading the next box set. All my jobs will have to wait!
In case you are interested -
I give 5 stars to books I want to reread and often buy as gifts after reading AND want to buy the whole of the author's back catalogue, 4 to ones I immediately want to buy the entire back history and 3 to books I enjoy but don't quite meet those criteria. If something doesn't at least meet a 3 star, then I won't review it - I don't have the skill or the talent to write so who am I to criticise someone who does

[Dorothy Minor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Behind Closed Doors by J.J. Marsh is the first in a trilogy starring Scotland Yard’s Beatrice Stubbs. However, Beatrice is on loan to Interpol in Zurich with a team of detectives searching for a serial killer. Four well-known, influential, unscrupulous men have died in suspicious circumstances. The first death of an immoral banker is thought to be suicide until the second corporate mogul turns up dead and the same male DNA is present at his so-called suicide.
A team of detectives then works to discover the killer, but not before two more deaths. Beatrice heads up the team despite being in Zurich, Inspector Kalin’s territory. The team members are unknown to one another, yet they must forge a bond and work together to stop the murders. HOW? The team consists of experts with strong track records in finding criminals.
What is the link between these dead men? They are all wealthy and influential. They have made their money legally, but unethically. They are ruthless and stop at nothing to increase their own wealth. Is that why they are being targeted? Another connection is that though the men are married, they are always last seen with a beautiful woman.
The woman does not always appear to be the same woman since her hair color changes, but that could be the result of disguises. And why the male DNA, not the victim’s, on one glass and a second glass washed and thoroughly cleaned?
Beatrice’s team slowly makes connections and traces each man’s path back to a common denominator. When Beatrice ends up at a drag queen show, she develops a breakthrough idea that leads to the killers and the reasons for the murders.
Unfortunately, Beatrice’s brilliance also leads her into the danger of being the serial killer’s next victim, a departure from the male CEO deaths. Obviously, the killer wishes to stop Beatrice from the pursuit.
Behind Closed Doors is fast-paced. Like so many other famous detectives, Beatrice has her own demons. In her case, the demon is not alcohol, but her own depression. In fact, when she goes to Zurich to head up the team, she is only recently back on duty from a suicide attempt because of her depression.
Libris Reviews describes the pleasure of reading Behind Closed Doors: “Behind Closed Doors crackles with human interest, intrigue and atmosphere. Beatrice and her team go all out to see justice is done. And author JJ Marsh does more than justice to the intelligent heroine who leads this exciting and absorbing chase.”
J.J. Marsh has lived in Wales, Africa, and the Middle East, but she now calls Zurich her home. She is a founding member of Triskele Books Collective. She is a reviewer for Bookmuse, the readers’ site with a difference: http://www.bookmuse.co.uk/.
Connect with J.J. Marsh and her detective Beatrice Stubbs on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Beatrice-Stu...

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed my ‘boxed set’ of 3 titles by JJ Marsh. The ‘set’ consisted of the first 3 books in Ms. Marsh’s Beatrice Stubbs mystery series: BEHIND CLOSED DOORS - RAW MATERIAL - TREAD SOFTLY.
The lead characters were very flawed; very likable; very detailed. Beatrice - bipolar with hints of a prior suicide attempt, Detective Inspector for the Metropolitan Police; her husband Matthew and neighbor Adrian.
The plots were edgy, suspenseful and detailed; very character-driven.
The ‘sense of place’ (which first attracted me to the series) was extremely well-done. I really felt a part of the locations.
BEHIND CLOSED DOORS took place mainly in Zurich, Switzerland. I liked the back and forth of the murder scenes and the current investigations. It helped set the tone and especially the personalities of the victims. I quite liked the development of the team’s characters and Herr Karl Kalin.
RAW MATERIAL was set in UK locations. A seemingly innocent set of photographs from a beach holiday turn into the basis for a major investigation. Adrian and Matthew ‘help out’ on the case.
TREAD SOFTLY was my favorite title mainly because of its northern Spain location. The descriptions - of foods, wines, vineyards, wineries, Spanish cities and towns, people - were superb. The plot was very well-paced which I liked.
I liked these mysteries so much that I ordered the next 3 titles in the Beatrice Stubbs series.
**I do want to note that I didn’t order the ‘boxed set’ - I ordered 3 individual books. The digital ‘set’ titles were awkward to read. There was no access to each title’s table of contents. I like to move around in a book and often reread passages or confirm details. While I could bookmark, I couldn’t maneuver well in the books. This is nothing to do with the writing, but a glitch or problem with the format.

[Gloria Stephenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read. Agatha Christy type of mystery holds you till the end. The people, and how their lives touch each other is what and detailed. The area of each story is covered in detail. You see the faces of good and evil. I'll be reading move of the Inspector Detective Stubbs mysteries. I hate leaving reviews when you have a quota on words. I'm no longer in school and don't need to meet a dumb qupta.

It’s fair to say that I don’t have a high opinion of any politician.

While I worked in State and County government my Dad worked in Federal government and all three work a lot the same.

Basically the civil servants run things and the politicians and their appointees take credit for it.

One of the biggest complaints about government is that there is a lack of long term stability and you can’t rely on policies and legislation long term because things change every 2-4-6 years. The moderating buffer are the civil servants.

There was already a rapid brain drain and loss of institutional knowledge at the Federal level since the current crop of politicians and their appointees arrived 2 years ago. The shut down is accelerating that. People who know what is happening and basically are in charge of our short term and long term welfare aren’t there. There are no figures yet, but the more competent and knowledgeable civil servants leave government, the higher the chance of some massive catastrophe caused by some unintended consequence of some action of the stupid people replacing them.

The advantage if you are a talented, smart, educated young person is you will have opportunities in spades in government service during the coming years. The disadvantage is the institutional knowledge will be long gone and you will be on your own to figure things out.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beatrice Stubbs is a bipolar Scotland Yard detective inspector. The box set contains Behind Closed Doors, Raw Material, and Tread Softly.

Behind Closed Doors - Beatrice is seconded to Switzerland to lead a task force to study the suicides of several wealthy men. Since the same DNA was found at each scene, there is some doubt as to whether they were really suicides, or murder.

Raw Material - There is a flasher in London who is escalating rapidly. Beatrice is working on this, but is also interested in a case she and Matthew ran into in Wales - an apparent illegal transfer of - something - on a Welsh beach. She is trying to do both at once, and Adrian and Matthew decide to help her and get in well over their heads.

Tread Softly - Beatrice is on a sabbatical in Spain, trying to decide if it is time for her to retire. She runs into a young woman, Ana who once stayed with her as an exchange student, who asks for her help in finding out what happened to Ana's missing friend. Their investigation leads them to a famous Spanish winery, and once again Matthew and Adrian come to help. This time, EVERYONE gets in well over their heads.

These were very interesting stories, and held my interest all the way through all three. However, after three in a row, Beatrice and her friends were beginning to get a bit annoying. Beatrice's bipolar condition leads her to have frequent depressions and very negative feelings, although she is working with a psychiatrist (or psychologist?) to help her through them. Adrian is all hot to play detective, and gets himself and Matthew into trouble more often than not, although with the best of intentions. A lot of discussion about food and wine, particularly in Tread Softly - it made me hungry to read about it!

[Carôle Ceres · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first story was really good. But I couldn’t get into the second and can’t summon up the enthusiasm to read the third.

Unfortunately I can’t do too much detail and this author goes into details about practically everything. I’d rather not go into detail about someone sleeping and snoring.., it felt like such a come down from the first novel, which wasn’t fast paced as it was, but it wasn’t bogged down with unnecessary detail…

Maybe next year, I’ll revisit it, but there are so many other box sets out there…

I listened to the audiobook version of this title and the narrator was very good.

[Peter Devine · Rating 5 out of 5]

A new author to me and quietly surprised . The first book set in Switzerland was a bit daunting to begin with but once you are used to the names and places it was a treat to read. The second book set in Wales was brilliant and I decided I must visit Cardiff soon. The third book set in northern Spain was definitely my favourite as I love Spanish wine and cuisine which to me is the best in Europe. It was also great to see the lgbt community represented, as you don't see this in many crime novels. I could easily fall in love with Adrian! Sound's like a travelogue but each crime story was superb 👌

[Nadine Wiseman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant!

Three breathtaking mysteries, scintillating characters, unusual locations, dry humour and fiendish plots. Bipolar Beatrice is one of the most unusual fictional detectives I've encountered and her mangling of phrases and similes is glorious - "Worth his weight in coal," "Lepers don't change their spots," etc. Always fighting for control of her raw emotions, and supremely hard on herself, Beatrice is nevertheless a focused, perceptive and brilliant detective. Highly recommended.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Got this boxed set from Amazon because they were relatively cheap ($1.99 as Kindle book). Not a bad read, good stories but felt they weren't written as well as I would have liked. Beatrice herself is somewhat flawed as a heroine but she overcomes to win the day. These are VERY British books and took some getting used to before I got the hang of the way the characters speak to one another.

Liked it will enough to read the second boxed set.

[Jane Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK series of three of this authors books.

These are the first books I have read by this author. The characters are well developed but the plot develops slowly. The mental health issues of the main character do not add to the story at all in my opinion. I may read the remaining books but only if I can find in a library. I was expecting more.

[Mary Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great to find a great new series

As an avid reader, I am constantly searching for the next great read. Search no farther! JJ Marsh has created a protagonist worthy of praise. The Beatrice Stubbs series is well-developed, fast paced, and intricately woven. You will not be disappointed.

[Martha Bellew-smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read all of the books from Black Dogs, Yellow Butterflies through Snow Angel. I absolutely love the Beatrice Stubbs series. I am addicted! I am looking for other books that can even come close to flawed Beatrice and her tribe. I need something to tide me over until the next one comes out in June.

[Wambura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I needed to escape the horrors in my head and know that there'd be some resolution. Since I couldn't imagine escaping with anything involving American law enforcement, I turned to British detective fiction instead. Pretty farfetched plots and some odd characterizations, but I still enjoyed following Beatrice Stubbs' journey, both detective and mental health aspects.

[C A · Rating 1 out of 5]

No recommendation here

What an awful mystery series! The protagonist is a prickly, moody, stubborn, judgmental, condescending bore. We are told in book 2 that she is bipolar but that is not an excuse for her irritating self-centeredness. I skipped the third book in my boxed set series and will not be returning to any more Beatrice Stubbs.

[Sandra Hooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

A strange mixture of good and bad. The good is Beatrice and the insight we get into her daily battles to stay grounded and functioning. The bad is the stereotyping of characters particularly Adrian, Matthew and Hamilton not good at all. Plots are reasonably but not particularly inventive. However I did spend a reasonably enjoyable time reading this box set which is reflected in my rating.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

These books are ok.

Beatice Stubbs series is a decent police procedural. I'm really not found of the characters personalities. I may or may not continue reading the other bosses. Beatrice is kind of stuffy, easily annoyed and terrible insecure to do the job she does. She is a fine police detective and smart but blunders blindly through her investigations some times.

[Hanna]

Should've paid attention to the Amazon notice telling me I'd apparently borrowed the book 3 years ago without ever reading it.
Been struggling through the first one for the past few days and just couldnt warm up to either characters or the story.
So much of it seemed not plausible.
I dunno, I guess it's simply not for me

[Mary Munroe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the novels primarily because Beatrice is such an engaging character. The mysteries are not hard to solve, but they are not obvious. My chief complaint is that Matthew is such a wet noodle. However, in the end he usually comes through. Generally a satisfying read.

[Mrs Susan J Bociek · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can't keep a good Detective down

Box Set number one: gets 5 stars. The stories are all wildly different, well written with a vein of humour bubbling through. Beatrice is a character that I would love to meet up with, though I fear it would end with a hangover!

[Sara Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marvelous

Read 3 back ro back. Fascinating. Great development of characters. Interesting takes on food, wine and life period. Just bought next 3 and gonna skip dinner and start reading.

[Mary Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thoroughly enjoyable read. Loved all three books in the 3 book set. Loved the European settings and look forward to more adventures with Beatrice Stubbs. Each of the three books had unique plot lines that held my interest throughout
.

[Diana Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Read !

I enjoyed the light and fast paced read of this first Beatrice Stubbs police novel set.Quirky and full of twists and turns, it holds your full attention.

A great vacation or rehabilitation break. I look forward to more.

[Philip R Feltham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great series!

I am now hooked on Beatrice Stubbs and fully intend to binge read the rest of this series. I have already. Recommended it to my friends. Everyone who loves British mysteries and police procedure should read these books!

[Tim Hicks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three good stories, all a tad slow to start but building in complexity to a well-worked-out finish. Maybe a tad too much of Stubbs's mental issues and tea-coffee-drinks-meals. Good range of characters.