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Shamrock Detective Agency #1
Death On A Tiny Scale
An unexpected inheritance, a failing private detective agency, and a seemingly impossible crime...
Inheriting a private detective agency in a different country and from a complete stranger was absolutely not on Monday’s to-do list for London office worker Toby Solano.
He soon finds himself stumbling through an unfamiliar world of peculiar crimes, unfeasibly long Dutch words, and troublesome questions about his benefactor. Toby travels to the historic city of The Hague to close the failing business and avoid financial ruin. But his plan is abruptly derailed when he is forced to investigate a suspicious death at a miniature village tourist attraction.
In desperation, Toby enlists the local expertise and sharp wit of the singularly blunt Meredith Wright. It’s a race against time to solve the mystery, close the agency and avoid adopting an insistent stray cat.
Set in The Hague, Amsterdam and London, Death On A Tiny Scale mixes a fiendishly twisty crime with comical observations of cross-cultural confusion. Not least, the problem of finding a decent cup of tea when you’re not at home…
The first book in The Shamrock Detective Agency series.
Inheriting a private detective agency in a different country and from a complete stranger was absolutely not on Monday’s to-do list for London office worker Toby Solano.
He soon finds himself stumbling through an unfamiliar world of peculiar crimes, unfeasibly long Dutch words, and troublesome questions about his benefactor. Toby travels to the historic city of The Hague to close the failing business and avoid financial ruin. But his plan is abruptly derailed when he is forced to investigate a suspicious death at a miniature village tourist attraction.
In desperation, Toby enlists the local expertise and sharp wit of the singularly blunt Meredith Wright. It’s a race against time to solve the mystery, close the agency and avoid adopting an insistent stray cat.
Set in The Hague, Amsterdam and London, Death On A Tiny Scale mixes a fiendishly twisty crime with comical observations of cross-cultural confusion. Not least, the problem of finding a decent cup of tea when you’re not at home…
The first book in The Shamrock Detective Agency series.
416 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 30, 2024
75 people are currently reading
269 people want to read
About the author
Julie Broussely
1 book7 followersJulie Broussely writes mystery stories she hopes will make you laugh and test your wits, and quite possibly inspire vague notions of wanting to visit watery, bicycle-obsessed European cities. She lives in the sunny Netherlands where it definitely doesn’t rain quite all the time, rather like her native England, although there are a lot more windmills and cycling is virtually mandatory.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
August 21, 2025
A murder mystery that takes place in Madurodam in The Netherlands. That's genius! 🤭
Death on a Tiny Scale by Julie Broussely is about Toby who lives in the UK, ends up saving a man and then inherits a Private Detective Agency in The Hague. Wild right?! 🤭 It's just the beginning of an adventure where Toby meets a lot of fun characters and tries to unravel some mysteries while trying to run an agency. 😱
This is such a cozy and fun read. I loved all the different people that Toby comes across. And of course I adored Shamrock the cat! 🥰 Also, it's nice when a story takes place in your own country so I got all the references which were very funny! The first few chapters had me hooked. There were lots of things going on and I really wanted to figure out why certain things happened. Then the book became a little slow paced in my opinion.. (There wasn't happening a lot that helped the plot and it all became a little wordly 🫣) Up until the ending where the mysteries went to unfold and I wanted to keep reading! 🫶🏼
So the resolution was crazy. There were several twists I didn't see coming. I was a bit disappointed in the person whodunnit but I did not guess who it was so that's a plus! 👏🏼 This was just the first part of this series and the ending definitely kept me hanging because the mystery I was most interested in is not solved yet!!! I think I need to read part two for knowing what happened there.. 🤭
Death on a Tiny Scale by Julie Broussely is about Toby who lives in the UK, ends up saving a man and then inherits a Private Detective Agency in The Hague. Wild right?! 🤭 It's just the beginning of an adventure where Toby meets a lot of fun characters and tries to unravel some mysteries while trying to run an agency. 😱
This is such a cozy and fun read. I loved all the different people that Toby comes across. And of course I adored Shamrock the cat! 🥰 Also, it's nice when a story takes place in your own country so I got all the references which were very funny! The first few chapters had me hooked. There were lots of things going on and I really wanted to figure out why certain things happened. Then the book became a little slow paced in my opinion.. (There wasn't happening a lot that helped the plot and it all became a little wordly 🫣) Up until the ending where the mysteries went to unfold and I wanted to keep reading! 🫶🏼
So the resolution was crazy. There were several twists I didn't see coming. I was a bit disappointed in the person whodunnit but I did not guess who it was so that's a plus! 👏🏼 This was just the first part of this series and the ending definitely kept me hanging because the mystery I was most interested in is not solved yet!!! I think I need to read part two for knowing what happened there.. 🤭
October 23, 2024
Absolutely delightful! I really enjoyed DoaTS. This book had me laughing out loud at many points, as well as doing mental gymnastics to try and pull clues together in my brain. The little details were perfection, which is quite important in a murder mystery. I loved the characters, especially Toby and Meredith. Toby’s experience of moving from London to The Hague was so accurate and all the things he noticed about Dutch living were so relatable.
I also enjoyed Toby’s general bumbling through life and then suddenly finding himself in a completely unprecedented situation. The way his friends, colleagues, and even family continuously misunderstood him was both hilarious and infuriating, and contrasted beautifully with the people he met in his new situation accepting him immediately.
Broussely kept me hooked, weaving all the threads of the mystery until a final tug brings you to a satisfying conclusion. I’m already looking forward to the next in the series!
I highly recommend this cosy mystery. Perfect with a cup of tea and an armchair.
I was provided with an ARC for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
I also enjoyed Toby’s general bumbling through life and then suddenly finding himself in a completely unprecedented situation. The way his friends, colleagues, and even family continuously misunderstood him was both hilarious and infuriating, and contrasted beautifully with the people he met in his new situation accepting him immediately.
Broussely kept me hooked, weaving all the threads of the mystery until a final tug brings you to a satisfying conclusion. I’m already looking forward to the next in the series!
I highly recommend this cosy mystery. Perfect with a cup of tea and an armchair.
I was provided with an ARC for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
July 12, 2025
Tedious and unfunny, with a colourless and pathetic protagonist. If your main character is a drab pillock (think Arthur Dent), he needs to be constantly surrounded by comics, eccentrics and charismatics.
June 6, 2025
eigenlijk 2,5 ster
luchtig niemendalletje, wel met plezier gelezen vanwege leuke personages, maar het verhaaltje (de plot) wel héél erg dun, en het einde zo'n beetje cliffhangerig naar deel 2 ... ga ik niet lezen denk ik zo
luchtig niemendalletje, wel met plezier gelezen vanwege leuke personages, maar het verhaaltje (de plot) wel héél erg dun, en het einde zo'n beetje cliffhangerig naar deel 2 ... ga ik niet lezen denk ik zo
November 9, 2024
Julie’s writing style is very different than what I am used to read and I love it!! We do go deep into the investigation, willing to discover it all.
The characters are adorable and very endearing and the plot is irresistible!
The characters are adorable and very endearing and the plot is irresistible!
August 20, 2025
Gift From the Dead?
The characters make this wacky cozy. When Londener Toby mysteriously inherits a detective agency based in the Hague, the fun begins. Intending to close down the agency ASAP, he hires temp worker Meridith. They quickly discard old files but find several active cases. One is the mysterious death of Fritz Plumhoffer. The police have declared the death accidental, but his wife refuses to accept the verdict and has hired the agency to investigate . Toby and Meridith suddenly find themselves detectives. Thus, the fun begins. The totally inexperienced duo is on the case. The characters, including the cat, are spot on, and the setting is as well. I look forward to the next in the series.
The characters make this wacky cozy. When Londener Toby mysteriously inherits a detective agency based in the Hague, the fun begins. Intending to close down the agency ASAP, he hires temp worker Meridith. They quickly discard old files but find several active cases. One is the mysterious death of Fritz Plumhoffer. The police have declared the death accidental, but his wife refuses to accept the verdict and has hired the agency to investigate . Toby and Meridith suddenly find themselves detectives. Thus, the fun begins. The totally inexperienced duo is on the case. The characters, including the cat, are spot on, and the setting is as well. I look forward to the next in the series.
August 13, 2025
A fun first novel
An engaging
mystery with likeable characters and plenty of humor. Also a cat. Looking forward to continuing the series soon.
An engaging
mystery with likeable characters and plenty of humor. Also a cat. Looking forward to continuing the series soon.
February 21, 2025
For my full review click on the link below:
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
January 26, 2025
Such an entertaining read. I didn’t want to put it down but my eyes kept closing and it was 2am..so excited to hear there will be a new book in the se.
May 13, 2025
When wildfires are raging, it’s nice to have a book that takes your mind to a far away place.
March 24, 2025
I really enjoyed this first book in a series and waiting for more from this author.
September 6, 2025
Voor een Englishman in Den Haag (uitgesproken als Haargh) is Londenaar Toby met zijn Nederlandse hulp Meredith een aanwinst in de serie gezellige misdaadverhalen. Veel humor, en met een moord mysterie in Madurodam en een Russische matroesjka, waarvan de buitenste in elkaar passende pop verdwenen is komen er veel bijzondere verhalen bij elkaar. En op de eerste pagina moest ik al lachen: 'I'd point out that in the Netherlands it's entirely sensible to say verantwoordelijkheidsgevoel. Phew. Good thing that I'm not going to mention that, eh?' En met een eigenwijze kat Shamrock die af en toe ook zijn eigen teksten heeft is dit boek een leuke variant in het genre.
September 9, 2025
fun read
I have had this book for some time and finally got to reading it. Most enjoyable! Toby, Meredith, Sydney and the ancillary characters are all interesting. Toby inherits a private detective agency in the Netherlands under mysterious circumstances and eventually with much fumbling and help from Meredith and Syd they solve their first case. The groundwork has been laid for some really interesting stories - and I can’t wait to solve the mystery of who Toby’s benefactor is. Excellent work
I have had this book for some time and finally got to reading it. Most enjoyable! Toby, Meredith, Sydney and the ancillary characters are all interesting. Toby inherits a private detective agency in the Netherlands under mysterious circumstances and eventually with much fumbling and help from Meredith and Syd they solve their first case. The groundwork has been laid for some really interesting stories - and I can’t wait to solve the mystery of who Toby’s benefactor is. Excellent work
September 21, 2025
Eigenlijk een 3,5* Uitstekende vertelling, leuke invalshoek, maar zo nu en dan wat onbeholpen. Het boek kan zomaar 50 of 100 pagina's korter.
Niettemin een prima debuut. Beloftevolle cliffhanger bovendien.
Niettemin een prima debuut. Beloftevolle cliffhanger bovendien.
March 19, 2025
This was a new author to me, and at first I had trouble following the story, but once I got used to the style of writing I was fine. Toby has a boring job in an office, but one morning he saves a man from being run over. Also that day his mobile phone is stolen, then returned to him through his letterbox with a new contact added. He then somehow inherits a private detective firm from someone he’s never heard of and goes to Holland to close it down.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews