The Eskdale Episode: The intriguing English cozy crime series

by Rebecca Tope

'As Rebecca Tope tells it, every rural idyll is blighted by underlying menace. Such is her writing skill, I'm inclined to believe her' Daily Mail

With the approach of autumn, a heavily pregnant Simmy Brown is anticipating the imminent arrival of her new child and juggling the move of her florist business to Keswick. A bouquet order to be delivered to the beautiful but remote Eskdale is an awkward addition to Simmy's to-do list. There she encounters three generations of women - and the next day, one of them is brutally murdered.

Drawn into the mystery, Simmy and her friends soon find themselves navigating eccentric artists and fractured families. As her new assistant Evie proves unexpectedly determined to try her hand at sleuthing, and tangled motives begin to surface, Simmy realises the truth is darker than anyone imagined - and closer. And time is running out, in more ways than one.

'A Rebecca Tope novel, be it one of her Lake District, Cotswold or West Country Mysteries is a guarantee of a complex, page turning plot that will keep the reader guessing until the last page. A thoroughly enjoyable read which I heartily recommend.' Mystery People

Genres: Mystery

281 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 22, 2026

About the author

Rebecca Tope is best known as the author of over twenty crime novels. She has also recently produced the e-book entitled 'The Indifference of Tumbleweed'. She has every intention of continuing with the murder stories, as well as a variety of other kinds of fiction.

She has experienced many different kinds of work in her time - running antenatal classes, counselling troubled couples and being an office girl for an undertaker, for example. There were also several years monitoring the output of dairy cows, as well as every sort of task associated with book publishing. In 1992, she founded Praxis Books, a small British press.

She lives surrounded by trees she has planted herself, tending her own sheep.

Reviews

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed this one . A nice cosy crime mystery.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Addictive. I have raced through this series. there were highs and lows. But yet again, our Simmy and her cast of support kept me engaged. The book is short. The murder is early on. Then a complicated mixture of visits to Eskdale, suspects calling to the Keswick flower shop all interspersed with Simmy imminent delivery of her baby. It was gentle and yet engaging. The book is less about the crime and always more about the people and the places. Living in Cumbria, I enjoy seeing my local areas through the eyes of the author. It really is a gentle rolic through Cumbrian lanes and over the passes. it’s a long old way from Eskdale to Keswick but lovely seeing Boot and the local pubs mentioned. I do find the whole crime story side of it hard to follow as a relentless series of meetings or review of conversations. But Ben, Bonnie and Christopher continue to bring lively and human personalities into the story. Best of all, a new character called Evie. She has potential.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read all of Rebecca Tope's novels. I read this as a hardback but couldn't locate this format on the Goodreads options. No matter. I think the author manages to hook readers into her series. Why? The book series have captivating settings. This one is set in the Lakes so I know the locations. Each book builds on the one before so the cast of characters evolve. That's a positive I think in a series. I don't believe it excludes readers new to the books. I think they work as standalone novels. If you like one you can go back and read the back catalogue. Inevitably with and series crime stories the reader is required to suspend disbelief. Having done that the stories do then have plausibility within the context. Invariably the resolution or solving of the crime feels less important than the relationships and interactions between the characters. A must read for series fans.

[Rowena Onions · Rating 4 out of 5]

After the last two in the series, I nearly gave up on hearing more from the author... but I'd pre-ordered this so I just carried on. I'm glad I did. This book was much more like the early ones in the series.

[Susan Toovey]

6.5

[Henry Herklots · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt that tope was reaching too far for this one. Not up to her usual standards