Kat AilesBesprekingen

Alice and her friends Poppy, Ailsa, and Hen are on their second case in DEAD TIRED. It takes place a year or so after their first. Three of the four are still on maternity leave though Hen has found a job as the personal assistant to Owen Myers, the CEO of Aether - a green energy firm interested in wind power.

The ladies, along with their one-year-olds and their dogs, are picnicking in a local meadow when they encounter two nude protestors named Leila and Raven who are upset that the meadow will soon become the site of a wind farm. Naturally, this also upsets Ailsa who is the most ecologically minded of the group and who convinces the others - minus Hen - to attend a meeting of the protest group and take part in their upcoming sit-in and be chained to the old growth trees that are in danger of being destroyed.

However, the protest doesn't go quite as planned. Morning comes and Leila is found strangled to death and still chained to her tree. Though Hen encourages them to leave the investigation to the police in the form of Ailsa's sister Jane Harris, they find themselves getting involved and investigating the protest group and the company Hen works for.

I enjoyed this humorous mystery filled with messy babies, unruly dogs, and very tired women. Alice's viewpoint fills the story with humor of the self-deprecating kind. She's just trying to keep her son Jack and dog Helen under some kind of control and keep them from eating inappropriate things. She is dragged reluctantly into investigating to help her friend Poppy who had been edging into depression but who perks up at this excuse to use her brain.

Fans of the first book and even newcomers will enjoy meeting this engaging group of new mothers who add murder investigations to their plans for their maternity leaves.

My first thought is that this book was so much fun to read! I love cozy mysteries and this was one of the good ones. As a mother myself, I could completely relate to how tired the moms were, and I found myself jealous that I didn't have a group of friends like Alice's to solve mysteries with when my kids were little. The characters were great and very relatable, as mentioned, and the story was well written. The mystery took lots of twists and turns and had me guessing who the murderer was all the way to the end. I hadn't read the first book in the series when I started this one, but I was easily able to follow along with who was who and how they related to each other. I enjoyed Dead Tired so much, I'm definitely going to go back and read it now, though.

All in all, I enjoyed this book very much and highly recommend it.

5/5 stars.

*** I would like to thank NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Kat Ailes for the opportunity to read and review Dead Tired.

Hilarious! This was a zany cosy murder mystery about a group of women who meet at a prenatal class. When the old man who owns the store underneath where the prenatal class is held dies during the class, the group is convinced that the police are not doing enough to investigate, so they decide to look into things themselves. It turns out that the town holds many secrets. Anyone who has ever been nine months pregnant will identify with the women, and find a lot to laugh about. The small village is home to a hippie commune and new age stuff which adds to the humour.

I took a chance on a mystery with a cute title and had so much fun reading it! Joe and Alice decide to leave London for the small town of Penton in the Cotswolds. The fact that Alice undertakes this move at approximately 38 weeks pregnant, with a handful of a dog named Helen isn't the strangest thing that takes place. The area has a very hippie vibe--with lots of tie dye, natural cure shops and even a local commune. The bodily fluids flow when Hen's water breaks during the first prenatal class and by the time the paramedics arrive, they wonder who exactly they are there for--a possible baby or the dead guy in the shop below the classroom. It's a bit edge, a bit dark but as the story goes along, the characters really get together and all kinds of mysteries are revealed in this small town.

This was a fun read! Some parts of the story were rather funny and the mystery kept me guessing. Pregnancy and childbirth play a prominent role in this story and I thought it was rather entertaining to imagine a group of hugely pregnant women playing detective. I am so glad that I took a chance and decided to give this book a try.

Alice and her boyfriend, Joe, have just moved to town with their dog, Helen, and are due to have a baby very soon. They enroll in a childbirth class and not only does one student go into labor during the first session but a man dies in the shop downstairs and they are all considered suspects. Alice wants to make friends and what could be a better way to bond than solving a murder with some of the women she has met at childbirth class?

I listened to the audiobook and thought Kitty Kelly did a great job with this story. This is only the second time that I have listened to this narrator’s work and I have been impressed both times. She did a great job with the more comical moments in this story which helped to bring the story to life. I liked the voices that she used for the various characters in this story and thought that she brought just the right amount of emotion to her reading. I believe that her performance added to my overall enjoyment of this story.

I would recommend this book to others. I thought that there was a nice balance of humor and mystery in this book and I loved the fact that it kept me guessing until the end. I plan to pick up the second book just as soon as it becomes available.

I received a review copy of this book from Macmillan Audio and Minotaur Books.

Alice is eight months pregnant and she and boyfriend, Joe, have decided that London isn’t the best place to raise a child so they have moved to the small town of Penton, a place Alice describes as ‘hippy posh’. The first night there, they have signed up for a prenatal ‘crash course’, partly to meet new people but mostly because both Alice and Joe have been kind of avoiding the whole birthing experience.

The course has been going fine, well, except for all the graphic descriptions of childbirth but there are other couples, most of whom seem friendly and just as aghast at the birthing details as Alice and Joe. But suddenly things go way off script. First, one of the other expectant mothers goes into labour and Alice finds herself pulled into help and second, the man who owns the store downstairs is found murdered.

When the wife of one of the other expectant mothers, becomes the main suspect, she suggests she and Alice do their own investigation. They enlist the aid of some of the other women and soon find themselves immersed not only in this recent murder but two suspicious occurrences of a nearby commune from many years ago.

The Expectant Detectives is Kat Ailes debut cozy mystery novel and what a fun and funny debut it is. The characters are all mostly likeable especially Alice who seems to have few filters. She is insecure and undiplomatic, not the best characteristics for an amateur detective, but she is also hilarious. But I think my favourite character is Alice’s dog, the irrepressible Helen. I don’t know if this is the start of a new series but I sure hope so because I don’t think I’ve laughed out loud reading a cozy mystery as I did with this book.

Oh, and the mystery is pretty good too.

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review

The Expectant Detectives is Kat Ailes debut contemporary mystery, out from Minotaur Books.

Alice and Joe have moved to the small town of Penton in the English countryside with Alice 8 months pregnant. Immediately signing up for a prenatal class, and hoping to make some friends, they try to settle into their new life. But someone unexpectedly goes into labor during the second class, and the shop owner is found dead. Having nothing better to do, the women become determined to solve the murder, much to the chagrin of the men in their lives.

Alice isn't necessarily a likeable character, but she's not unlikeable either. I was just kind of indifferent to her, possibly because as a childless adult I couldn't relate to her. She just seemed kind of...not smart sometimes. Even Hen, one of the pregnant women, seems to think she's completely dumb and useless. I did really like Ailsa, as she was the one who didn't give a crap about anyone else and told it like it was. Poppy and Lin were a good counter-balance to Alice.

The writing was okay, although even for a cozy mystery it seemed really slow. I knew not to expect a fast-paced suspense, but it lagged a lot for the first half. The forest commune was an interesting addition to the story, intertwining a lot of the characters together and connecting storylines.

All in all, a pretty good debut from Kat. This appears to be the first in a series, which could be interesting. If you're a fan of cozy mysteries, family secrets, hippies, and dogs, then give this one a try!

Thank you to @NetGalley and @MinotaurBooks for a digital copy for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.

The Expectant Detectives is Kat Ailes' debut novel. Now, three guesses - what might these amateur detectives night have in common? If you said 'they're all pregnant' - you're a winner.

Alice and her partner Joe have moved to Penton, a small village in the Cotswolds. Of course! Penton is home to a varied (and quirky) bunch of residents. The population is down one when a local shopkeeper is found dead downstairs in his shop - while Alice is upstairs at the same shop attending her prenatal class.

As they're all suspects now - (bar one) four of the women decide to band together to help the local constabulary find the culprit. The group is made up of a wonderful group very different women.

Alice is our lead character and honestly, her actions and dialogue had me laughing out loud. Ailes is a funny woman and writer. Now I have to mention the four footed character Helen - Alice's dog. Again, very funny. She steals the show in a few places.

And what about the crime? Ailes gives us lots of possibilities for the whodunit. And has us questioning just about everyone's innocence. It wasn't easy to suss out the final ah ha!

Fans of Finlay Donovan will love this new series. Dead Tired is the follow up to The Expectant Detectives and It's most definitely on my 'want to read' list!

This debut cozy mystery goes above and beyond a typical cozy in its entertainment value. Read my full review here.

Publication is expected January 9.

#NetGalley #MacmillanAudio #MinotaurBooks #TheExpectantDetectives

Hello cosy mystery set in the Cotswolds. The Expectant Detectives by Kat Alies is a wee bit dark, has a naughty dog, and the sequel, Dead Tired, comes out in June. Thank you Minotaur Books!

Alice and Joe move from London to Penton to combat the high cost of living and prepare for their first child. At their first prenatal class someone goes into early labor, chaos ensues, and a local village member is found dead in the shop downstairs. All members of the class must be questioned, as well as the community members.

I loved the quirky characters, the connections, and how Alice and Joe find themselves wrapped up and part of their neighbors. Undoubtedly, their dog Helen has a huge personality. If there’s mischief or a mess nearby, Helen’s going to find it. Repeatedly Alice and Joe are admonished “Don’t bring Helen!”. As the clues are unraveling an old mystery is revealed.

This is a quick cosy read, perfect for wrapping up on a winter afternoon. I can’t wait for the sequel in July!

Alice and her partner Joe have decided to leave London for Penton, a sleepy village, since they are expecting a child in the very near future. Alice has some concerns about making new friends, but attendance at a class preparing women for childbirth opens new avenues for her.

Unfortunately, one of the attendees goes into labor at the second class and delivers a baby girl before medical help can arrive. The class is held above a shop selling herbal remedies and is run by a man who stopped Alice on the street after her first doctor's appointment and offered her herbal remedies for her ailments. Alice thought it was just a little pushy to discuss intimate details regarding her pregnancy with a complete stranger. She's surprised to run into him again as she and Joe go to class. She's even more surprised to find him dead at his counter when the class and the birth are over.

She and some of her fellow pregnant ladies decide to investigate the death especially when it is learned that one of the lady's same sex partner is being accused of the murder. Despite the urging of the police inspector who happens to be the sister of another of the women attending the class, Alice and a couple of others decide to look into things. After all, they are all on maternity leave and more than a bit bored.

Between secrets and goings-on at a local commune which was founded by the victim, though he left it after, Alice has a lot to investigate. A death and a disappearance from the commune plays into the story too.

This book was very funny. I've never been pregnant but can appreciate the trials and tribulations of a women just weeks away from giving birth. Alice and her lovely, but stupid, dog were great characters. I enjoyed this story very much.

cozy-mystery, amateur-sleuth, laugh-riot, snarky, closed-circle-mystery****

Old friends, new friends, a New Age community, feminists, advanced pregnancy, and a murder to solve. At their first group meeting an herbalist was murdered downstairs and things got crazier from then on. Laughed myself silly over this well done cozy mystery!
I requested and received an EARC from St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books via NetGalley.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

I found this too 'cosy' for my tastes. The narrator and main protagonist Alice was relentlessly ditzy - renting a (too small) house she and her partner had never seen in a village they had never visited and moving while she was 8 months pregnant; deciding the way to avoid expensive London rental prices was to move to the Cotswolds (?!), putting an omelette in her pocket to eat later, and so on and so on. Also, is the author British, because unless it's very recent, I don't think Goodwill is a thing in the UK?

I was finding this so infuriating that I skimmed the second half. The mystery was OK, and I think that if the humour appeals to you, this is probably a good read, but it wasn't for me.