Murder in Thistlecross by Amy Reade is A Malice Novel. Eilidh Stewart has been working for Annabel Baines as her estate manager and assistant for the last two years in the Welsh village of Thistlecross. There has been a flurry of preparations as Annabel gets ready for her three estranged sons to visit. Andreas and his pregnant wife, Sian are the first to arrive. Then they welcome Hugh and his wife Cadi who do not seem to be getting along. The last to arrive is Rhisiart who is the writer in the family. The tension can be palpably felt by everyone and matters are not helped by Brenda, the maid, who is acting oddly (clumsy, irritable). The family reunion takes a tragic turn when one of the family members turn up dead the next day. This is just the beginning of the misfortune to strike the household. Eilidh works to unravel the clues and discover who is behind these deadly deeds. Someone, though, does not appreciate her nosiness. What will they do to prevent Eilidh from ferreting out their identity?

Murder in Thistlecross was not quite what I expected after reading Amy Reade’s previous novels. While Murder in Thistlecross is part of A Malice Novel series, it can be read alone. Characters from the previous novels are present, but their backstory is included. I found the story easy to read with a gentle pace. The main character has been divorced two years and is ready to move forward with her life (i.e.—romantically speaking). Thus, enters Griff, the stable manager as a love interest for our heroine. Eilidh is referred to as an estate manager and assistant (in the beginning as an estate manager and later as personal assistant). She acted more like an assistant (a competent yet bland one). I wish that Eilidh had more of a presence (stronger personality, braver attitude). She does have a good heart and is loyal to her friends and employer. The mysteries have some interesting components, but they are not compelling (did not hold my attention). The mysteries can be solved long before the reveal. Eilidh is not as fortunate as I was in flushing out the culprit’s identity. I did not feel the suspense in the book, and the ending felt rushed (the author was nearing the end and needed to wrap up everything within the next few pages). My rating for Murder in Thistlecross is 3 out of 5 stars (it was okay). I wanted more substance and depth in Murder in Thistlecross. I do look forward to reading more of Amy Reade’s novels in the future and I recommend checking out her other novels. ( )

Eilidh Stewart has been the estate manager of Annabel Baines’ Welsh castle, Thistlecross, for the past two years. One of her duties has been to help prepare for the arrival of Annabel’s three estranged sons, but Eilidh feels that Annabel seems more nervous than she should be. After their arrival, a series of murders occur, and Eilidh realizes that her life may be in danger, as well.

Murder in Thistlecross is the 3rd book in Amy M Reade’s Malice series. I received a copy from NetGalley and Kensington Publishing in exchange for an honest review. I have not read the previous books in the series. This book can easily be read as a standalone as the protagonist is only a minor character in the prior book.

The cover copy for this book – ” as she follows a twisting maze of greed and malice to ferret out a killer” - makes it sound like a typical murder mystery or whodunit. However, this book reminds me more of a gothic romance. Eilidh does not follow any clues or make any attempt at detection whatsoever. The murder is unmasked because he or she attacks Eilidh near the end of the book, although it is somewhat apparent who the culprit is through a process of elimination. I was expecting to read a murder mystery, not a gothic romance, so as I was reading, I was frustrated waiting for Eilidh to begin detecting.

I felt that there were quite a few inconsistencies or little things that didn’t make sense and those were very distracting to me. For instance, the family has been summoned to the dining room for dinner, and one of them knocks on the open door before entering. Another example is that when Eilidh and Griff go riding for the first time, Rhisiart follows them, and ruins their ride. The second time Eilidh and Griff go riding, they go to the fairy glen, a different place from where they rode before, and they have a good time. Later in the book, Eilidh and her cousin walk to the fairy glen, but their visit is ruined “just as Rhisiart had ruined ours when Griff and I had visited the fairy glen.” There are several other examples which I will not share due to spoilers, but I’m it is easy to get a general idea.

Ignoring the distractions, which was sometimes difficult to do, I thought the story flowed fairly well. It seemed to be pretty standard gothic romance fare; it reminded me somewhat of a modern-day Victoria Holt, although not as suspenseful. I doubt that I will read any additional books in this series.

I think someone who enjoys modern-day gothic romances might enjoy this book, assuming that they were not bothered by the inconsistencies that bothered me. ( )

Murder in Thistlecross by Amy R. Reade
Malice #3

A castle manager
A guest gone missing
A murder then a few more
Who’s doing the killing and why?

Eilidh moved to Wales from Scotland about two years before this story begins and has been working as the estate manager for Annabel. Annabel’s sons are coming to visit and a happy family reunion is doubtful after the childhood they experienced on the estate. When Andreas goes missing the situation becomes iffy and becomes more so as the story unfolds.

Eilidh’s cousin comes to visit, two men put moves on Eilidh, drug dealing crops up, jealousy and hate are exposed and well…for so much going on it was still a rather sweet and tame story with a HEA for Eilidh with one of the men who showed interest in her. It was an okay read but did not have me on the edge of my seat. It had an “old time” feel to it with more telling than showing. There were one or two twists I did not see coming but otherwise the story was rather predictable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books – Lyrical Press – Underground. This is my honest review.

3-4 Stars ( )