Let Sleeping Murder Lie By Carmen Radtke

What a great book to relax with whilst your while away your Sunday afternoon. Such a great cosy read, did not want to put it down until I head finished it.
I kept falling out of love with the main characters, which shows that I was totally engaged.
The author throws in a few red herrings to keep you guessing, perfect, just what you need in a murder mystery. Carmen Radtke I've read a couple of Carmen Radtke's historical mysteries so I was eager to read a book of hers set in more modern times.

Eve moves to an English village living her dream but gets herself embroiled in a murder mystery concerning the handsome Ben Dryden who was accused of murdering his wife Donna five years earlier.

Let Sleeping Murder Lie is a cozy mystery with a good helping of romance, all set to the backdrop of your average country village.

Eve is a great character who I really warmed to, even though some people might see her as introverted and not willing to take part in village clubs which personally I'd feel the same about.
I felt sorry for Ben. Looking after his elderly father and running a large house would be tough enough without everyone thinking he murdered his wife.

Another great secondary character was Hayley who runs the local pub and becomes a sort of Watson to Eve's Holmes, helping her pump the locals for information.

I feel the village atmosphere is really captured in this book, with petty rivalries, gossip and some outspoken characters.

I felt it was at times a little heavier on the romance than the mystery, but I enjoyed the will they/won't they, between Ben and Eve.

Let Sleeping Murder Lie is a gentle read which will satisfy any cozy mystery lover out there. Carmen Radtke Coming from an American father and English mother, translator Eve Holdsworth has spent the last ten years living in England, moving around various charming villages. This time she has chosen Ivy Cottage for a year’s lease. On a walk by the river she runs into a man called Ben Dryden whose wife Donna was murdered five years ago. Donna was leaving him and, despite an alibi good enough for the police to clear him, Ben remains the chief suspect in the eyes of the community, shunned by nearly everyone. Donna’s murder and the subsequent investigation caused his already poorly father John to have a second nasty stroke and since then Ben has shut himself away, working from home and caring for his father. Intrigued, Eve takes a liking to this seemingly gentle man and feels sorry for him. It is a slow burn introduction to the mystery as Eve gradually inveigles herself into Ben’s company, determined to find his wife’s killer and prove his innocence, even though that appears to be the last thing he actually wants. He is content to live out a fairly isolated existence with his father with only the visits from John's physio for company. Eve herself can’t be sure whether she is doing this out of a sense of injustice for Ben or whether it’s due to the attraction she is starting to feel towards him which he makes clear is not reciprocated. With no suspects apart from Donna's nameless mystery lover and no motive for the murder, it looks as though Eve and fellow sleuth pub landlady Hayley have reached a dead end until a surprise and shock confession from someone sets Eve on the right path again. The clues are all there for the reader to pick up on as Eve now unwittingly puts herself right into the firing line.
This is a warm and engrossing cosy story with a streak of romance running through it. The characters are well drawn and the plot well explained, making this a charming read suitable for all. 4.5* Carmen Radtke This is one of my favourite genres to read , a nice cosy mystery book ! As I read a lot of them I tend to expect certain things from them and this book did not disappoint .

This book features Eve Holdsworth an American now living in a beautiful English village (you can definitely picture it in your mind!) She soon meets Ben Dryden , his wife died 5years ago and he is the only suspect for it , Eve is determined to solve to case and prove that Ben couldn't possibly have killed her. But this proves to be a dangerous thing to do when her life ends up at stake.

I absolutely loved Eve , she was a fantastic and fascinating character to read about , her personality and determination (even if Ben doesn't want her involvement) is a great part to the book. It is brilliantly written by clearly a very talented author, the characters and setting are described so you can vividly see them in your imagination. The other characters in the village we so fun to read about with their quirky personalities , exactly what I expect to find in a English village!

If you enjoy light hearted mystery books that keep you reading on , keeping you guessing and keep you thinking you have worked it out (although if you are like me you were completely wrong ) then this is a great book for you ! I can't wait to read more by her Carmen Radtke Let Sleeping Murder Lie is a lovely cosy mystery with great characters – it would make a good TV drama. Eve, the main character, is one of those people you instantly connect to, and the supporting cast is equally strong as the story unfolds. A woman was murdered five years ago, but whodunnit? Can Eve solve the mystery? The book’s setting is also worth mentioning, a quintessential country village with cottages, a traditional pub and rural scenery, all vividly brought to life. I do hope Carmen Radtke writes more cosy crime! Carmen Radtke

read & download Let Sleeping Murder Lie

American Eve Holdsworth is living her quintessential English dream in a picturesque village in the countryside. Meeting an attractive stranger adds to the appeal.
But Ben Dryden is a pariah in Eve’s new neighbourhood, since his wife was murdered five years ago, and he was the only suspect.
Eve, who is absolutely sure someone as charming as Ben could never be a killer, is
determined to solve the case and clear Ben’s name, even if it’s against his will.
Soon enough Eve finds herself in deep waters, and with her life at stake, she can only pray that her romantic notions won’t be the end of her … Let Sleeping Murder Lie

Let Sleeping Murder Lie by Carmen Radtke was intriguing mystery with a smoothly paced plot, twists that kept me guessing and a few red herrings that successfully threw me off track. Although I struggled to feel connected to Ben and Eve, I loved Hayley and her grandmother. Ms. Radtke's descriptive writing made the village come to life with realistic characters and the community feel that I find so appealing. Carmen Radtke *I received a free copy of this book with thanks to the author and to Zoé of Zooloo’s Book Tours. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*

I’ve said before that readers can immediately tell when they are in good hands for a book, and within a few pages of starting Let Sleeping Murder Lie, I had already relaxed into it and given myself over to the story completely.

Eve is a very relatable main character, and I enjoyed the development of her friendships with those around her, but also her increasing confidence and self-reliance. It was refreshing to find a cosy mystery heroine who doesn’t simply drop her work and social life to investigate some random mystery, but instead prioritises her time to ensure she meets her own commitments before running around solving cold cases that don’t concern her.

The setup is classic cosy mystery – the main character is a newcomer and so can see an old mystery with fresh eyes, the suspect pool is limited to a handful of prominent neighbours in the small village community, and the clues are there from the start, along with a few red herrings to throw you off the scent. I guessed a couple of the twists before they were revealed to Eve, but was equally pleased to have fallen hook, line and sinker for some of the bait the author threw out – a very satisfying mix for an avid mystery sleuth!

This is a gripping, entertaining and very well-written story, ideal for any cosy mystery fans. I will definitely be checking out more from Carmen Radtke in future, and I would definitely LOVE this to turn into a long-running series – ‘Eve and Hayley: investigations, translations and potations’! 😉



'Hayley picked up her cloth. “The place has a bad reputation alright, as does the rest of the property. And the owner.”

“But why?” Eve asked.

“A woman was murdered there five years ago. No conviction, but ask most people here, and they will swear to one thing. It was Ben who killed his wife.”'

– Carmen Radtke, Let Sleeping Murder Lie


Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpres... Carmen Radtke Let Sleeping Murder Lie is a brilliantly engrossing cosy mystery, I can’t believe that this is my first book by Carmen Radtke, I liked her easy to read writing style. I haven’t had a good look into the author back catalogue, so I am unsure if this is Radtke’s usual genre, but I will certainly be looking now.

Eve Holdsworth has done what we all dream of doing; giving up the stresses of the rat race to move and make a new life in the country. Eve has done it, she has crossed the pond and now living in the beautiful and idyllic little village – but be warned this village is more Midsummer than Mary Mead as just when Eve thinks she has found her true life and fingers crossed a bit of romance in the form of a handsome stranger, then boom!! A murder – even if it is an older unsolved murder – murder is murder, isn’t it? But it’s typical, just when things were looking so good, someone has gone and got bumped off, don’t you hate it when that happens? Especially when you’re trying to get to know the charming, incredibly handsome fisherman you’ve just come across.

As much as I thoroughly enjoyed the mystery and the journey to find out who did what and why I am afraid I didn’t connect with the characters as much as I think I should have. They are likeable and I did enjoy their exploits throughout and I enjoyed watching Ellie battle with her thoughts of whether she trusts Ben or not and whether he did brutally murder his wife or not, but I didn’t think there were hugely memorable. Yet I did like Ellie’s determination to find the truth and Ben’s rather aloof-ish-ness (is that a word??) Once again that aspect reminded me of Midsummer Murders (I do keep mentioning that TV show a lot, maybe I should watch it less) but no matter how much I tried I couldn’t find myself connecting with any characters, they were just there filling the plot out and making the mystery even more complex – something I did enjoy!

I love Radtke’s richly detailed writing, especially that of the village – which is such a pretty and stereotypical quaint little English village, the scenery is vivid and realistic and the village atmosphere is spot on which thoroughly engages the reader. I would love to live in a village like this, I would be the slightly odd woman with the mad hair peering through the curtains waiting for something to happen.

The plot is intriguing and charming, it’s a fabulous Sunday afternoon ‘whodunnit with an eclectic cast of characters and some wonderfully timed twists and false turns all of which keep you flicking through the pages. I liked the faster pacing, from start to finish it doesn’t let up and kept you reading desperately wanting to know what the hell is going on.

Overall, Let Sleeping Murder Lie is a great mystery, it’s a fully engrossing and addictive read, I liked the premise of the story I loved the setting the characters were likeable but the shining star of this has to be the compelling and riveting writing. A must-read for any who loves a decent who-dunnit! Carmen Radtke Let Sleeping Murder Lievby Carmen Radtke is a cozy mystery that does not disappoint. The mystery was complex enough to keep me guessing, and the characters were endearing and the setting idyllic.

Eve Holdsworth moved into an idyllic English Cottage in an idyllic English village where she works from home. As she explores her new home, she meets a mysterious man fishing in a nearby pond. The fisherman, Ben Dryden is a bit of a recluse and Eve later learns that his wife was brutally murdered in his home, and the police have never found her murderer. Later, she learns that most of the villagers believe Ben murdered his wife, but Eve doesn’t believe the quiet man she met, could be capable of such a heinous crime.

This is an intriguing and delightful mystery that is a real page-turner. I immediately liked Eve and enjoyed her walks into the woods and her interactions with the quirky village characters. I found the mystery to be interesting and complex enough that it was not easy to figure out until the end. The writing was vivid enough that I could easily imagine the village, the pub, and the surrounding area, and could follow the mystery easily. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.


Carmen Radtke This is Carmen Radtke's first contemporary cosy mystery, and it's a cracker! I've read Carmen's historical fiction and always enjoyed it, so I was really looking forward to this, and it didn't disappoint. Wildly entertaining and sure to appeal to lovers of both cosy crime and romance, it follows Eve as she moves to the idyllic English countryside. American in-comer Eve herself is a beautifully drawn character, as are the people she meets in the village, particularly Ben. The mystery is satisfyingly twisty, but not confusing or random!

A very enjoyable read, highly recommended! Carmen Radtke