Cover Image: A Deadly Coincidence

A Deadly Coincidence

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First book in n the Lipton St Faith series. Set in the 2nd world war this sleepy Norfolk village had not yet been touched by the war. An accident to the village postman will change all that. Amateur sleuth Anna Grix daughter of the local vicar will team up with Eddie Elsner an American airman. There investigation will turn over a lot of stones and the wars black market will play a major part in murder. Set in a bygone time this will bring great interest to how times have changed but murder still remains. In the spirit of a cozy mystery the time zips along.
Thank you NetGalley and (publisher, Lume Books) for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

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A Deadly Coincidence is the first book in a historical cozy mystery series by Keith Finney. Released 15th July 2021 by Lume Books, it's 252 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately. For Kindle Unlimited subscribers, this book is currently included in the KU subscription library to borrow and read for free along with the other books in the series.

This is a light WW2 cozy historical adventure set in Norfolk. The main protagonists, the local vicar's daughter and a US volunteer pilot "doing his bit" before the USA officially entered the war, are untangling the suspected murder of the local postman. There are elements of romance (but nothing at *all* scandalous in the book or more egregious than strictly platonic, nearly maternal, kisses on foreheads). The author has taken some pains with historical and geographic research. He does quite a good job of evoking the time period through quaint dialogue and background descriptions (flyovers, ration coupons, the Women's Land Army, etc).

The narrative is well written but slow-paced and readers used to hastier writing might find their attention wandering. All in all, I found it charmingly nostalgic if possibly a bit unrealistically saccharine. The spelling and vernacular are true to the area and location. The author has included a handy short glossary of terms for readers who might be unfamiliar.

Three and a half stars. Worth a look for fans of the time period. It's squeaky clean and there's nothing in the writing or language which would startle anyone's maiden aunt.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

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From the very beginning this felt like reading a classic from the Golden Age of Crime Writing. It has the same quality and charm.
The village of Lipton St Faith on the edge of the Norfolk Broads is beautifully sketched with the 1941 period setting fitting perfectly.
Anna Grix, the Vicar's daughter, the young Constable Tom Bradshaw, and Eddie Elsner, an American lieutenant make a great sleuthing team.
A highly enjoyable read.

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A new cosy mystery series set during WWII in the village of Lipton St. Faith in Norfolk. The local postman and baker are both found dead a week apart with strangulation marks on their necks . The police judge both cases as accidental strangulation but Anna Grix, the daughter of the local vicar is not convinced. Around the same time, she bumps into Lieutenant Eddie Elsner of the US army, who has recently come to the village on a separate mission of his own and together they team up to dig up the real cause of the deaths.

I will admit that it did take me a while to really get into this book. The book does drag a bit in the beginning but it picks up mid-way and overall it is a decent read. I found Anna's character a bit bossy and overbearing although her heart is in the right place. I liked Lieutenant Eddie's character and it looks like there is a lot more to him than meets the eye.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publisher Lume Books and the author Keith Finney for the e-Arc of the book.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐✨💫

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A delightful old fashioned Murder Mystery ,if this was a TV programme it would have hints of Foyles War , Granchester & even a Touch of Mid Summer Murders ,as it's amazing what can go on in small rural Villages . Set amid the struggles of WW11 as well most of the time it was even passed , although I found the slower parts rather annoying , but that's just me , on the whole it was a light entertaining read which I will be recommending to some of my friends #FB, #Instagram, # NetGalley, # GoodReads, #Amazon.co.uk , #<img src="https://www.netgalley.co.uk/badge/c566f42be23a0e25d120e78a3454e2d427c4beee" width="80" height="80" alt="50 Book Reviews" title="50 Book Reviews"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.co.uk/badge/ef856e6ce35e6d2d729539aa1808a5fb4326a415" width="80" height="80" alt="Reviews Published" title="Reviews Published"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.co.uk/badge/aa60c7e77cc330186f26ea1f647542df8af8326a" width="80" height="80" alt="Professional Reader" title="Professional Reader"/>.

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What a excellent read.Great storyline well written suspense,kept me guessing the outcome from start to finish.Would recommend this book and author to anyone who likes a good mystery tale.

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I loved this book. The author brings you into the story from the start with his descriptive text. You get a great insight into the characters from the beginning and I liked them. Thoroughly enjoyed will recommend

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A start to a new cosy mystery series, set in Norfolk during WWII. Anna, the vicar´s daughter and Eddie, a US officer, solve several mysteries together with the police and other inhabitants of the village. The different characters seem interesting at first, but the UK - US banter between the two protagonists gets boring after a while, and there are too many persons involved.
Though the writing is good enough and easy to read, it drags after a while, and the mystery gets into the background - the story seems rather a romance or historical fiction about life in an English village during WWII.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC ebook in return for an honest review.

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I chose to read this book as I rather enjoy a good mystery and I live in a Norfolk village. However I was somewhat disappointed. The way this book is written reminds me of literature from the 1950s, a somewhat old fashioned style for today. The characters are reather shallow and come across of the versions of people from that period as we view them today rather than as they really would have been. For example, it felt as if Anna was a girl of today acting as if she was a 1940s young woman.
All in all I was not a fan although it was a good fun read and will no doubt suit some readers so not all bad!

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Amateur Sleuthing Ensues…
The first in a new series of Norfolk mysteries set in the village of Lipton St Faith where the second Wolrd War has brought many changes. When a villager is found dead it is quickly dismissed as accidental but the inquisitive Anna Grix has other ideas. Enjoyable amateur sleuthing ensues. Atmospheric cosy mystery with a well drawn cast of characters. A promising start to a new series.

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A good start for a new cozy series!
An engrossing and entertaining story, a set of interesting characters, a solid mystery that kept me guessing.
The setting is well described and the historical background vivid.
I can't wait to read the next installment.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

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A fairly gentle, war set murder mystery, located in the delightful county of Norfolk. The peaceful way of life and location are nicely depicted and the occasional reality of war such as bombing, evacuation and death, are somehow even more shocking in this ideal environment.
The lead character is Anna, the vicar’s daughter, she was a spunky young thing who I warmed to and the author’s regular insertion of her thoughts in italics, added an extra layer to the character. Her relationship with the American serviceman Eddie was fun, although their banter about the differences in the way that the British and Americans say things, was a bit of a cliche.
The story moves along at a pace that suits the county where it is set, the ending was a surprise to me and yet well thought out, the final page of the novel was actually really moving.
An enjoyable historical crime novel that is well worth a read.
Thanks to NetGalley and Lume Books for providing me with an Advance Reader's Copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

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3.5 stars .

A Deadly Coincidence is a good cosy mystery that takes place in Norfolk in WW2.

The book introduces the character of Anna , the Vicar's daughter ( love her) and Eddie the American officer '

Anna enlists Eddie and some of the locals to help solve two murders and mayhem results.

The pages turn quickly

I am looking forward to Book 2 in the series as the character and the town develop even more as we get to the know them even better.

What will Anna get up to next?

Thanks to NetGalley and Lume Books for an enjoyable read.

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An interesting look into life in rural England during the hard times of WW2 with air raids, rationing and black marketeers.
There's a colourful cast of characters as well.
The interaction between Anna and Eddie regarding UK vs US English was humorous to begin with but I found it annoying as the book progressed: too much of a good thing?
I also found the protagonist Anna rather too acerbic and aggressive - women's rights taken too far?
Nevertheless, a good read.

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Wow! A real heart pounder! I loved this book! It was thrilling, it had intrigue, suspense, and lots of heart pounding moments! Lots of twists and turns!! Definitely some jaw dropping moments

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Excitement mounts and curiosity stirs, luring you to keep turning the pages of Deadly Coincidence, authored by Keith Finney, to keep pace with Anna and co-"amateur sleuth" Eddie as they traverse and scour the Norfolk regions' lanes for clues and murderers. This is a good clean detective story, which gets your heart ticking faster. Tensions are eased with humor even as suspense builds.

One small critique is that at times the jump from one phase of incident to the next between chapters and especially within chapter section incidents is not well connected. These disconnects leave the reader puzzled and rereading to try to pick up the thread of context, and thinking, "Did I miss something?" If these gliches could be smoothened out, the book would jump from 3 to 4 out of 5 stars.

~ Eunice C. July 2021~

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Rating: 1.6/5

There were a couple of things that persuaded me to try this book: Firstly, it marks the beginning of a new series, and I always find it preferable to get into a series from the start rather than trying pick it up part way through. Secondly, it is set in rural Norfolk - aa area of the country I have lived in and that is well-suited as the backdrop to the cosy mystery genre. Sadly, "A Deadly Coincidence" is, at best, a very ordinary piece of reading material.

Although primarily marketed as being a cosy mystery set during WWII, this story contains many elements that would qualify it as a rose-tinted historical adventure or possibly even a wartime romance. The characters are all very superficial and, unfortunately, not very engaging, which they really need to be for this type of novel to work well. The language is quite dated, though I am prepared to concede that this is perhaps a deliberate technique on the part of the author to convey a sense of the timeframe in which the story is set.

The "mystery" itself is largely a non-event and is unlikely to provide much satisfaction to regular readers of crime fiction - even that of the "cosy" variety.

The writing is pleasant enough and if you are looking for is a disposable read to while away a few hours, then this might be may well do the job. Otherwise, this is probably best passed over in favour of something else.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.

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Set in sleepy Norfolk coming to terms with rationing, black outs and occasional bombs being dropped after failures over Coventry and the Midlands, the postie is found dead in a ditch - knocked off his bicycle in the blackout and unfortunately encountering barbed wire in said ditch causing his death. His wife does not believe this and enlists the helps of vicar's daughter, Anna, to investigate. Anna herself is then knocked off her bike by American Army Airforce Lieutenant, Eddie. They team up to seek the truth. The village has secrets, there's a flourishing black market, gambling den and other intrigues. Certainly the pace keeps up with Anna and Eddie chasing clues all around the countryside. Life in a little Norfolk village during the period seems realistic and the storyline perfectly possible and reasonable. On the other hand, I found Anna to be too 'modern' with her joshing Eddie and her general behaviour, just too 1970s-80s or more recent, certainly not the 1940s. Eddie might have been a handsome Yank but we did have an awful lot of naivety about England, perhaps true for the time, but felt contrived. After he disappeared I thought that we might get a story about him looking for sites for potential airfields which could have added a dimension. I'd be happy to have the opportunity to read number 2 to see how Anna develops as the overall background has potential. Three and a half stars rounded up as it is the first of a series. Thanks to NetGalley and Lume Books for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

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At first sight, this novel seemed to be exactly my cup of tea. It's a WWII mystery, set in Norfolk, with an amateur sleuth, the vicar's daughter, trying to find out if the death of the village postman was an accident or something more sinister.
Unfortunately, I will be classifying the book as a "did not finish". I found the main characters very stereotyped - feisty young girl meets American GI who knows nothing about English customs and has to have everything explained to him. I didn't warm to the two main characters or their cast of supporting characters, so I lost interest after about 6 chapters and will never know how they solved the mystery.

Maureen

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Set in Norfolk in WWII, this delightful book is the first in a new series. Discovering new-to-me authors and books is great fun and I look forward to what else Keith Finney has planned. I really enjoy the banter between American Lt. Eddie Eisner and British Anna Grix who poke fun at each other's vernacular. Do know there is a glossary at the back should you require it.

Quiet unassuming Eddie is on a mission in England runs into bold and unflinching Anna, the vicar's daughter. Their relationship becomes an amateur sleuthing partnership when mystery and murder hang in the air like impenetrable fog. A local's body is found and the rush is on to find answers. Of course things are not what they seem. People aren't, either. Blackout curtains twitch as locals watch, whisper and gossip. Locals dislike being prodded about the past. Sneaky secrets surface as a motive is sought. But murder isn't the only crime on the agenda...

True historical details such as mentions of Churchill and rationing are introduced beautifully, making the story more realistic. I love to learn and absorbed this book like a sponge. Those who enjoy bits of history with their mysteries ought to read this.

My sincere thank you to Lume Books and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this charming book!

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