I found the TV series, Mrs Sidhu Investigates, of which this book is based, on Amazon Prime, after it came on Acorn TV in 2023. It was a delight, as Meera Syal totally embodies Mrs Sidhu, as I discovered when reading this book, the first in the book series! As I was reading it, I could only picture Meera in the role, much as a I do Brenda Blethyn, in the Vera series! Mrs Sidhu is a widower with typical problems- money, family and a teenage son's angst, LOL. This book takes us back to that beginning (the TV series, started later down the line), as she tries to sort out the first, she runs smack into a murder, into typical British cozy murder style. but she's not with the police, she just has a way about her, that people just feel the need to tell things to. if these happen to be clues, well she just has to help out the local plod, now doesn't she? It helps that her father was a police commander and she learned quite a few things from him. As for family and her son, maybe leaving them together and working on the case, will help them in the long run, or leave them thinking she's lost the plot... The book is charming, even if you haven't seen the series, and keeps the reader turning to pages. You'll be wanting to watch the series after reading the book too!

I loved the radio show of Mrs Sidhu Investigates so when I saw that I leapt at it!

Does it help that I knew the character of Mrs Sidhu and her police buddies already. Probably. The story does start saying that she had been a thorn in the side of the local police for a while with her amateur sleuthing. But I really didn't mind that as I drop into the middle of series all the time and just go for it. LOL

I had Meera Syal in my head narrating as I read which again helped me to solidify the character in my brain. The pacing is well done and there are more than a few twists and red-herrings. I love the lazy lump that is Tez - he reminds me so much of my son! An easy to read, witty and a study in cultural differences and similarities.

I'm not sure what vexes Mrs Sidhu most - the murder or the dreaded sister-in-law coming to stay. I must say I did thoroughly enjoy all their barbs and the "temporary office" situation was a hoot.

Got to 30% and felt something was missing as still wasn't grasping who Mrs Sidhu was or the storyline. It was only then I realized the book is an adaptation of a tv show, which I haven't seen and know nothing about. I feel this didn't work as a book without previously knowing about the characters. I really, really dislike DNF books, but after several attempts of picking this book up, I have to leave it at 30% read.
Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I quite enjoyed Mrs Sidhu’s Dead And Scone” by Suk Pannu. It was engaging from the first chapter and was a nice take on a cosy whodunnit.

I loved this book. If you like a warm mystery and culinary crime thriller, this is for you. The characters were realistic, interesting and mysterious. There was so much each character was hiding. I loved the setting.

Mrs Sidhu is exceptionally good at cooking as well as her investigation skills are sharp too. As a therapist is found dead in the village, she try to piece together clues to find the killer. And the clues unveils the deadly secret everyone is hiding and the mystery behind the murder unveils too but anyone can be a next victim as the killer is on the loose and lurking around everyone. Before it’s too late, will Mrs Sidhu be able to solve the murder mysteries? I love how clever she is and how secrets from the past find a way back to her. I love how well the author has taken us in the human psyche. The whole setting and characters felt warm. The twists and turns were unpredictable.

Many Thanks to the Publisher, Author and Netgalley.

I was attracted to this book by the interesting title and summary about a sharp witted, mature female Asian chef accidentally getting involved in a murder. The story starts at a good pace with references back to events in 1997, a cult and a wellness retreat in an affluent Berkshire village. All the ingredients for an intriguing mystery.

The plot is clever and told with some nice elements of humour. The dialogue on occasions felt disjointed with lots of rapid scene changes. The concluding chapters are a bit rushed and some of the scenes were implausible with behaviours that I felt were out of character.

I loved the opening chapter of this book where we see poor Dr Calman in the moments immediately before she was murdered and that really engaged me with the mystery. There are plenty of plot twists and red herrings to keep the reader interested including a couple that I didn’t see coming at all. One or two points did seem a little too contrived and it almost felt as though there was too much going on at one point
Mrs Sidhu is a definitely a fun character and I enjoyed her balancing act between all the different roles that she was expected to play. However, I felt that most of the other characters were a bit flat and uninteresting and I wasn’t at all convinced by the relationship between Mrs Sidhu and the police.
I felt that the constant switching of point of view and timeline was occasionally irritating and made the story feel disjointed. I can see how this would have worked well as a radio play but it didn’t really work as a novel for me.
My thanks as always to Net Galley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

‘Mrs Sidhu’s “Dead And Scone”’ by Suk Pannu is a thrilling whodunnit novel set in a cosy and wealthy Berkshire village, featuring a village fete, a raffle and amateur sleuth (of Radio 4 fame) Mrs Sidhu. Almost soon as she arrives to her new catering job at a luxury mental wellness retreat, our investigator extraordinaire is pulled into a murder mystery, and when the police name their prime suspect her cooking knowledge suggests the crime scene doesn’t match up to their theories. As the death toll rises and strange links appear to a pair of historic deaths, Mrs Sidhu is determined to solve the case!

I liked the clever plot of this one, including a shocking twist I didn’t see coming. I also really liked this introduction to Mrs Sidhu as a character (I think many readers may pick this up because they listen to the Radio 4 show, but I can assure you it is not essential). The quaint setting was well-described and the potential victims and suspects of interesting.

I found the scene jumps within chapters a bit chaotic at times (though it did add to the admiration I felt for Mrs Sidhu’s ability to live a double life as a caterer/mother and a crime-solver!) It also took me quite some time to get fully immersed as the start was quite slow, and there wasn’t as much baking featured as I expected from the cover.

All in all, it was a 3.5 read for me. Recommended if you know and love the character already or enjoy slow burn cosy mysteries featuring unique sleuths!

I received an advance Digital Review Copy of this book from the publisher Harper Collins UK via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Mrs Sidhu’s Dead & Scone is the first novel by BBC scriptwriter, Suk Pannu. Regular listeners will recognise Mrs Sidhu from his series, Mrs Sidhu Investigates. After a faux pas during an important wedding, Sidhu’s Fine Catering Services is suddenly unpopular, and Mrs Sidhu is reduced to using her exceptional catering skills on producing bulk aubergine bhajis for freezing and sale in Mr Varma’s cash & carry shops.

Any wonder that the call from Sienna Sampson at the Benham House Retreat telling her that Dr Stephen Eardley (aka Dr Feelgood, Mrs Sidhu has one of his self-help books) has an emergency that requires her talents, she takes the pots off the burners and hops in her Nissan Micra to find out what’s needed. Which turns out to be chef for the annual fete, as the woman who volunteered to do them, therapist Dr Wendy Calman, hasn’t turned up.

Interest piqued by overheard conversations, Mrs Sidhu walks around to her cottage, only to find a rather grisly sight: Dr Calman, throat slit, a pot of jam on the stove, boiled dry, scones in the oven burnt to a crisp, and a trail of coins leading to the garden. DCI Leslie Barton, whom she has helped with a few previous cases (although he might state it differently) is fixated on the Retreat’s gardener as the culprit but, from a few other clues, Mrs Sidhu discounts this. But proving his innocence might prove challenging…

Before the true perpetrator is revealed, there are ancient symbols and a curse associated with standing stones, a residential development, raffle tickets, a stalker, several secrets and lies, a surprise revelation from an Indian aunt, an enlightenment cult, and four more deaths. Mrs Sidhu is good at getting the wrong end of the stick.

In the later chapters, DCI Barton summarises: “What you need to understand about Mrs Sidhu is that there is not a bad bone in her body. She’s an extraordinary woman, whose first and only instinct is to help people who are in trouble. But I think we can all see that she has a problem. A severe problem. She’s nosy to the point of obsession, she’s irritating, and she never listens to anyone. Not only that, her imagination is so wild that she allowed a person with a fragile a grip of reality to convince her of the existence of a cult here in Benham village.”

While this is a somewhat enjoyable cosy mystery: it does have plenty of red herrings and a good twist, it might appeal more to readers already familiar with the protagonist, who may care to read more of this cast.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Harper Collins UK.

Mrs Sidhu just can't help herself. Yet again, she's got mixed up in something she had no business poking her nose into.

Still, it keeps her away from her layabout son Tez. And her sister in law Daljeet the Dalek has turned up from India. So it's very opportune that a murder is keeping her busy.

This time, the murky business surrounds the wellness centre and "therapist" Dr Feelgood...or rather Dr Eardley. His genuinely medically qualified colleague Dr Calman is found dead in extremely suspicious circumstances

The cover of this book drew me right in. It tells a reader everything that they need to know; that this will be a cozy mystery, that there is food and, of course, that there is caterer and amateur sleuth, Mrs. Sidhu.

Readers may know of the titular character from her appearances in other media like the TV show. Both those readers and anyone who likes traditional mysteries will, I think, enjoy this book (and hopefully others to come).

How does Mrs. Sidhu move from aubergines to murder? Read this one to find out.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins U.K. for this title. All opinions are my own.

How would I describe Mrs Sidhu? Well, she is stubborn, and determined to solve a series of murders at all costs - and utterly brilliant. While I haven't seen the TV show , starring Meera Syal, I shall be looking out for it now after reading this novel. Mrs Sidhu is desperately bored, spending her days cooking aubergine Bhajis for Mr. Varma. For such a talented cook, this is hardly a challenge and when requested to visit Benham House, she cannot wait to start work. Sadly this is all a misunderstanding, but it does work out well as she is plunged straight into a murder and decides that she can solve the case, far more efficiently that the assigned DCI Burton. And let's be honest, despite some mishaps, which are pretty funny, she succeeds admirably.
I'm looking forward to Mrs. Sidhu's next adventure - along with her son Tez.

Some of you will already know Mrs Sidhu from the TV series, I saw Meera Sayal play the sleuth and chef from Slough and fell in love with her. When the book came out I was so pleased to be able to read and review it, but sometimes when you come across a character in a different medium you are disappointed, I was with Robert Langdon in the films of Dan Browns books for example. I was not disappointed one little bit, the Meera Sayal Mrs Sidhu and the Mrs Sidhu of Dead and Scone are the same person. Her relationship with DCI Burton is at times strained and at times motherly.
A bit darker that the usual cosy mystery but can can’t help but love food and murder

Mrs Sidhu has fallen to her lowest ebb. When her last big catering job had gone wrong, Mr Varma stepped in to help her. Making Aubergine Bhajis. Day in and day out. She is bored senseless. When she receives a phone call telling her it is an emergency she goes straight to Benham House. She is sent to explain to Mrs Calman that her scones are not good enough for the fete the following week. However she discovers her body instead. Her friend DCI Burton is on the case, but will he take notice of her insights. Meanwhile her sister in law has arrived from India, a woman who always makes her feel inferior. Will this visit be any different?
An enjoyable read.

An enjoyable cosy murder story. I love Mrs Sidhu Investigates on TV with the wonderful Meera Syal and this book is no different. Quirky Mrs Sidhu is brilliant at solving murders that have the police scratching their heads. She’s also very good at finding herself in a whole load of trouble! Great fun. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

didn't realise I had already read this one so here is my previous review.

This is definitely a delightful and fun read and I enjoyed the warm cosyness of it. It was just a fun book to read with good characters and was such an easy read that I did read it in one sitting.

I liked the foodie theme to it as well and found it a rather light, fun and entertaining read. I would give it 3 1/2 stars.