The Murderous Affair at Stone Manor: a completely gripping cozy murder mystery

Written by Laura Stewart

Narrated by Sara Young

Mystery fiction fanatic Amelia Adams is stunned when she inherits a dilapidated mansion, complete with secret passages, hidden compartments, and its very own legend…

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dreamscape Media
• Release date: Oct 19, 2021
• ISBN: 9781666527049

Laura Stewart

Laura Stewart is the author of The Murderous Affair at Stone Manor, which was shortlisted for the Richard and Judy writing competition.

Reviews for The Murderous Affair at Stone Manor

[David Anderson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Just complicated enough to keep me interested! I liked it enough to listen twice.

[anne · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

i Loved it! Super interesting and really kept my attention.

[kerri · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The story was good but the narrator’s accents were not great. Took away from the story and so I ended up reading it instead of listening.

[Rocio ildemaro · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Fine story but could have been improved with a different narrator. The American accent felt misplaced.

[Megan Patrick · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The main character is both a doormat and an idiot, which wouldn't be awful if those were growth points for her, but they're not. She starts off as a doormat and an idiot, and she continues to be one until well after all the clues fall in her lap. The rest of the characters are either forgettably dull or gratingly quirky/edgy in a way that's supposed to be endearing but isn't.

The mystery is mediocre and I likely would have added this to my DNF list but it was on in the background as I worked. The only murder happens well offscreen to a character we never meet and don't care about, and is carried out long before the story starts. All other mystery related incidents are fairly minor and unexciting, some of them we don't even 'witness' but hear about from other characters offhand. I never once felt the tension you would expect from a murder mystery.

Some of this would have been resolved by a good bit of editing as the book is too long for the story being told. There are a lot of unnecessary asides, details, and moments that add nothing, kill what little momentum is building, or just kind of fizzle out and are left dangling.

All of which is disappointing as this definitely could have been a fun, funny, and intriguing mystery. The bones are there, just not enough meat.

Oh, and I have no idea why someone picked an American narrator for a book where all but like 2 characters are from the UK, but it was a poor decision. She struggled throughout to maintain the accents for the characters and it really took me out of the story at times, especially as there were moments when I wasn't sure who was talking because their accent had changed mid-conversation. I don't think she's a bad narrator, quite the contrary as I've enjoyed other stories she's voiced, but I definitely think she was the wrong choice for this particular book.

[Heidi Hines · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved this book. Characters are very authentic. Really enjoyed!! Yes there is some language but it fits the story. Enjoy!

[Rae Jean Nelson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sort of a reality show in book form. Pretty superficial, but fun.

[Hans Jarle Kind · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Stupid, nice story ? cozy murder story, no doubt! And clearly inspired by Agatha Christie...

[Bryanna Smith · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The story itself is intriguing and some of the characters are endearing, but it took way too long for me to get into listening to the book. I kept putting it aside and listening to another book instead and probably finished three other books before forcing myself to make it to the end. My reluctance to finish the story was everything to do with the narration. Like I said the story itself was definitely enjoyable but the bad attempt at British and Irish accents became unbearable at times, the Scottish was less irritating. If you have no problems focusing around poorly done accents then you'll enjoy the story, if not I would suggest the ebook.

[Elizabeth Rundle · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The plot and the characters may have been good but bad language always puts me off reading the book. That’s what I like about historical novels they don’t contain bad language.