The Shell House Detectives

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The Harbour Lights Mystery is the 2nd book in the Shell House Detective series. It takes place in the town of Porthpella. Ally Bright owns The Shell House as well as a partner in the Shell House Investigation company. Jaden is an ex-policeman and her partner. There are the original characters in the town from the first book as well as the new characters that add to the story. While I liked the above quotes for one reason or another, there was one piece of text that really made me stop and think… Ally Bright lives in a house in the dunes in Porthpella on the Cornish coast. She lives alone and is still grieving the death of her husband who was the local policeman. Walking her dog on the beach one morning she discovers the body of a man and her calls for help are answered by a young man who is surfing. He turns out to be Jayden Weston, an ex policeman who left the force after his partner was killed. The action started when Paul Pascoe got released from prison and came home to find that his mother’s house was gone. He was frantic. He pounded on the door of the Hunter home and got rudely rebuffed. Paul then went to Maggie’s home Paul said that he was looking for Bill Bight, who had promised to help him once he was released from prison Paul wanted to know where his mother went. Maggie did not know. Paul left without getting any help from Ally.

Ally and Jayden interviewed Sebastian, Victoria’s brother. He accused Roland of killing Victoria to get the family wealth. The brother thought the wealth should have gone to him. Ally and Jayden began to wonder whether Roland had killed Helena. They also wondered about Nathan Hunter, Roland’s disagreeable brother who was visiting from the big city. Gorgeous writing and a plot crammed with suspense, this is your perfect new crime series for 2023.” —Kate Riordan, author of The HeatwaveAlly and Jayden discovered a connection between Roland, Nathan and Paul Pascoe. They had argued. Ally and Jayden began to wonder whether the Hunter brothers had pushed Paul off the cliff. Ally has so many questions. But others have questions too. Jayden Weston, an ex-cop that runs to answer cries for help, and Gus Munro, on holiday, to write a detective novel, and now there’s a mystery on his doorstep.

Set in beautiful Cornwall, The Shell House Detectives follows an unlikely menagerie of characters as they work to solve a mystery. We first meet Ally Bright, recently widowed from her husband Bill, who was a well known and loved policeman in the town of Porthpella. Late at night, a young man - Lewis - comes to her house and begs for Bill’s help; confused and distraught, she turns him away. He’s found the next morning, having fallen (or jumped? Or pushed?) from the nearby cliffs. Nicely written with interesting characters, beautiful setting and a cute dog. An excellent start to a new series and I will be looking out for book two. Fate must have brought them together because they become friends almost immediately and, when the police make very little progress in the murder investigation, the two of them bring their combined knowledge of police work together and set out to solve the mystery. And what a mystery as turns out to involve a cold case of suicide and another of murder, and new cases of a missing woman and a possible attempted suicide. All in all, not only do i now want to be a member of The Shell House Detectives but i cannot wait to read about what they will get up to next!The Shell House Detectives is brilliant because it has heart and soul as well as entertainment, making it sensitive, gripping and compelling. Don’t miss it. About Emylia Hall Emylia Hall lives in Bristol with her husband and son where she writes from a hut in the garden and dreams of the sea. The Shell House Detectives is the first novel in her new crime series, following the exploits of sleuthing duo Ally and Jayden and the people in and around the fictional village of Porthpella. The Harbour Lights Mystery – the second book in The Shell House Mystery series – will be published in October 2023, with the third to follow in Spring 2024. Described as Contemporary Cosy Crime, the series is inspired by her love of Cornwall’s wild landscape. Truth. A word that delivers a sharp and precise cut, every time she thinks of it – so mostly she tries not to. He was drawn to her then, he knows that now; inexplicably, he wanted to stay in her orbit. Maybe that was how it worked: certain people came into your life at just the right moment – only you didn’t know it was the right moment, not at the time. That only came later. It’s December in Cornwall, and Mousehole harbour is illuminated with its famous Christmas lights. Ally Bright is among the crowd listening to the carol singers and then to the piercing screams that rip through the darkness. A body has been found, brutally murdered and dumped in a fisherman’s boat.

Harry Bosch and the Lincoln Lawyer team up to exonerate a woman who’s already served five years for killing her ex-husband. I like to think of it as a series that could run and run but much depends on sales, so with the third novel I’ve tried to deliver satisfying arcs while also leaving the door open for more stories set in Porthpella. I’m travelling hopefully!” An expertly plotted and hugely compelling murder mystery.…Crime fans are in for a treat.” —Lucy Clarke, author of One of the Girls Driven by their need to know more, the duo decide to investigate the mystery together. Is there a connection between the Pascoe family’s tragic history and Helena’s disappearance? And if there is a killer stalking Porthpella, do Ally and Jayden have what it takes to catch them? My Review of The Shell House DetectivesAnother character we get an insight into is Detective Sargeant Skinner. There are a few surprises there too! I loved the friendship that develops between Allie and Jayden as well as her relationship with Gus. I look forward to the next book in this series and what adventure the Shell House Detective Agency will getting into.

The first book in a new cosy mystery series. One of the strengths of this book is the characters. They were mostly well written. At times I thought they were awkward, but on the whole I did enjoy them. I did enjoy Ally very much, but I'm not yet sold on Jayden. Maybe he will grow on me a bit in future books, but I have read cosies before where the main character, or in this case one of the main characters, didn't work for me. It happens. But at least Ally and some other characters were engaging. I at least want to see if Gus will write the first chapter in his book! I found the characters extremely engaging, and the twists and turns throughout were great. None of the story felt too predictable, and the characters all had flaws and quirks that added to their personality. She felt drained, suddenly, the need to be near people replaced by the far more familiar desire to be alone. Jayden was an ex-cop who was recovering from the stress of losing his police partner Kiernan who died on the job in a violent confrontation. Jayden and his wife Cat had moved to the area where her parents lived. The parents wanted Jayden to help run a fancy campground. Jayden was depressed and at loose ends. What drew you to your first foray into crime fiction? How different is the process from writing your earlier novels?The Shell House Detectives is a hug of a book that is transporting and full of love, with a humdinger of a mystery at its big heart." - Amanda Reynolds Ally and Jayden located Fiona Penrose, an artist who had been painting on the beach, and had talked with Helena shortly before Helena’s disappearance. They went to visit Fiona and discovered Helena there. Helena was in hiding from Roland because Helena thought that Roland had killed his first wife to get her money, and she feared for her own safety. Ally and Jayden informed police that Helena had been found. Roland was angry. The writing is really good. It's complex and subtle and yet fast-reading. She really sets a mood. When someone is about to reveal something important: "In the tree above them, a wood pigeon takes off with a clapping of wings that sounds like gunfire."