Review: The Dead Come to Stay by Brandy Schillace

 

The Dead Come to Stay (Ardemore House #2) by Brandy Schillace

Publication Date: June 3rd 2025 by Hanover Square Press & Harlequin Audio

Pages: 368

Audio Book Length: 12hrs 26mins

Narrator: Imogen Church

Source: Publishers

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | HarperCollins | Libro.fm | Audible | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

After the events of the last book, Jo Jones is settling into Yorkshire in the cottage on Ardemore. The Jekyll Gardens on the estate are about to open and Jo is still investigating the mystery of her ancestors, but that doesn’t pay the bills, so she’s refurbished the attic space to rent out. However, the first booking doesn’t go as planned and a body turns up right before the Jekyll Garden opening.

 

Detective James MacAdams is called in to investigate this puzzling murder and isn’t surprised when he finds a connection between Jo and the victim.

 

Jo’s memory for detail comes in handy with the murder investigation, but she’s more involved with the mystery of her ancestors and the history between Jo’s mother and uncle. She gets more background from an unexpected source revealing information her mother never shared.

 

The Dead Come to Stay was another fun cozy murder mystery and I enjoyed seeing the relationships solidify and deepen. It was nice for Jo to get some answers and closure, as well.

 

I alternately read and listened to the audio version. I enjoyed Imogen Church’s performance of the female characters, but some of the male voices sounded stuffy and silly. Maybe it was to convey a bit of humor? Even so, I enjoyed the audio version overall.

4 Stars

Book Description:

A delightful new cozy crime novel from the award-winning author of the "twisty, engaging, and thoroughly unexpected" (Deanna Raybourne) The Framed Women of Ardemore House

An amateur autistic sleuth. A wry English detective. A murder case that thrusts them both into the wealthy world of the rare artifacts trade...

Jo Jones can't seem to catch a break. Trading in city life for the cozy, peaceful hills of North Yorkshire to take over her family estate should have been a chance for a "fresh start.” Instead, she's been driven further into the past than she thought possible -- and not just her own. The estate property is littered with traces of ancestors that Jo never knew existed, including the mysterious woman in a half-destroyed painting – and hints about Jo's late uncle, who may hold the key to her cryptic family history. Then there’s the gossipy town politics Jo must constantly navigate as a neurodivergent transplanted American… And of course, the whole murder business.

When prickly town detective James MacAdams discovers a body in the moors with coincidental ties to Jo Jones, they're forced to team up on the case. The clues will lead them into the wealthiest locales of Yorkshire, from sparkling glass hotels to luxury property sites to elite country clubs. But below the glittering surfaces, Jo and MacAdams discover darker schemes brewing. Local teens, many of them international refugees, are disappearing left and right, and each case is somehow linked to a shady architectural firm -- which also happened to employ the dead man from the moor-side ditch.

What begins as  bizarre murder case quickly plunges them both into the black market world of rare artifacts and antique trading... and a murderer who will do anything to cover it up.

About the author:

BRANDY SCHILLACE is the author of several works of nonfiction, including Mr. Humble and Dr. Butcher. She is the creator of Peculiar Book Club, a twice-monthly live-streamed YouTube show. A former professor of English and gothic literature, she writes about gender politics and history, medical mystery, and neurodiversity for outlets such as Scientific American, Wired, CrimeReads, and Medium. She is also autistic, though has not (to her knowledge) been a suspect in a murder investigation.

Connect with Brandy Schillace:

Website | BlueSky | YouTube | Facebook

Review: The Framed Women of Ardemore House by Brandy Schillace

 

The Framed Women of Ardmore House by Brandy Schillace

Publication Date: February 13th 2024 by Hanover Square Press

Pages: 336

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble |Books-a-Million | Bookshop.org | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Jo Jones inherits an estate, Ardemore House, in England. While she’s never seen it, Jo’s happy to leave the US behind after losing her job and divorcing. She’s eager for a new start. However, the estate is run-down, and Sid, the “caretaker” isn’t keen on moving on, but she doesn't trust him. Soon after he leaves, Jo discovers a painting is missing and they have a very public argument in the local pub.

Sid is murdered at the cottage on her estate, and while Jo is part of the suspect pool, there’s more than a few with better motives for killing Sid. Besides the murder, there’s a mystery surrounding the identity of the girl in the painting, one of Jo’s distant relatives.

The story is told from the POV of Jo and also DCI James MacAdams, the detective investigating Sid’s murder.  I really warmed to Jo and was rooting for her to thrive in her new circumstances! Being neurodivergent and hyperlexic she didn’t always pick up on social cues, but she excelled in picking up things that not everyone else noticed.

I really enjoyed The Framed Women of Ardemore House! It was an engrossing mystery/police procedural with interesting, multi-layered characters I’d like to get to know better! I liked the interactions between MacAdams and Jo. There were hints of a possible romance, maybe? I’d be on board for that. While the murder was solved, there were some loose strings that lead me to think there will be another story coming. If so, count me in!

 

4 Stars

Book Summary:

An abandoned English manor. A peculiar missing portrait. A cozy, deviously clever murder mystery, perfect for fans of Richard Osman and Anthony Horowitz.

Jo Jones has always had a little trouble fitting in. As a neurodivergent, hyperlexic book editor and divorced New Yorker transplanted into the English countryside, Jo doesn’t know what stands out more: her Americanisms or her autism.

After losing her job, her mother, and her marriage all in one year, she couldn’t be happier to take possession of a possibly haunted (and clearly unwanted) family estate in North Yorkshire. But when the body of the moody town groundskeeper turns up on her rug with three bullets in his back, Jo finds herself in potential danger—and she’s also a potential suspect. At the same time, a peculiar family portrait vanishes from a secret room in the manor, bearing a strange connection to both the dead body and Jo’s mysterious family history.

With the aid of a Welsh antiques dealer, the morose local detective, and the Irish innkeeper’s wife, Jo embarks on a mission to clear herself of blame and find the missing painting, unearthing a slew of secrets about the town—and herself—along the way. And she’ll have to do it all before the killer strikes again…

Author Bio: 

Brandy Schillace, PhD,  is a historian of medicine and the critically acclaimed author of Death's Summer Coat: What Death and Dying Teach Us About Life and Living and Clockwork Futures: The Science of Steampunk. The editor-in-chief of the journal Medical Humanities, she previously worked as a professor of literature and in research and public engagement at the Dittrick Medical History Center and Museum. Brandy also hosts the Peculiar Book Club Podcast, a twice-monthly show.

The Framed Women of Ardemore House, featuring an autistic protagonist caught at the center of a murder mystery, is her fiction debut. Brandy is also autistic, though has not (to her knowledge) been a suspect in a murder investigation. Find her at https://brandyschillace.com/ 

Social links:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Book Instagram

Peculiar Book Club Podcast, Facebook Group

Blog Tour Spotlight: The Framed Women of Ardemore House by Brandy Schillace

 I meant to have this read and reviewed for the tour but I'm so behind. I will say that I'm currently reading The Framed Women of Ardemore House by Brandy Schillace and enjoying it immensely! I'm rooting for Jo and want to get to the bottom of this mystery! At any rate, I have book details and an excerpt to share below!

The Framed Women of Ardmore House by Brandy Schillace

Publication Date: February 13th 2024 by Hanover Square Press

Pages: 336

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble |Books-a-Million | Bookshop.org | Goodreads

Excerpt:

Ardemore House artwork credit: Brandy Schillace

Interior Artwork inside Ardemore House-artwork credit Brandy Schillace

Book Summary:

An abandoned English manor. A peculiar missing portrait. A cozy, deviously clever murder mystery, perfect for fans of Richard Osman and Anthony Horowitz.

Jo Jones has always had a little trouble fitting in. As a neurodivergent, hyperlexic book editor and divorced New Yorker transplanted into the English countryside, Jo doesn’t know what stands out more: her Americanisms or her autism.

After losing her job, her mother, and her marriage all in one year, she couldn’t be happier to take possession of a possibly haunted (and clearly unwanted) family estate in North Yorkshire. But when the body of the moody town groundskeeper turns up on her rug with three bullets in his back, Jo finds herself in potential danger—and she’s also a potential suspect. At the same time, a peculiar family portrait vanishes from a secret room in the manor, bearing a strange connection to both the dead body and Jo’s mysterious family history.

With the aid of a Welsh antiques dealer, the morose local detective, and the Irish innkeeper’s wife, Jo embarks on a mission to clear herself of blame and find the missing painting, unearthing a slew of secrets about the town—and herself—along the way. And she’ll have to do it all before the killer strikes again…

Author Bio: 

Brandy Schillace, PhD,  is a historian of medicine and the critically acclaimed author of Death's Summer Coat: What Death and Dying Teach Us About Life and Living and Clockwork Futures: The Science of Steampunk. The editor-in-chief of the journal Medical Humanities, she previously worked as a professor of literature and in research and public engagement at the Dittrick Medical History Center and Museum. Brandy also hosts the Peculiar Book Club Podcast, a twice-monthly show.

The Framed Women of Ardemore House, featuring an autistic protagonist caught at the center of a murder mystery, is her fiction debut. Brandy is also autistic, though has not (to her knowledge) been a suspect in a murder investigation. Find her at https://brandyschillace.com/ 

Social links:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Book Instagram

Peculiar Book Club Podcast, Facebook Group