Review: The Dead Come to Stay

Brandy Schillace’s next book in the Netherleigh series, The Dead Come to Stay, is a cozy mystery set in North Yorkshire. Picking up where The Framed Women of Ardemore left off, this second book involves the murder of a lodger at Jo Jones’ newly opened guest space in her attic.

Schillace intertwines the two main threads throughout each chapter, following both Detective Chief Inspector James MacAdams and the police as they investigate the murder and Jo as she discovers more about her family (both blood and found).

While the author does a great job job getting the reader up to speed on the events from the previous book, I was so intrigued by Jo’s story that I went back to read Framed Women before I got more than a few chapters into The Dead Come to Stay. 

The characters in this series are what really make it. Jo Jones is neurodivergent and her attention to detail (as well as her past experience as an editor) means that she is aware of things that others may miss. MacAdams is both every British policeman you’ve read about, but yet nothing like any of them. My favorite character Detective Sergeant Sheila Green is MacAdams’ right hand and his conscience. In addition, Arthur and Chen who we meet in this book are sure to be new additions to my favorites list.

As someone who has been reading way too many “between the wars” cozy mysteries lately, this was just the contemporary cozy that I needed to read right now as I start working on my own. I’m definitely looking forward to more books in the Netherleigh series.

4 stars out of 5

Disclaimer: I received this book as a free eARC from the author. All views shared here are my own.