Murder On The River by Janice Frost

🌟 Review Note:

This review is provided as part of the Virtual Book Tour hosted by Zooloo’s Book Tours which runs 9 – 15 October 2025. Follow along with the Book Tour Schedule.

My sincere thanks to Joffe Books and Zooloo’s Book Tours for inviting me to be part of this book tour and for providing a digital copy of Murder on the River, the 5th Warwick & Bell novel by Janice Frost.

As always, this review reflects my honest thoughts.

About the book

It’s the one piece of evidence that will crack the case . . .
but is it too shocking to reveal?

A murdered student.
A secret buried in the past.
A killer who’s still watching.

Detective Steph Warwick is halfway through her Christmas shopping when she gets the call. The body of a young man has been pulled from the icy River Witham.

The victim is Max Barsby, a quiet, hardworking archaeology student with no enemies – or so it seems. But Max didn’t drown. He was murdered. Bludgeoned over the head and left for dead. With the university all but deserted for the holidays, Steph finds herself with few leads and even fewer witnesses.

Meanwhile Special Constable Jane Bell is investigating a routine break-in when she stumbles across an unexpected link to Max. As Jane and Steph’s paths cross once more, Steph reluctantly brings the warm-hearted mother-of-two into the fold – knowing Jane can reach people – and places – that she can’t.

Their enquiries unearth a mysterious girlfriend, a controversial dig site, and a discovery someone will kill to protect.

But when Jane finds a piece of evidence too explosive to share, her silence may prove deadly – for both of them.

Murder on the River by Janice Frost
Published 9 October 2025 by Joffe Books

You can find the book on Amazon and Goodreads

Who is Janice Frost?

Janice was born and grew up in West Lothian, Scotland.

After completing an English degree at St Andrew’s University, she moved to London where she lived for ten years doing an assortment of jobs. Her passions are reading, writing and walking in Scotland and the Lake District. She lives in Lincolnshire with her husband and two sons.

You can follow Janice on social media at @JaniceFrostAuthor on instagram and on X (formerly Twitter) @Janice579021.

My Review

This is the first book I’ve read by Janice Frost, and I was pleasantly surprised by how easily I settled into the story. Even though it’s book five in the Warwick & Bell Crime Mysteries, it works perfectly well as a standalone. I didn’t feel like I’d missed anything important from previous books.

The writing has a really natural flow, which made it a quick and absorbing read. There are quite a lot of characters involved, but it never felt overcrowded or confusing. Each one brought something different to the narrative, and the mix of personalities gave the story texture and momentum.

I particularly enjoyed the contrast between Detective Steph Warwick and Special Constable Jane Bell. Steph’s more reserved, procedural style pairs really well with Jane’s warmth and relatability, and their different approaches helped keep the investigation interesting. It didn’t feel like a typical “police duo” setup — more like two very different women navigating the same case from opposite angles.

The mystery itself kept me invested from the start. There are enough suspects, secrets, and threads to follow without it becoming overwhelming, and the pacing stayed consistent all the way through. I never found myself drifting or wanting to skim ahead, which says a lot about how well it’s written.

After enjoying this one so much, I’ve now gone ahead and bought all five books in the Warwick & Bell series on Kindle. I’m really looking forward to starting from the beginning and reading them in order — and if the rest are as strong as this, I can see myself exploring more of Janice Frost’s work too.

This review may also appear on my social media and selected book platforms. All links are correct at the time of posting.

💬 A note from the blogger…
Even though this was my first Janice Frost novel, I clearly picked a great place to start because I’ve now gone and bought the entire Warwick & Bell series on Kindle! All five books are sitting ready and waiting, and I can’t wait to go right back to the beginning and read the series in order.

Murder Among Friends (Book 1)
Murder Across the Lines (Book 2)
Murder Against the Odds (Book 3)
Murder on a Country Walk (Book 4)
Murder on the River (Book 5)

I’ve got a feeling I’ll be buried in these soon! I’ll be reviewing them as I go — no set timeline, but they’re definitely calling to me from my Kindle!

#JaniceFrost #MurderOnTheRiver #WarwickAndBell #JoffeBooks #ZooloosBookTours #arcreview #blogtour