Author: Catherine Coles
Published: March 17th 2022 by Boldwood Books
Format: Cozy Mystery
Source: My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for an opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.
Series: Martha Miller Mystery #1
Blurb: Westleham Village 1947.
It’s the Westleham village show and with the war finally over, everyone is looking forward to a pleasant day.
But newcomer, Martha Miller doesn’t share the excitement. Because since her husband Stan left for work one day and never returned, Martha has been treated as somewhat of an outsider in Westleham. The village gossip is that Martha must be to blame….
Martha hopes she can win her fellow villagers over with her delicious homemade plum gin. But as glasses of the tangy tipple are quaffed, disaster strikes! Chairwoman of the village show, Alice Warren, slumps to the ground – poisoned!
As fingers of suspicion again point Martha’s way, she’s determined to prove her innocence and find the real culprit. And she’s ably helped by the new vicar, Luke Walker.
But who would kill Alice and why? And will Luke and Martha discover who is behind the poisoning before it’s too late? (Publisher)
My Opinion: I love a well-crafted cozy mystery. A mystery where the main character lets you know right off that she isn’t a young blonde with bouncing curls. What did throw me off was her age. For most of the book, I thought Martha Miller was older than her thirty-three years since she comes across as a decade older. It must be the time and place -- 1947 in the village of Westleham, where village gossip and decorum are a priority.
The story is woven in such a way where you think you have it nailed down, then a slight change, and once again, you are off with the ladies following the gossip until one little clue and the lightbulb you share with Martha flicks to life.
Not quite Agatha Raisin and not quite Father Brown, but a patchwork that is reminiscent of their adventures. The second in the series, Daggers at the Country Fair, will be available this summer. I suggest you get the tea ready and enjoy another visit with the gossips of Westleham.
It’s the Westleham village show and with the war finally over, everyone is looking forward to a pleasant day.
But newcomer, Martha Miller doesn’t share the excitement. Because since her husband Stan left for work one day and never returned, Martha has been treated as somewhat of an outsider in Westleham. The village gossip is that Martha must be to blame….
Martha hopes she can win her fellow villagers over with her delicious homemade plum gin. But as glasses of the tangy tipple are quaffed, disaster strikes! Chairwoman of the village show, Alice Warren, slumps to the ground – poisoned!
As fingers of suspicion again point Martha’s way, she’s determined to prove her innocence and find the real culprit. And she’s ably helped by the new vicar, Luke Walker.
But who would kill Alice and why? And will Luke and Martha discover who is behind the poisoning before it’s too late? (Publisher)
My Opinion: I love a well-crafted cozy mystery. A mystery where the main character lets you know right off that she isn’t a young blonde with bouncing curls. What did throw me off was her age. For most of the book, I thought Martha Miller was older than her thirty-three years since she comes across as a decade older. It must be the time and place -- 1947 in the village of Westleham, where village gossip and decorum are a priority.
The story is woven in such a way where you think you have it nailed down, then a slight change, and once again, you are off with the ladies following the gossip until one little clue and the lightbulb you share with Martha flicks to life.
Not quite Agatha Raisin and not quite Father Brown, but a patchwork that is reminiscent of their adventures. The second in the series, Daggers at the Country Fair, will be available this summer. I suggest you get the tea ready and enjoy another visit with the gossips of Westleham.
No comments:
Post a Comment