"As delicious as a Devon Cream Tea!" ~ author Elizabeth St John
"Every sentence pulls you back into the early 1970s... The Darling Buds of May, only not Kent, but Devon. The countryside itself is a character and Hollick imbues it with plenty of emotion" ~ author Alison Morton
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Make hay while the sun shines? But what happens when a murder is discovered, and country life is disrupted?
Summer 1972. Young library assistant Jan Christopher and her fiancé, DS Lawrence Walker, are on holiday in North Devon. There are country walks and a day at the races to enjoy, along with Sunday lunch at the village pub, and the hay to help bring in for the neighbouring farmer.
But when a body is found the holiday plans are to change into an investigation of murder, hampered by a resting actor, a woman convinced she’s met a leprechaun and a scarecrow on walkabout...
Jan Christopher travels, once again, to North Devon for some time away, and to spend time with her fiancé, DS Lawrence Walker’s family. It finally seems to be a pleasant experience, with Jan able to spend some quality time with Laurie, with some charming walks to the shop with a list from Laurie’s Mum, and a celebration or two, whether for a birthday or just because they are happy and having fun.
When Dorothy Clack, a (slightly crazy) village resident, arrives on their doorstep talking about dead leprechauns, no one really knows what to believe. That is, until a dead body is found, although not quite as Dorothy claimed to have seen it. Once again, Jan and Laurie’s holiday is interrupted by a mysterious murder, but as much as he may want to, Laurie is not allowed to investigate it. He may live there, but Devon is not where he works. They must simply sit back and let the local detective take the reins.
I have, unfortunately, not made good on my desire to read the rest of the books in this series. I have read the second book, A Mystery of Murder, and no others, although it was still very easy to follow this story and know what was going on. I did love A Mystery of Murder, though, so I couldn’t exactly pass up an opportunity to read this book! Once again, we follow mainly Jan, but with a few chapters from Laurie’s perspective. Unlike in A Mystery of Murder, when they were still getting to properly know each other, Jan and Laurie are incredibly close in this book, and Jan is much more comfortable around Laurie’s family. There are still a few hints of jealousy that crop up from time to time, but they are content with the knowledge that they love each other, and past relationships are no longer current.
I loved the theme of following the races, while I have never actually been to the races, I love horses and have watched some racing on the television, so I thoroughly enjoyed joining all the characters on a trip to the races to put some small bets on the horses for a bit of fun. It was at times like at the races that I truly felt I was in the book alongside Jan and Laurie. When it came to the murder mystery, though, I was working against the characters, as I was determined to figure out the truth before they did! I didn’t succeed in this, but it was fun trying!
I found myself getting incredibly frustrated, along with Laurie, at the local constables in charge of the murder investigation. If it falls on others, not involved in the investigation and without all the proper information, to solve it, you are clearly not doing your job right! They were almost insufferable, and I just wanted them to step aside and let Laurie and Jan's uncle take over. I'm sure this book would be about 10 pages long if that were the case!
Despite the fact that this is a murder mystery, it is incredibly light-hearted, and it is a fun read. I loved every second of reading it, and whenever I had to put it down, I was left trying to follow the investigation in my head, and attempting to piece together the few facts that were available to me. This, like A Mystery of Murder, is a relatively short book, at under 200 pages, but this does not hinder the story at all. While I definitely would have liked to spend more time with Jan and Laurie, the length of the story works perfectly for it. It is rather fast-paced, which allows you to reach the conclusion quickly, without necessarily being forced to put the book down to go to bed! However, as much as I wanted to spend more time with the characters, I am very aware that this is (currently) a 4 part series, so there is plenty of story to read, just in 3 other books! I do hope to finally read books 1 and 3, as I love this series, and can't wait to spend more time with Jan and Laurie (and solve more murders with them!)
Thank you so much for hosting Helen Hollick on her book blast today for her fabulous new mystery, A Meadow Murder. I'm so thrilled you enjoyed the story.
ReplyDeleteCathie xx
The Coffee Pot Book Club
Thank you so much for hosting A Meadow Murder today - and for the lovely review!
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