(Book 2 in the Martha Miller Cosy Mysteries)
I do love a cosy mystery and as this one is set in the 1940s, I thought it sounded really interesting. I did enjoy the authentic 1940s feel to it, the language and the lack of modern technology. Of course, World War II was over by 1947, but still had a big impact on everyone and this is reflected in the novel.
The book begins in Berkshire in September 1947. We meet Martha Miller and her friend Luke Walker. Straight away, we discover Martha is technically married, but doesn’t know where her husband is. Also Luke is a vicar, so people have criticised their friendship/relationship. Early on, we also meet Martha’s sister Ruby and Martha’s dog Lizzie (a red setter), so we are taken straight into Martha’s world and seeing important figures in her life. Martha, Ruby and Lizzie live in a cottage in the village of Westleham.
Due to events in Book 1, Martha has been asked to open the Winteringham and District Country Fair. It seems a pleasant thing to do, the weather is nice, the locals friendly – but then tragedy strikes. The local doctor and policeman seem quite incompetent. Can Martha and Luke solve another mysterious death?
Martha is such a brilliant character, I loved her straight away. Luke is also a really good character as are so many others in the book, they all come to life brilliantly under Catherine Coles’s talented writing style. There is a gentle humour to the book too, which I really appreciated. The setting is very well-created and it’s easy to imagine everything in the village – the shops, the pub and so on.
Although this is Book 2 in the series, it works perfectly well as a standalone. I hadn’t read Book 1, but was soon updated with events from that book early on here, so I felt fully informed.
Overall, this was an absolute delight and I look forward to reading more in this series!
BLURB
Daggers at the Country Fair
Winteringham Village 1947
As a thank you for her previous brilliant crime solving, amateur sleuth, Martha Miller is guest of honour at the Winteringham Country Fair. However, this time she is looking forward to simply judging dog shows and eating cream teas rather than apprehending a killer!
And Martha is just beginning to enjoy spending quality time with Vicar Luke Walker away from the prying eyes and gossips of her own village, when disaster strikes, and the local teenage femme fatale is found stabbed to death behind the tea tent by Martha’s trusted red setter Lizzie!
But who would want to kill such a young girl and why? Someone in the village has secrets to hide and it seems Martha and Luke have another case to solve!
Let the investigation commence!
Purchase Link – https://amzn.to/39FO4RF
Catherine Coles writes bestselling cosy mysteries set in the English countryside. Her extremely popular Tommy & Evelyn Christie series is based in North Yorkshire in the 1920’s and Catherine herself lives in Hull with her family and two spoiled dogs.
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