The third in the Flora Steele Mysteries and the young bookshop owner has left her shop behind i the Sussex village of Abbeymead and embarked on a trip to Cornwall.
Accompanying her is Jack Carrington, crime writer, who needs to finish his latest novel otherwise his agent and publisher are gong to be further annoyed if it is delayed any further.
Renting a cottage from Roger Gifford, Flora is somewhat surprised to find him dead the following morning after their arrival in an overgrown orchard. His throat had been caught. The locals are devastated, he was well liked, popular and why would such a heinous crime happen in such a small village.
Roger was looking into something and it seems he got quite near the truth about events during the Second World War. However, Roger leaves behind a bitter ex-wife and a money grabbing brother, both with valid reasons for wanting Roger gone. Then the presence of mysterious women Mercy Dearlove spooks a number of the locals, could she have been the one?
When another body turns up and the mystery during the war leads them back to Abbeymead and Jack’s own father, it seems that it is not just one puzzle that is going to be solved when they find the murderer.
A light cosy crime read which gives you escapism in all its forms and even if like me you worked out “whodunnit”, it doesn’t really matter as it is always nice to see how we get to the solution. Clearly there is more to be had from Flora and Jack, they make for a pleasant diversion and like friendly faces jumping off the page.
Thank you to the publisher via netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.
Murder at Primrose Cottage is out now.
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