Sugar and Spite

Fortunately for M.C. Beaton (aka Marian Chesney) fans, this sixth Agatha Raisin novel created since Beaton’s demise, and written by R. W. Greenby, provides all the fun they are looking for. Mrs. Bloxby, the Vicar’s wife, convinces Agatha to attend a lecture by the Carsely Ladies Society to be delivered by three bird watchers (they call themselves twitchers). Agatha expects a dull evening but it turns out to be quite the opposite as a local farmer breaks up the lecture and threatens the women for trespassing on his land, and then the trio of twitchers ends up having a full-on war among one another. The next day, Agatha learns that one of the women has been discovered dead, and the rather dumb police chief insists it isn’t murder. So off we go, as Agatha takes up the search for the murderer, using the staff of her detective agency, friends, and inside knowledge from the police themselves. A pleasure, but brace yourself for a very surprising ending.