Meet Julia Bird: recently single, reluctantly retired, and… an amateur sleuth?
Julia Bird has left London for a fresh start in a picturesque Cotswolds village, and the rustic charm and cozy fireplaces of her little cottage are everything she’d hoped for. But when she tears down the old garden shed to make way for a chicken coop, she unearths much more than she’d bargained for… the body of a young woman, apparently buried for decades, thrusting Julia into a baffling mystery.
With only one copper on the case in Berrywick, Julia decides to solve the who and whodunnit herself, taking her wayward puppy Jake along for the ride. And so begins a whirlwind tour of the village – from the dotty 90-year-old to the delightful doctor and the village gardener, it seems everyone has something to hide.
Soon, Julia is convinced she has discovered the killer’s identity, until Jake, a true Labrador, finds a new love of the local lake’s waterfowl and instead ends up catching her chief suspect… drowned. Back at square one, with potential culprits galore, Julia – newly nicknamed the Grim Reaper – despairs at ever solving the murders.
But as Julia ruffles feathers village-wide, the clock is ticking. There is someone in the village who has killed twice already. Will they be prepared to make it third time lucky to keep their secret safe?
This totally addictive page-turning cozy mystery is perfect for fans of M.C. Beaton, Faith Martin, and Betty Rowlands.
My Rating:
Favorite Quotes:
When giving herself a stern talking-to, Julia tended to employ her dead mother’s voice, and her clipped and direct tone. No doubt a psychologist would have a field day with that, but the fact was that it worked. She felt herself buck up.
The first thing Julia noticed on entering the offices of the William Adamson Property Company, was the receptionist’s false eyelashes. They reminded Julia of Petunia the cow, her grandmother’s prize Jersey. She’d had the longest, thickest lashes, and as a child Julia had loved her slow blink, as if her lashes were too heavy to move. It really was quite unnerving on a human, though. The lashes extended forwards and then swooped upwards and fanned out. Just about as alarming was the orange eyeshadow. Every time the girl blinked, it was as if two tangerine segments descended over her eyeballs.
Julia realised what talking to Nicky reminded her of – a waterfall. That rushing feeling as the freezing water cascaded over your head, overwhelming your senses and rendering you curiously numb.
Sebastian fell to the ground in a full-on tantrum. It was quite astonishing, actually, like a cartoon of a tantrum, little heels drumming on the ground, fists clenched, tears and snot spewing, and a bellow… Good Lord… A bellow that would wake the dead. Which would be handy, come to think of it, given the circumstances.
My Review:
This was my first exposure to the sparkling style and wily wit of Katie Gayle and I am kicking myself for not noticing this gifted duo of wordsmiths sooner. This delightful little missive was a fun, wryly humorous, cleverly paced, and pleasingly engaging read from start to finish. The writing style was easy to fall into and flowed smoothly and pleasantly while it tickled my curiosity and appealed to my predilection for witty and comedic yet insightful observations. The pace was well-honed with well-crafted storylines and details that pulled sharp visuals to my mind’s eye and kept an amused grin on my face. I enjoyed this odd little village and its authentically quirky inhabitants, although I certainly wouldn’t want to live there.
About the Authors
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Katie Gayle is the writing partnership of best-selling South African writers, Kate Sidley and Gail Schimmel. Kate and Gail have, between them, written over ten books of various genres, but with Katie Gayle, they both make their debut in the cozy mystery genre. Both Gail and Kate live in Johannesburg, with husbands, children, dogs, and cats.
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