Customer Reviews

A Season for Murder

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you like the British mystery, complete with English heaths and pubs, tweeds and gardens and walking shoes--then you'll enjoy "A Season for Murder". Meredith Mitchell returns to England after years abroad with the British foreign service in Central Europe. She settles in to a small town in the Cotswolds, is greeted by her old friend Chief Inspector Markby and her soon-to-be-murdered neighbor, Harriet Needham. There's lots of tea, horses, and heath-walkers in the course of events--even a handsome gypsy thrown in for good measure. But Harriet's murderer is a surprise and by the time Meredith and Markby discover who it is, he's murdered another victim.

A delightful book, well written, with deft and remarkable characterization and plotting.

Meredith Mitchell has been working for the British Foreign Service for years, and Pook's Common is the best place for her to move after getting a desk job. When she meets a charming woman, Harriet Needham, she knows she's found a great friend, until she turns up dead at the Boxing Day Hunt. Now it's up to Meredith and Inspector Markby to find the killer.

While this was a very charming cozy, it wasn't all mystery. It did deal a lot with the relationship between Meredith and Markby. I also felt that the author described the characters a little too much, I was waiting for a murder. Overall I enjoyed this book very much, and recommend it to anyone looking for a great cozy this holiday season, or for anytime of the year.

The English countryside, mistletoe, murder and a little romance - I thought this would be a great book. What a disappointment, I stopped after 40 pages because I couldn't take any more preaching. Unless you want to read endless left-wing rants about what is wrong with the world - save your money.

Ms. Granger's "Mitchell and Markby" mystery series is very enjoyable. She crafts as decent mystery as cozies go and I'm usually interested enough to finish the book. The plots are neat and move along fairly quickly. However, I've read about seven in this series and am having a real problem warming to the heroine, Meredith Mitchell. She's just not all that likeable and in this particular book, she's especially disagreeable. It seems that on every page she's either annoyed about something or going into some sort of snit with the long-suffering Alan. Other than that, it's a pretty good book.

Picked this up at a library sale and expected a good listen while driving. It took three of nine discs before there was a death, several more before it was even recognized to be suspicious. Heroine is an introspective whiner with scenes so predictable as to make one scream. And the repetition: How many times does the author need to establish that someone who works with horses might have rough hands?
The reader is OK; not great at voices and pauses too long, but adequate. Discs will be Goodwilled soon. I can't even foist the book off on relatives who like audiobooks.

And smack in the middle of another death which could be murder. Meredith has been posted to the London office, and is renting a small cottage in the countryside. Even though Pook's Common looks quiet and sleepy, there are more things going on than Meredith is prepared for. She and Alan are on the trail of a murderer again. I really do enjoy this series, and this second book leaves me panting for more about Meredith and Alan. Ms. Granger is a very good writer. I like her characterizations, and she keeps the plot moving along at a good pace. I am also curious to see what happens between Meredith and Alan.