Season for Murder (Mitchell and Markby Village Whodunnits) [Paperback]

Ann Granger (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 6, 1992 | Series: Mitchell and Markby Village Whodunnits

It is with some trepiditation that Meredith Mitchell returns to the Cotswolds: the Bamford district holds memories that, to put it generously, are bittersweet, and Christmas is a difficult time to find oneself a stranger in a new area. Yet she receives a kindly welcome, in particular from her old acquaintance Chief Inspector Markby and from her new neighbour Harriet Needham, a striking redhead with whom Meredith immediately feels a certain kinship. But Meredith has barely got to know her neighbour when Harriet is involved in a shocking - and fatal - accident at the Boxing Day Hunt. Witnesses to the death are plentiful, for the incident occurred in Bamford's crowded market square, and many are adamant it's a case of murder. Chief Inspector Markby is inclined to agree, although he suspects the guilty party is not the most obvious one. Before long Meredith Mitchell begins, reluctantly, to think he might be right ...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The impact of modern life on English villages is vividly captured in Granger's second murder mystery. British consular officer Meredith Mitchell rents isolated Rose Cottage in Pook's Common when she is posted back to England. Uneasily resuming her acquaintance with attractive local CID Chief Inspector Alan Markby (begun in Say It with Poison ), Meredith becomes friendly with neighbor equestrienne Harriet Needham. When Harriet dies from a fall during a Boxing Day meet, animal rights activist Simon Pardy is blamed because his banner spooked the steed. The autopsy, however, discloses that Harriet , known to have abjured drugs and medicines, died full of tranquilizers and alcohol. Alan draws Meredith into the investigation, which is complicated by the murder of the unlikable Pardy, an attack on Harriet's vengeance-seeking executor cousin and a plethora of the horsewoman's former lovers. As Meredith uncovers old local secrets, she also tries to sort out her highly ambiguous feelings for Alan. Granger delicately probes human relationships in this top-notch tale.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

A second outing for British consular officer Meredith Mitchell (Say It With Poison) brings her back to England and a new post in London. She accepts a friend's offer of a house in the Cotswolds, a long commute, and finds herself living in Pook's Common, an isolated huddle of cottages far from Bamford, the nearest town. Chief Inspector Alan Markby loses no time in renewing their acquaintanceship, and Meredith becomes friendly with neighbor Harriet Needham, a feisty, hard-drinking horsewoman, the area's femme fatale, who, soon after they meet, is thrown from her horse at the start of the Bamford Hunt, and dies. Was the accident due to the interference of anti-blood-sport activist Simon Pardy or to some more sinister cause? The answer lies in Harriet's past and in mega coincidence--most of it as unconvincing as a second murder, Meredith's near-fatal bout with the killer, and her tepid, not- quite romance with Markby. Add a plus for horse-lovers; for others, a slow-moving, only mildly interesting slog. -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Headline Book Publishing (February 6, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0747237158
• ISBN-13: 978-0747237150
• Product Dimensions: 4.4 x 0.8 x 7.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,101,906 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A connoisseur's delight, January 1, 2001

By 

Judith Lindenau "dulcie22" (Traverse City, MI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Season for Murder (Meredith and Markby Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

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.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice Cozy, February 7, 2002

By 

Erika Sorocco (Southern California, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Season for Murder (Meredith and Markby Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

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.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars More politics than mystery, October 22, 2009

By 

D. Hickman "Doris & Ron" (Virginia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Season for Murder (Meredith and Markby Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

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.