Customer Reviews

The Tale of Hill Top Farm: The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter

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Beatrix Potter is the heroine of this mystery, but not in the way that is popular lately: famous historical or fictional person is secretly a great detective. No, in this gentle mystery, Albert mixes fact with fiction and in telling of Miss Potter's first visit to Hill Top Farm as owner. There is no gruesome murder, no horrid secrets, no fearsome villain. Instead, there are a few missing items in the village of Near Sawrey that bring a ripple of disturbance to their (mostly) peaceful village. Miss Potter is not the detective, she doesn't seek out to find the missing items, nor does she use any deductive skills to solve the mysteries. She is merely the central point around which the story moves.

The thing that turns this from just the average village story, sprinkled with domestic mystery, to a delightful and charming story is the animals. Miss Potter brings here hedgehog, two bunnies and mouse with her. Also, the village has quite a cast of cats and dogs. What's even better-they talk! Not to humans, of course, but to each other. There conversations are recorded in italics, so the reader knows immediately which species is communicating. Albert uses it to make several amusing scenes where the animals are trying to tell the humans something, only to be told to stop meowing, or that there's no more fish, or that if they stop that noise they'll have to go outside. How shocked the village residents would be to discover that their pets made great detectives!

Another feature that makes this book so interesting is Miss Potter herself. Albert gives the reader glimpses of Miss Potters biography that made me sincerely want to read more. Luckily, Albert included a biographical not at the end, following Potter's life up to the point when the Hill Top Farm visit took place. I was interested enough, though, to want to know of Miss Potter, of what happens next, of when she does finally move in to Hill Top Farm. I was inspired to re-read Miss Potter's tales, as well, from the many mentions made of them.

I've used the word already, but "gentle" seems the best way to describe The Tale of Hill Top Farm. Pastoral, perhaps would also give the right impression; it is an escape from telephones and traffic and tv (and murder mysteries) to a slower time, when the loss of the Parish Register is a dreadful thing. Animal lovers will enjoy this book, though it might not be quite as satisfying to mystery lovers. Personally, I'm looking forward to the next of "The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter".

The Tale of Hill Top Farm is the first of a series which centers around the imagined life of Beatrix Potter, famed author of The Tale of Peter Rabbit and many other beloved children's books. The facts of her life are adhered to: her growing literary success; her difficult and cold upper class parents; the death from a sudden onset leukemia of her fiance and editor; her purchase of a small farm in the English Lake Country. But, the events surrounding the "mystery" are Susan Wittig Albert's contribution - the excellent description of the countryside and the times (later 1800's), the people, the speech patterns,etc. are done "in the manner of" Beatrix Potter...and well done.

Accustomed as we are to rip-tide quick action packed thrillers, it takes a bit to switch to Ms. Potter's/Ms. Albert's 19th century charm and pace. Don't be put off by the need to "switch gears"...it is a pleasure to have a different pace to a mystery. And the characters, including animals a la Potter, are wonderful.

This book was listed as a mystery and, although it begins with a suspicious death, this is not a whodunit. Rather, The Tale of Hill Top Farm is a country tale that follows the life of Beatrix Potter and the townsfolk. There is a very interesting group of people in the book and they are all fictional (with the exception of Beatrix and William Heelis). Basically, Beatrix purchases the Hill Top Farm in the small village of Near Sawrey, and the book follows her interactions and struggles. It is weird - at first - to read a fictional book starring a real-life person; plus, the small animals in the book have spoken lines. The animals talk to the humans, but they can't be heard except to other animals. While some reviewers were put-off by the talking animals, I thought it was a sweet addition, and the animals actually help move the plot along. The story is rather `slow' in the sense that there is no action, really. This is a character-driven book in the small country, so you won't zip through this book at the same pace as an adventure or typical mystery. The book reminded me (a bit) of the Mitford series by Jan Karon, but without the religious messages. Overall, the book is very charming and I'll continuing reading the series.

I have never read any of Ms. Albert's other books - until I read this one. I am an avid art follower of Beatrix Potter - and Ms. Albert has capitalized on her original life story and added delightful little animal characters that speak (which I believe they actually do in life) and made a wonderful story and town in which to mentally dwell. If you are interested in the writing of Jan Karon, Mignon Ballard, Lori Copeland and Nancy Atherton then you will HAVE to have both of these books and then will wait with bated breath for the next in the series. Treat yourself to a mental vacation and purchase this book - followed by The Tale of Holly How.

One of the best by this always intriguing author. In the costumes of 100 years ago, Beatrix Potter grieves for an old love and finds that the greatest love of all comes from loving oneself within. A motley crew of animals aid her in her quest for self-realization. A missing painting case is brought to a successful conclusion. Seven more books are expected to follow this well-researched placement. Once you get started with one, you can't help it, you must follow this Texas author's trail wherever she decides to lead one, for she is the Pied Piper of literature.

Beatrix Potter wrote such delightful stories and created such interesting characters that Ms. Albert has decided to bring them together in this the first of a series of mystery books. This is not a vicious and nasty mystery book. Indeed how can it be when the amateur detective (Beatrix Potter) has help in solfing the case from Tom Thumb Mouse, and Josey and Mopsy Rabbit.

The story is an interesting mix of truth and very imaginative fiction. The truth is that Beatrix Potter did indeed buy Hill Top Farm in 1905, not a common thing for a lady to do in that period. In fact you can visit the house. When she died, she left it to the British National Trust with the proviso that it be kept exactly as she left it, complete with her furniture and china. For more information, just do a Google search.

It's not unlikely that she may have talked to her mouse and rabbit creations. But it's pretty unlikely that they proviced much conversation in the other direction.

I wasn't sure I would like this new series from Susan Wittig Albert as I'm usually not the talking animal type (except of course for Peter Rabbit). But this was a wonderful, fun, as well as intriguing read. It is much more similar to the books she writes with her husband as Robin Paige, than the other titles under her own name, but excellent nonetheless (and I like the Robin Paige mysteries).

In 1905, in this absorbing story of village life, England's Lake District villagers are (with a fair amount of tizzy gossip) eagerly anticipating the arrival of the new owner of Hill Top Farm. Charms and irritations of life, in this small country village, are cleverly written and Albert gives the reader glimpses of Beatrix Potter's biography with a mixture of truth and whimsical fiction. Ms. Potter did purchase Hill Top Farm, bringing with her two bunnies, a hedgehog and mouse. They, along with the motley village cats and one rascally dog, delightfully talk to each other!

The cast of endearing and eccentric characters are brought together in this (the first of a series of eight) gentle mystery. Fans of Dora Saint ("Miss Read") and Rita Mae Brown will find the anticipated series thoroughly enjoyable. I don't compare authors... I just LOVE'em!

The next book in the series "The Tale of Holly How" is coming in July, 2005.

An historical yet fictional cozy mystery account of Beatrix Potter's life. After purchasing a farm in the charming english countryside in 1905, Beatrix's characters come to life and help their human solve the mystery. A must have for any Beatrix Potter fan and a definite keeper.

I love all the books in this series. This is as good as the others. Can't wait for more.