Aunt Dimity Digs In (Mass Market Paperback)

by Nancy Atherton (Author)
Key Phrases: vicarage meadow, pointy glasses, paneled van, Peggy Kitchen, Scrag End, Sally Pyne (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Aunt Dimity, the ghost with the flowing handwriting, returns for a fourth outing with her living partner, Lori Shepherd, in this fluffy village cozy. Now living in England, Lori and her lawyer husband, Bill Willis, have welcomed twin boys, swelling the mostly retired population of Finch. Living in the cottage left to Lori by her mother's close friend, Dimity Westwood, Lori is thankful for the arrival of the local and unmarried Francesca Sciaparelli to aid with the double joys of motherhood. In this corpseless tale, the mystery concerns a document stolen from the vicarage. Finch has become divided over the apparent Roman treasure trove discovered by archeologist Adrian Culver in a village field. An obscure 19th-century document, proving the find is a hoax, is the stolen item. Asked to resolve the dilemma, Lori, a rare book expert, is aided by Aunt Dimity who communicates with her ghostly handwriting in a special blue journal. Atherton produces a diverse cast of villagers, especially the formidable Peggy Kitchen, a veritable locomotive who is determined to chuck Culver and his archeological miscellany out of the schoolhouse before her well-planned Harvest Festival. Featuring Lori's cherubic twins, a number of stuffed animals and the triumph of true love, Atherton delivers pure cozy entertainment. Mystery Guild selection; author tour. (Mar.) FYI: Viking will simultaneously publish Aunt Dimity's Good Deed in paper.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist
Atherton's Aunt Dimity series is cozy as a warm fire and soothing as a hot cup of tea. Aunt Dimity has been dead for years, of course, but her spirit lives on in the rose-covered cottage and the blue notebooks she's bequeathed to her niece Lori. Whenever Lori's baffled, she opens the magic notebooks, and Aunt Dimity's handwriting appears, offering pithy advice. Lately, Lori has her hands full with her four-month-old twin sons. Fortunately, a nanny appears on her doorstep just when Lori's amateur sleuthing skills are in demand: the vicar discovers a valuable document missing from his study, townsfolk report witches in the meadow, a visiting archaeologist digs up some malicious gossip, and an all-out war among the Harvest Festival planners seems imminent. Fortunately, Lori's gift for unraveling even the most challenging mystery pays off, leaving villagers at peace and the new nanny happily in love. Sweet, heartwarming fare for all British cozy fans. Emily Melton --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (March 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 014027569X
• ISBN-13: 978-0140275698
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #189,628 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 4 in The Aunt Dimity Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars GOOD FUN AND GOOD READING, March 6, 2001

By	Gail Cooke (TX, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

Imagine a contemporary mystery sans bodies, blood or bludgeoning with a sleuthing heroine who is not a former forensic expert and you're getting close to Aunt Dimity Digs In, the fourth in a series of gentle, pleasant mysteries replete with quaint cottages, pots of tea, and a cast of eccentrics.

Lori Shepard lives in a cozy English country cottage with her lawyer husband and infant twin sons. Worn to a frazzle by the babies' demands, she is rescued by the unexpected appearance of an expert nanny, Francesca Sciaparelli - think a statuesque, voluptuous Mary Poppins. But Lori's new found moments of relaxation are cut short by a cry for help from the local vicar. He fears an outbreak of civil war in the village of Finch due to a rancorous dispute involving the use of the schoolhouse. Peggy Kitchen, self-crowned queen of Finch, wants the building for her vaunted Harvest Festival but it has been assigned to a visiting archaeologist, Dr. Adam Culver, as headquarters for his dig.

Although it seems that any combat in a place as benign as Finch would be waged with popcorn, Lori promises the worried vicar that she will try to find a copy of a pamphlet stolen from his desk. It seems that this mysterious document would prove there is no reason to dig near Finch and solve the squabble. Obviously, the thief entered through never-locked French doors, but who could have taken the pamphlet?

With the aid of the late Aunt Dimity, who communicates with Lori by writing in a magic blue notebook, the mystery is eventually solved. But what a rare time is had along the way as Lori meets a witch who lives near the vicarage, and assists her followers via email. She swears she saw two other witches worshiping the moon the night the pamphlet was stolen. The local pub owners, logical suspects since a famous dig might put Finch on the map and bring them additional revenue, are convinced that the figures seen that night were actually aliens.

Along the way romance blossoms between the comely, capable Francesca and Dr. Culver. What does it matter if Lori needs a little hocus-pocus from dear departed Aunt Dimity to bring the lovers together and peace to Finch? All's fair in love and war.

Aunt Dimity Digs In is good fun and good reading, best done with lemon bars and piping hot tea at the ready.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Please read this book on a rainy afternoon, December 21, 1999

By	Karen Bierman Hirsh (White Plains, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The beauty of the Dimity series is watching the characters development from book to book. Reading this books feels like a visit with your dearest friend that you only get to see once a year. You can pick right up where you left off without skipping a beat.

If you read this one first the earlier books will loose a little something but please do read them all!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book, September 5, 2000

By A Customer

I thought that this was a fabulous book. I really enjoyed the way the author wove the story, I think she did a great job. This was the first book I read in the series, and I plan to read all of the other books that she has written about Dimity.