It’s a real pleasure today to share my review of Silenced at the Summer Social by Elizabeth Ducie, the fourth in her Coombesford Chronicles series of cosy mysteries, independently published, and now available for kindle (just £1.99, or free via Kindle Unlimited) and in paperback. My thanks to Elizabeth for sending me a pre-release e-copy for my review.
Ok, I know I don’t usually read cosy mysteries – but this series has had me entirely hooked ever since I read and so enjoyed the first, Murder at Mountjoy Manor. In that book it was a particular treat to encounter again a couple of characters I’d enjoyed in her Jones Sisters thrillers, albeit in a very different setting: the story was so very well told, with a wonderfully drawn community, a strong sense of place, plenty of light humour and one of those wonderful plots that had the finger of suspicion pointing at just about everybody in turn (you’ll find my review of that one here). The second, Villainy at the Village Store, might have been even better (my review is here) – and Calamity at Coombesford Church also had a deliciously convoluted plot, where you become convinced you’ve worked everything out, only to find the rug pulled out from under you by the next clever twist (you’ll find my review of that one here). There’s an excellent companion piece too, Coombesford Calendar Volume 1 – a collection of twelve short stories, one for each month of the year, no murders, but a series of particularly entertaining tales about the people of the village (here’s my review of that one). So I was delighted to be returning to Coombesford – this was a book I was rather looking forward to…
Retired school teacher, clerk to the Parish Council, devoted churchgoer.
Josephine Hillson is the proverbial pillar of the community. But apparently not everyone in the community sees her that way. And at the end of a warm September’s day, with the Summer Social winding down, Josephine goes to meet her maker in the swimming pool of Mountjoy Manor.
Suspicion falls on the Worcester twins, Peter and Paul, who argued with her just before her death, but they swear their innocence. Can the amateur sleuths of Coombesford find out who killed Josephine, and why, before the police decide the teenagers are guilty.
The fourth in the series of Coombesford Chronicles,
If you enjoy Agatha Christie’s classic whodunnits or are a fan of Richard Osman, Lisa Cutts or Frances Evesham, you’ll love this fourth book in the Coombesford Chronicles series, this time featuring PI Rohan Banerjee and amateur sleuth Esther Steele.
I rather enjoyed the growing friendship between Rohan and Esther in the last book (with that hint that there might be something more to follow…), and with Charlie and Annie away on their honeymoon they find themselves not only running their gastropub, The Falls, but taking the lead when the police need the usual helping hand in solving the latest murder in the village. Miss Hillson, now retired, taught generations of children at the village school and now single-handedly keeps the Parish Council in order – no-one would dare call her Josephine, although they do all call her Hilly in private. And when she’s found dead in the swimming pool at the end of a fundraising social at Mountjoy Manor, the whole community is shocked. There are a couple of obvious suspects, two particularly out of control teenagers who had good reason to bear a grudge – even their mother’s not convinced of their innocence. But then again, maybe Hilly had her secrets – and perhaps there might have been others who felt that she shouldn’t be around any more.
I really liked the way the story steadily unfolded, with different individuals moving in and out of the frame – the clues, the red herrings, the unexpected discoveries, the real surprises. The characters, as always, are quite wonderfully drawn, sometimes with the most intriguing back stories that either throw you off the scent entirely or convince you that they must be guilty. Our usual investigative partnership would certainly be proud of Rohan and Esther’s skills – and those of Olga, the lady of the manor, who proves to be rather fun but her assistance particularly valuable. And did I manage to solve the case before they did? No, of course I didn’t – and I’m sure I won’t be the only reader who’ll find themselves looking in entirely the wrong direction.
This might be a shorter read (170 pages) but it’s a format that certainly works extremely well – and I rather liked the fact that I could race through it (rather breathlessly…) in a single sitting because I really didn’t want to put it down until I’d read to its very satisfying end. I do like the recurring characters, very much part of the beautifully drawn community in rural Devon, remembering the parts they played in the earlier books and watching them develop further – but this book could also be very much enjoyed as a standalone. I just loved the humour, the warmth to the writing, and the fiendishly clever plotting – and I think this is a book other cosy mystery readers would equally enjoy. Very much recommended – and I’ll be looking forward to the next book in this lovely series.
About the author
Elizabeth Ducie trained as a scientist and worked in the international pharmaceutical industry for nearly thirty years before deciding to give it all up and start telling lies for a living. She now writes fiction and creative non-fiction more or less full-time. As well as the Coombesford Chronicles, Elizabeth also writes the Jones Sisters international thrillers and the Author Business Foundations series of how-to books for authors running their own business and/or beginning the route towards self-publishing.
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