by M C Beaton
Another book that was recommended (or at least suggested) by a post on the Bookertalk blog.
‘Cosy’, ‘easy’ detective fiction is not something I generally read. The books in this series have been compared to the Miss Marple books by Agatha Christie. Like these, they have been made into TV drama. Though I haven’t watched the Sky TV series, I am ready to give the books a go. I downloaded a sample of the first two books in one volume (better value for money) and decided this was going to be a light, easy and fun read.
Immediately one is struck by some unlikely or downright impossible contextual errors. Perhaps deliberate, to make the story work, and perhaps oversights (though I suspect the former). Examples: slate roofs on traditional Cotswold cottages; changing trains in Oxford when travelling from London to Moreton-in-Marsh; leaving a Mayfair office at 15:20 and still getting to Moreton during market hours AND finding the shops open in the village even later in the afternoon/evening.
You have to suspend disbelief. Well, OK – this is supposed to be fun, after all. So I read on, and find that these things disturb me less than they should.
Well, I got through Quiche of Death and I don’t think I am going to bother with the next story, Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet. There is some gentle humour in this story, and there is a bit of a plot (though a very thin one). The characters are all stereotypes, ditto the setting, even down to the clothing worn by the various characters, and their supposed regional accents. One book of this type is enough to last me for a few years. It’s time for something more serious, or at least, more substantial and better written.
A rug and a book 