Book info

• Title Mrs Pargeter's Plot
• Author Simon Brett
• Year 1996
• Genre Mystery

Meet Mrs Melita Pargeter, a vivacious widow with a talent for solving mysteries. When life in London gets too busy, there’s nothing Melita enjoys more than escaping to the glorious English countryside. Unfortunately for Melita, constructions for her dream summer home in Kent come to an abrupt halt when a body is discovered in the basement. The dead man appears to have been shot by a gun belonging to Concrete Jacket, Melita’s builder. Concrete is swiftly arrested for murder. But Melita smells a rat. Concrete may be a scoundrel but he’s no killer. Someone set him up. But who? Melita immediately begins her own investigation. And with the help of a few colourful acquaintances, including a mischievous monkey named Eramus, puts together a devious scheme to catch the real villain. But even the best laid plans sometimes go awry...

Thoughts

I love Simon Brett’s writing, and I could honestly follow Mrs Pargeter just going about her business all day long. Her willingness to ignore what her deceased husband got up to whilst still enjoying in the perks of his many, many underworld connections is a joy. And this time, whilst also revelling in a murder investigation, we also had the fun of an ex-con trying to make up for everything bad he did to people - only his amends tend to cause more trouble than you’d expect. I loved how they tied into the main plot, it was so cleverly done. Really good read, this one.

Rating: 5 / 5