Book info

• Title
• Author M. C. Beaton
• Year
• Genres

Thoughts

Hmm, interesting one this. I probably wouldn’t have read it if I hadn’t seen the TV show a while back, but even with that I liked the pilot far more than the full series that followed. I couldn’t remember the story going into this, so the mystery itself was still allowed to unfold - and that side of it was quite interesting.

There are two problems I have with this book. Firstly, that Agatha is an inherently unlikable character. She’s not even a character with flaws, she’s just not very nice. And very few of the people in the book are - the villagers, the next door neighbour, the friend from London. The only seemingly approachable character is Bill the policeman, but it’s also inexplicable his desire to keep checking up on Agatha, so it doesn’t quite make sense.

Secondly, there’s a really odd flow to the book. Sometimes, the dialogue is so good it draws you in so you can picture the scene precisely. Other times, it’s so stilted and sentences are so forced that it’s almost like reading a Janet and John. Bizarre.

Rating: Unrated