Bitter Poison

Good read.

This is the first time I've read anything by this author. I was given a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my fair and honest review.

I was quite surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. The Colonel is a private man and he is comfortable in his own surroundings. When he is asked to build a sled as a prop for the town's play, he doesn't expect there to be a murder and soon everyone is wondering who would do such a thing.
The humor in this book was great and I enjoyed the colorful cast of characters. My favorite part was when Major Cuthbertson kept trying to sneak an early drink. Waiting for the clock to ring six was hysterical and I kept thinking to myself, by golly good man, have a drink!
I will definitely read more by this author.

Mayhew continues to develop a charming, layered portrait of an English village from the perspective of a retired Colonel who again finds himself entangled into another mystery. This series is delightful. Highly recommended.

This is an English cozy complete with a retired Colonel, an amateur theater group and a gossip chain faster than the internet. The story builds the plot and characters with the murder not occurring until nearly the end of the book. With the police and the entire village convinced the star of the show died accidentally after eating peanuts at the after cast party, the Colonel can't stop wondering where the epi pen disappeared. A wonderfully written cozy of the highest caliber, I loved the entire village population.

They're getting ready to put on another performance by their little theater group in the village. This year they are going to do something different: They'll do a fairy tale. The forceful lady scheduling the event thinks she's adding a bit of class to the performance. She doesn't know she's adding murder...

Severn House and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It will be published April 1st.

They have some new people in town. The man is on TV and his wife used to be a model. The play is the Snow Queen and they decide his wife would be a good choice for that lead. The difficulty is that she doesn't want to do it. She gets convinced by her husband and friends to do it. The Colonel is asked to make the sledge she will ride on. He's not sure he can but his neighbor offers him the wood and a suggestion on how to accomplish it. He'll try.

Reading about the village's odd characters and knowing how small town plays work makes reading this book fun. This murder is actually revenge over something that happened in the past. I was a bit dissatisfied with the ending because the murderer gets away. There's no proof to show the police. It just shows you how dangerous someone you never even notice can be.

I enjoy reading this English village series of mystery stories written by Margaret Mayhew. They are relaxing and give me that lovely feeling of the tiny English village of my imagination, probably not something that really exists at all in real life. The characters are all sufficiently developed so that I already feel as if I know them from previous novels in the series. The Major with his eye fixed firmly on the clock waiting for it to strike six in the evening so he can have that drink he's pinning for and always on the lookout for an attractive woman to flirt with. Freda Butler concealed behind the curtains in her cottage with the Zeiss binoculars picking up most of the comings and goings in the village. Naomi Grimshaw usually shows up in some decidedly outlandish piece of apparel from long ago or a land far away and thinks it is completely normal. At the center of all the village activity is the one person who values his privacy more than any of the others and is therefore disturbed most often, the Colonel. Everyone wants to know what use he has for the shed in his garden but so far he has managed to keep his new hobby a secret. How long will that last with the Frog End equivalent of the KGB on the prowl for clues? Will the new couple from London fit into the social life of Frog End by participating in the Christmas theatre production? Or will the famous fashion model let everyone down by refusing to be The Snow Queen?

I had begun to think that this book wouldn't have any mysterious death to investigate at all since it came so late in the novel, but there is finally something for the Colonel to tackle and the author presents it in an unusual way. Quite an interesting way from my point of view. This is one of those mystery novels you can feel good about recommending to your friends who don't like to read the more grim and gritty variety of murder mysteries. A quiet corner, a comfortable chair and something nice to drink will complete the picture of the atmosphere of this book in particular and this entire series in general; just a nice, old fashioned cozy.

I received an e-ARC of this novel through NetGalley and Severn House Publishing.