Murder at St. Saviour’s

The story opens with new curate Lyle Beaumont falling to his death from the bell tower at St. Saviour's. The bell ringers were on their way there for rehearsal. Another man, Stephen Henshall, a stranger to Abbeymead, was also on the scene. At first, this appears to be a tragic accident. But it soon turns out that the curate is not who he purported to be, and in fact, was not a curate at all. A note clenched in his hand suggests that perhaps his death was not accidental after all. What secrets did “Lyle Beaumont” hide that someone is now willing to kill to keep secret?

I simply love visiting Abbeymead! Merryn Allingham gives us a charming village filled with interesting characters, and a good mystery to boot.

Flora and Jack are in the thick of the investigation, and I love seeing them working together to solve the mystery. Their relationship is progressing, and while they may not be ready to commit for a lifetime, neither of them seems to be fighting their feelings any longer. That makes me happy, because I think they're just adorable together. I also liked seeing more of Investigator Ridley on the case, and I liked that he brought our amateur sleuths into the loop as much as he could.

There was no shortage of potential suspects. Turns out quite a few folks had reason not to like Mr. Beaumont-that-wasn't, and they were open about the fact that his death didn't grieve them too deeply. But which of them had the dead man offended enough that they were willing to kill over it? And kill more than once, as the primary suspect was found murdered, and Flora and Jack found themselves in harm's way due to their digging.

The nasty winter weather was almost a character in itself. Roads were treacherous, the chill was brutal, and it made me want to wrap myself up in a warm blanket while reading, even though the weather is much nicer here!

Merryn Allingham has another winner here. Her historical detail is impeccable, her characters are likeable, hateable, or somewhere in between, and Abbeymead is a delight. Highly recommended for reading while curled up with a blanket, a cat, and a hot cup of cocoa.

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for an advance review copy. All opinions here are mine, and I don't say nice things about books I don't actually like.