Rotten to the Core

A particularly satisfying entry, more for the substance of the book than the mystery once solved. Excellent balance struck between footling about with village life, lunching and learning the gossip, bantering and debating avenues of investigation and learning more of the cider wardens. Armstrong and Hardcastle similarly have a smoother journey getting answers out of locals now accustomed to their frequent mystery solving, while also coming across the truly recalcitrant, to keep things interesting. More old faces than new, but it's lovely to have a cast of characters reappear that you enjoy reading about. Not sure how I feel about the murder reveal, but YMMV.