The local bookshop, Shelf Determination, in Fethering is branching out with a major section of the book devoted to crime fiction, of all things. Well, it’s the idea of the husband, Roly, of the owner, who has a little too much time on their hands, who has converted a section of the bookshop, previously housing children’s books, poetry and other non-essentials into The Blood Shed. And it’s about as classy as its name suggests, decorated with blood and weapons…
After a talk at the shop from a cosy crime writer – known for her mysteries involving a female police officer and her crime-solving cat (although soon to be trying to capture the murdantasy market by introducing a crime-solving dragon) – Carole and Jude, the mismatched crime solving neighbours, head to the pub. But when Jude returns to retrieve her scarf, what should she find but Roly’s body, stabbed by one of the display weapons…
It’s odd. I’ve read a lot of mediocre cosy crime fiction recently and it’s nice to be back with someone who writes it well. I was looking forward to meeting up with Carole and Jude again – I’m not a massive fan of Simon’s Charles Paris series because I don’t like th lead character, but I do like Jude and Carole, the latter in particular because why she might be straight-laced, I often find myself agreeing with her.
It takes a brave cosy writer to take a pop at the genre, but at least Simon has never resorted to a crime-solving animal. And he does take pains to point out that this is an especially poor cosy writer – I do hope he didn’t have someone in his mind when he wrote it.
Anyway, what you get here is what you’d expect. Carole and Jude bicker a bit, they meet up in the pub a few times, they bother suspects until someone gives the game away and then there’s a non-perilous resolution. All perfectly nice and pleasant, bar the murder, with some good jokes along the way.
The difference here between this and some other practitioners of the genre is that Brett is an excellent writer with decades of experience. Yes, this isn’t going to start a revolution, but it’s a perfect pleasant way to spend a few hours in good company. Carole and Jude never seem to move forward with their lives (bar, for the first time in ages, Carole’s brief romance with the pub landlord finally not being mentioned) – it is a bit odd because by the end of most books, Carole is doing something new and vaguely sociable, but she never mentions it again. She probably sulked off after a few weeks…
So, if you want a jolly mystery that, while not really clued, is a fun read, there are worse ways to spend 99p (for the next few days at least).
Many thanks to Joffe Books for the review e-copy via NetGalley.
