Poison at the Village Show

 Poison at the Village Show by Catherine Coles- Cosy crime

Martha’s husband left for work a year ago and has never returned. We are in post war England (1947) and Martha has had to take her sister for a lodger to keep a roof over her head and is growing fruit and veg in order to feed them as she has no means of support. She has extended the vegetable patch and there are rumours from one source that she killed her husband and his remains are to be found under the potatoes. It's the village show and Martha is on the committee, so has not entered any of the competitions. Many of the village's gardens have been ransacked, adding further fuel that Martha is up to something. When someone dies at the village show after drinking some of Martha's gin she is instantly the chief suspect in some eyes both for the murder and for her husbands disappearence. 

This was a wonderful easy read with a smile. A mystery and larger than life characters quickly bring the story to life. Martha is a great character and the historical timeline works perfectly without the trapping of modern life which would complicate things. A rural setting adds perfectly to the simplicity. A mystery, a little romance, plenty of intrigue made the pages turn very easily. I beleivethat this is the beginning of a series- I would look forward to reading more. A brilliantly entertaining lighthearted read. 

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Poison at the Village Show With the war finally over the residents of Westleham village are trying to reclaim a sense of normality and the upcoming village show is proving to be a popular event! Newcomer, Martha Miller, has high hopes for the village show. Since her husband Stan left for work one day and never returned, some of the villagers have treated Martha with suspicion – why would a good man like Stan simply up and leave? Was it something Martha did? All Martha knows is that she’s hoping that she can win people over and hopefully they’ll but her delicious homemade plum gin, too and she’ll be able to make ends meet. But as glasses of Martha’s gin are passed around, disaster strikes. Alice Warren, Chairwoman of the village show slumps to the ground after taking a sip. It’s clear she’s been poisoned! Martha is shocked, but not surprised, when fingers of suspicion once again point her way. Determined to prove her innocence, Martha sets about trying to find the real culprit. But who would kill Alice and why? Ably helped by the new vicar, Luke Walker, Martha quickly tries to get to the bottom of this mystery. But with the villagers closing ranks it quickly becomes apparent that the only person with a motive is Martha herself.... Will Luke and Martha discover who is behind the poisoning before it's too late? Purchase Link - https://amzn.to/3freNRj

Author Bio – The daughter of a military father, Catherine was born in Germany and lived most of the first 14 years of her life abroad. She spent her school years devouring everything her school library had to offer! Catherine writes cosy mysteries that take place in the English countryside. Her extremely popular Tommy & Evelyn Christie mysteries are set in 1920s North Yorkshire. Catherine lives in northeast England with her two spoiled dogs who have no idea they are not human! Social Media Links – Please also ask all bloggers to tag us in their posts especially on Instagram. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/CatherineColesAuthor Twitter https://twitter.com/catherinecoles Instagram https://www.instagram.com/catherinecolesauthor/ Newsletter Sign Up: https://bit.ly/CatherineColesNews Bookbub profile: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/catherine-coles?list=about