The Mills of God

May 17, 2010
This delightful first in a new contemporary cozy series from British author Lake (the pseudonym of Dinah Lampitt) opens with the arrival of 28-year-old Nick Lawrence, the recently appointed vicar, in the quaint Sussex village of Lakehurst. The beautiful vicarage in which he's to live comes complete with a friendly ghost. Even better, Nick soon becomes enamored with lovely Olivia Beauchamp, a professional violinist from London who has a weekend cottage in Lakehurst. When someone spoils the reverend's idyll by brutally stabbing to death the couple who run the local supermarket, the dedicated and astute Det. Insp. Dominic Tennant from the nearby town of Lewes gets on the case. The inspector and Nick work closely together as the death toll mounts. Colorful characters like the ever helpful and efficient churchwarden, Mrs. Mavis Cox, add charm to a puzzle that will keep the reader guessing until the end.

July 1, 2010
Deryn Lake (a pseudonym for Dinah Lampitt) moves from her long-running, historical mystery series featuring apothecary John Rawlings to a new contemporary series set in the sleepy Sussex village of Lakehurst and starring Nick Lawrence, the villages recently appointed vicar. Nicks sixteenth-century vicarage comes complete with a ghost, and the charming village has its share of eccentric living characters as well. But this idyllic setting suddenly becomes home to terror when a serial killer (who signs his crimes The Acting Light of the World) begins to strike. The case is assigned to Inspector Dominic Tennant of the Sussex police, and soon enough the detective and the vicar have become friends, and Nick is assisting in the official inquiry. This is a well-plotted new series in a delightful setting and boasts plenty of characters whom readers will be eager to get to know better in future outings.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)