Murder Cuts the Mustard

September 30, 2019
At the start of Ellicott’s delightful third whodunit set in post-WWI England (after 2018’s Murder Flies the Coop), Albert Simpkins, who does a little gardening work for prim and proper Edwina Davenport, has an argument with his brother-in-law, Hector Lomax, at a pub in the sleepy village of Walmsley Parva. The next day, Constable Gibbs arrives at Edwina’s house and asks to see Simpkins, who has been living in her potting shed. Gibbs wants to question Simpkins about the murder of Hector, who’s been found in the churchyard with his head bashed in. Edwina and her brash American friend, Beryl Helliwell, who have recently formed an investigative agency, set out to clear Simpkins’s name. The two women keep several steps ahead of Gibbs as they discover that no one in Walmsley Parva is a bit sorry about Hector’s untimely demise. Insights into the English class system of the day lend some depth to this light historical mystery. Witty prose, distinctive characters, and an enchanting setting all make for a winner. Agent: John Talbot, Talbot Fortune Agency.

Beryl and Edwina become embroiled in another homicide, this time close to home, in a stellar performance by narrator Barbara Rosenblat. Upon the murder of a local miscreant, the police arrest a fellow deadbeat, but the man's young son, the village newspaper boy, hires Beryl and Edwina to prove his father's innocence. In her performance, Rosenblat ingeniously shifts among the staid, proper Edwina, the adventurously flamboyant Beryl, and the many residents of Walmsly Parva. In addition to depicting the personalities of each character, Rosenblat clearly communicates their social statuses. This audiobook is tremendously enhanced by Rosenblat's narration. V.M.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award � AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine