A Killer's Christmas in Wales

September 5, 2011
Duncan’s leisurely third Penny Brannigan mystery (after 2010’s A Brush with Death) finds the Welsh town of Llanelen dealing with heavy snow and ice as the townspeople prepare for Christmas. Penny and her business partner, Victoria Hopkirk, are absorbed with the grand opening of their new spa. Meanwhile, an American stranger, Harry Saunders, arrives in town and sweeps widow Evelyn Lloyd off her feet. A former dance instructor, Saunders is soon teaching ballroom dancing at the community center. Some suspect Saunders is taking advantage of Evelyn, so it’s no surprise when he goes missing with a healthy chunk of Evelyn’s money and is eventually found dead outside Conwy Castle. Since the entire Stretch and Sketch Club was there at the time, along with several other residents of Llanelen, there’s no dearth of suspects. Cozy fans for whom the crime solving is incidental will have fun.

November 1, 2011
Murder threatens to spoil the Christmas celebrations in a quiet Welsh town. Canadian ex-pat Penny Brannigan and her partner Victoria are scrambling to finish up the last-minute chores they need to complete before opening their new spa when a new complication arises. One of Penny's customers, wealthy widow Evelyn Lloyd, has recently met Harry Saunders, a charming but evasive American who quickly gains her trust. Despite remonstrations from her housemate Florence and her banker, she opens a joint account with £20,000 of her money, only to see Harry vanish. Practically the whole town seems to be visiting Conwy Castle when Harry is found dead with Evelyn's letter opener in his back. Penny has had success in the past solving murders (A Brush with Death, 2010, etc.), and her boyfriend, Chief Inspector Gareth Davies, is always willing to listen to her ideas. So it's no surprise that when Evelyn begs her to investigate, Penny agrees. Soon she's also investigating the theft of several small objects, the most valuable of which is a brooch Gareth gave her for Christmas. Once Penny comes to believe that the murder and the thefts are related, her sleuthing puts her in danger from a reckless killer. Duncan's latest English cozy continues to flesh out her recurring characters while providing more sound mystery-mongering.

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October 1, 2011

In her third Welsh village outing, the Canadian ex-pat and new spa owner (A Brush with Death) is asked to don her amateur sleuthing cap when the rogue who swindled her neighbor is murdered. Cozy fans will enjoy this light, quick read (and delight at fellow fictional crime solver Dorothy Martin's cameo over a quick manicure).

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2011
Penny Brannigan is in the final stages of readying her upscale spa for its grand opening in the North Wales market town of Llanelen when Evelyn Lloyd asks for her help. Evelyn had been romanced by an American, Harry Saunders, who convinced her to invest money with him. After she gave him the money, against the advice of her bank manager, Harry disappeared and is later found murdered, with Evelyn's letter opener in his back. Penny also feels compelled to identify the woman whose skeletal remains were found in the ductwork of her spa during the renovation of the building. In her personal life, her boyfriend, Gareth Davies, detective chief inspector of the North Wales Police, gives her an expensive pin as a Christmas gift, which is promptly stolen. Penny solves all three mysteries in this satisfying British cozy with its engaging characters and warm depiction of small-town life in Wales. Fans of Nancy Atherton, M. C. Beaton, and Dorothy Cannell will enjoy this series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)