Another entertaining cozy mystery featuring Sukey Reynolds, a Scene of Crime Officer attached to the Gloucestershire Constabulary. I've read the prior books in the series, in order, and can't wait for more!
What it's about: Sukey is called to a Victorian house in Rosemount Villas to photograph and gather evidence to rule out a crime in the case of what appears to be an accidental death. The owner was found at the bottom of some wrought-iron steps leading down from the kitchen. DI Jim Castle also attends the scene and the police find nothing suspicious. The dead man was discovered by his much younger fiancée, Elspeth Maddox, and is identified as Arthur Soames. When Elspeth is questioned, she also tells police that Soames had an estranged daughter named Sabrina. The notification is made to Sabrina, and she insinuates that the fiancée killed Arthur for his money and that this was murder. She insists on further investigation, but the police find nothing suspicious at the inquest and close the case. Well, that's not going to work for Sukey, especially after the daughter and fiancée each beg her to do further snooping around. And you know Sukey, she's always done sleuthing on the side as she once had aspirations of being in CID herself. NO SPOILERS.
Why you should read this series: It's extremely entertaining to see Sukey doing her job by day as SOCO and doing her detective work on her off hours. She has good theories and instincts that are often not taken seriously by her cohort at the police station. Her romance, a secret, with her boss, DI Castle, always complicates and confounds Sukey because she's so often right. I like the writing style, the police procedural details and the typically complex cases that ensue. Sukey, as the main character, is completely believable and easy to relate to. I like her relationships with her son and with Castle but two things I'm wondering about. When are Sukey and Jim going to make their liaison public and why doesn't she just go back and pick up her derailed police career? I enjoy, however, hearing about a murder investigation from the viewpoint of one who's not a detective for a change!
I'm working my way through the series as I get them and I'd like to thank NetGalley and Bookouture for this e-book ARC to read and review. On to the next!
This is the 6th book (of 8) in a series. I believe they should be read in order.
Genre - cosy mystery, amateur sleuth, police procedural
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