#BlogTour #Review of Murder in the Meadow by Faith Martin @joffebooks @Books_n_all

Wayne Sutton is found dead by a stream in a beautiful meadow. His head has been bashed in and a red paper heart left on his body. The handsome young artist had a reputation as a ladies’ man.

DI Hillary Greene discovers that there were many wealthy married women buying his paintings and taking ‘private’ art lesson from him.  It appears that several of them might have wanted him dead.

Hillary also has a new detective sergeant, Gemma Fordham. Seemingly efficient and pleasant, she harbours a secret agenda.

Can Hillary get to the bottom of a complex case involving jealousy, love, and cold-blooded murder?

This is a crime mystery full of well-observed characters, which will have you gripped from start to finish.

MURDER IN THE MEADOW  is the seventh in a series of page-turning crime thrillers set in Oxfordshire.  Perfect for fans of  Agatha Christie, Colin Dexter, or Ruth Rendell.

 

THE LOCATION – The pretty iron stone village of Deddington.  Not far from the market town of Banbury (noted for its famous Banbury Cross of the nursery rhyme “Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross, to see a fine lady upon a white horse, with rings on her fingers and bells on her toes, she shall have music wherever she goes.”)  It has an attractive and unusual church, antique shop and hotel, and several pubs known locally for their cuisine.  Although not a tourist spot as such, it is a picturesque spot.  Water meadows, such as the one where the body is found, are a feature of valleys in the area, and regularly flood in the winter time, adding  nutrients to the soil, making them especially lovely in the spring and summer, when they can flower quite spectacularly.

 

THE DETECTIVES

DI Hillary Greene – An attractive woman in her forties, Hillary Greene is a police officer of many years’ experience, and came up through the ranks. Consequently, she knows how the system works, and is fiercely loyal to the force without being blinkered to its faults. She is a long-standing friend of her immediate superior officer, ‘Mellow’ Mallow and enjoys a rather enigmatic relationship with the steely Superintendent Marcus Donleavy. Popular with the rank and file for her no-nonsense attitude and competence.

DCI Philip ‘Mellow’ Mallow – Mel appreciates Hillary’s first-rate ability to solve her cases, and isn’t happy about her harassment by the officers from York. Known for his sartorial elegance and laid-back manners, he has a sharp mind, and an eye for the ladies. A good friend and ally for Hillary in her recent tribulations, he’s determined to keep his best investigator focused on the problems at hand.

 

MY REVIEW

I have read all of the books released in this series so far and this one has been my favourite to date!  It is well written, I loved the characters and the plot and haven’t hesitated to give the book 5 stars!

The book is written at a steady pace and that was ideal for this story – I liked the introduction of the new DS to the series and look forward to seeing more interactions between her and Hillary in future books.

Really looking forward to reading the next book from Faith which is due out soon!

 

PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A REVISED EDITION OF A BOOK FIRST PUBLISHED AS “BESIDE A NARROW STREAM.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Faith Martin has been writing for over 25 years, in four genres and under four different pen names. She was born in Oxford and sets most of her crime novels within sight of the city of dreaming spires. A real nature lover and afficionado of the countryside, descriptions of wildlife and native flora often find their way into her manuscripts. Right now, JOFFE BOOKS are re-issuing the first eleven of the DI Hillary Greene novels in new updated editions! And the first of these, MURDER ON THE OXFORD CANAL. MURDER AT THE UNIVERSITY, MURDER OF THE BRIDE, MURDER IN THE VILLAGE, MURDER IN THE FAMILY and MURDER AT HOME are available now. Books 8-11 coming soon!

Her romance novels, written under the name of Maxine Barry, are now available from Corazon Books. IMPOSTERS In PARADISE, and HEART OF FIRE are both out, and others will very quickly become available in the future.

Her first foray into writing ‘spooky’ crime, (and written under the pen name of Jessie Daniels) came out in November 2017. THE LAVENDER LADY CASEFILE is published by Robert Hale, an imprint of Crowood Press.

As Joyce Cato, she writes more classically-inspired ‘proper’ whodunits. So if you like an amateur sleuth, plenty of clues and red herrings, plus a baffling murder mystery to solve, these are the books for you.