For my review of the previous book I have read in this series, click here.
Agatha Raisin - Dead on Target
by M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green
You may or may not remember that my Mum and I love the Agatha Raisin books. We also enjoy the TV series, but because it differs greatly from the books, we have come to regard that as something separate. Still, now that we know the series, it is sometimes hard to switch off the mental images from TV when reading the books, and the two simply don't match.
Anyway, "Dead on Target" is one of four paperbacks I took home with me from Ripon this summer. My Mum read it first, and without telling me too much, she said she was sure I was going to like it. And I did.
This time, Agatha delves into the world of archery. Her highly competitive streak ensures that she learns a lot about this sport in an amazingly short time. But she can't help it - after all, it was she who found the local landowner dying in the woods with an arrow in his chest when all she wanted was a fun day at a village fête.
As usual, her investigation is hindered on all sides, last but not least by the victim's family. But of course she gets help from her loyal friends, and in the end does not only solve the murder but also sees an infamous head of organised crime behind bars.
Like with the previous book, written actually not "with" but "by" R.W. Green, the dialogue is sometimes laugh-out-loud witty, and characters remain true to the form the late Marion Chesney gave them.
The book manages to mix the traditional look and feel of a "Cosy Mystery" set in an English village with modern-day issues. The only criticism I have is that the endless bickering between Agatha and DCI Wilkes was getting a bit much, and was sometimes downright childish.
There is no doubt I am going to look for more when I'm in Ripon next year!
I checked my library borrowing history and I read that one last January. I did enjoy all of the M.C. Beaton Agatha Raisin books they had but remember thinking that R.W. Green did get a little silly at times. I have put a hold on some of the newer ones that I haven't read yet so thanks for reminding me about Agatha Raisin, Meike!
ReplyDeleteI actually like the silly bits best, Ellen :-)
DeleteThe very first A.R. book, "Quiche of Death", had a very silly scene that I have never forgotten - Agatha meets James for the first time and rushes to the toilet to freshen up her lipstick, but something happens (was it the door to her cubicle getting jammed or something?) and she makes a complete fool of herself - like we are sometimes prone to do when we want to make a particularly good impression on someone :-D
I don't think I ever read any of the books, just watched a couple of episodes of the TV series - and didn't get interested enough to continue...
ReplyDeleteIt's not everyone's cup of tea, of course. But as I said, the TV series and the books are largely separate things, starting with drastic changes in the characters, and the TV series being entirely more slapstick than the books.
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