M.C. Beaton with [actually, by] R.W. Green
It's been nearly 1 1/2 years since I last read an Agatha Raisin book; you can find my review from October 2024 here. Somehow, news about new books in the series passed me by, and in the weeks leading up to Christmas, I found that not one, but THREE had been published, and I bought them all as a Christmas present for my Mum and myself.
After my Mum had finished the first of the three, she passed it to me, and I have finished it today during my lunch break.
As before since R.W. Green took over from the late Marion Chesney (M.C. Beaton's real name), this one did not disappoint. It was as fast-paced and true to the familiar characters as before, but had the witty dialogue and overall more modern feel I have noticed since the change in authorship.
Agatha's close friend and former lover Sir Charles Fraith marries into a rich family, and it is perfectly obvious to anyone that it is not a love match, but a way to end his constant money worries once and for all. The bride is quite an unpleasant person, and her father is even worse - but a deal is a deal, and Charles is determined to keep his part of it.
However, during a masked ball at Charles' manor, his young wife is found murdered - and both he and Agatha are quickly top of the long list of suspects. Of course Agatha does everything she can to clear her old friend and herself and pulls in her trusted team to solve the mystery.
The world of wealthy stable owners, show-jumping and wine in the French countryside all make for an interesting mix. Agatha makes new friends, but also a new enemy who I wouldn't be surprised to see again.
True to character, Agatha finds herself interested in a handsome Frenchman while at the same time she gets once again close to her ex-husband James...
I am already looking forward to the other two books my Mum still has, but I am going to read a work of non-fiction next.
Thanks for reminding me about these, Meike. I know I have read a LOT of them (I've read the one you mentioned here) but I will have to check my library to see which ones I have missed! Have a nice weekend!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ellen, you too!
DeleteAccording to Amazon, there are now 37 books in the series, and I have only now realised that my Mum and I have „jumped“ a couple of them when we read Dead on Target; Hot to Trot actually comes before that. But the good thing is that it doesn‘t matter much in which order we read them; at least I didn‘t feel confused 😊
It's interesting when authorship changes. Changes are subtle to begin with and then the 'voice' comes through.
ReplyDeleteExactly, Janice! R.W. Green has a knack for dialogue; in some of the older Agatha Raisin books I sometimes found the conversations between characters wooden and stilted.
DeleteMarion Chesney was born in my native city in 1936. She worked as a buyer for my
ReplyDeletefavourite bookshop John Smith & Sons. I had never heard her name until now, Meike.
So Sir Charles's wife is murdered during a masked ball ? A young woman with enemies ?
Hot To Trot is a trashy title but your review is compelling. Smith's in St Vincent
Street is long gone though the firm still has retail stores in Scottish Universities.
Marion Chesney and her parents lived through all the changes of radical modernity.
Snow, Books, Tea and My Master Thesis - Vlog. YouTube.
luise_marianne.
Luise's thesis is from 1873 to 1937. I liked the bookshop window in the opening shot.
Marion Chesney lead a busy and colourful life. Books, first reading, then buying, and later writing, were all important.
DeleteThe titles of her Agatha Raisin series are all a bit trashy, and I don‘t think her books are to your liking - not intellectually stimulating enough.
There is light fiction and light verse. WH Auden edited an anthology of the latter.
DeleteNine new paperback novels I enjoyed as winter waxed into early Spring.
Mere by Danielle Giles. The Fens of Norfolk AD 990. Fizzing w/ atmosphere.
Golden Age by Wang Xiaobo set in a remote mountain commune. Amusing.
Elaine Garvey's The Wardrobe Department is set in a bitchy London theatre.
Greater Sins by Gabrielle Griffiths is set in rural Aberdeenshire in 1915
Victorian Psycho by Virginia Fetto had me laughing aloud. A bright debut.
The Book of Goose by Yiyun Li. A surprising stylist from her opening page.
Under the Eye of the Big Bird by Hiromi Kawakami is set in a distant future.
In this dystopia children are clinically bred to be watchers. Terrifying.
One Hour of Fervour by Muriel Barberry. A Japanese art dealer looks back.
Enlightenment by Sarah Perry - comets, stars, ghosts, religious faith.
Ms Perry wrote Melmoth and The Essex Serpent. A bardic storyteller.
I know I didn't take to the TV series, so never really felt tempted by the books either. I seem to have two in my Kindle library but can't say if I ever read them. I had no idea another author took over in later years.
ReplyDeleteMy Mum and I enjoyed the books years before we heard that they were adapted for TV, and were excited to check it out - and then rather disappointed at first, since so many things (Agatha included) are not like in the books. But we now see the series as something separate with only the basic idea and the setting related to the books.
DeleteSounds like a fun book. I've never read any Agatha Raisin (or seen the TV show, which I didn't know existed until I read the comment above).
ReplyDeleteIt was fun, and somehow Agatha‘s character has become more likeable over time.
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