The Body on the Beach

This is the first in the `Fethering' mystery series, and though I'm a bit late to the party I'm sure it won't be long before I'm fully caught up with the rest of these, because this was a really fun read. It's not quite a `cosy' mystery as it is a bit darker in tone, but still manages to retain a nice traditional feel owing to its small coastal town setting which I enjoyed a lot.

The main protagonist is fifty-something divorcee Carole Seddon, a rather prim woman who tends to keep herself to herself, until she stumbles across a body on the local beach whilst she's walking her dog. After reporting her find to the police, she is perplexed to be told there is nothing there. The only person who believes that she isn't merely a hysterical show more woman is her new neighbour, Jude, a woman who seems to be hiding a few secrets of her own...

I have to confess that from the get go I wasn't sure if this mystery would appeal to me. I do read *a lot* of mystery and crime novels and this book at first mainly appeared to focus on a description of the village itself which I thought would be a little bit dry. However, the description was nicely done and it did pull me into the story, so by the time Carole actually came along I did feel I knew a little bit about Fethering and could clearly see it in my mind. Carole and Jude make terrific amateur sleuths and it was nice to see a genuine friendship building between them as the book progressed- particularly as they are complete opposites in just about everything!

The characters are sharply portrayed too, even the secondary ones, and I appreciated the depiction of small town attitudes and actions that were written into the novel, particularly the attitudes towards newcomer Jude which rang very true to life. The book is varied in context and I couldn't quite put all of the pieces of the mystery together until near the end, which was good. I hate mysteries that are just too obvious, but thankfully this wasn't. It's also a non-too-taxing read, ideal if you have a few hours to curl up and relax.

The little seeds of mystery have also been well and truly sprinkled about the enigmatic Jude. I look forward to getting to know her and Carole better as I continue the rest of this lovely British crime series. Recommended if you like traditional mysteries and British detective stories; this is a lovely little whodunit.

*This review also appears on Amazon.co.uk* show less

Carole Seddon has planned her retirement carefully: a nice home in the quiet village of Fethering, where everybody follows the same rules of etiquette and life is stately and calm. Then while walking her dog on the beach one day, Carole comes across the corpse of a middle-aged man. As a concerned citizen, she informs the police of this, but they dismiss her claims and assume she’s a hysterical menopausal woman. Carole is annoyed but resigned, until a new, free-spirited woman who goes only by the first name of Jude moves in next door. Jude has the knack of drawing people out, even such buttoned-down people as Carole, and before Carole knows it, the two women are investigating the body on the beach, which leads them to learn far more show more about the lives of the villagers than has ever been shown on the surface….I’ve heard the name of Simon Brett with respect to cozy series for ages, but it was only when I came across an omnibus edition of the first six Fethering books that I decided to give him a try. I’m glad I did, as the writing is quite lovely, and the mystery is well-drawn. The two main characters are very intriguing, especially as we know very little about them (in this first novel in the series, anyway): Carole worked for the Home Office before retirement, but what did she do? And Jude is a complete enigma as all we know of her, really, is her first name and the hint that she has a colourful past. I’m going to enjoy reading more about these characters; recommended! show less

Regimented (some might say rigid), conscientious Carole Sedden is self-contained and reserved; imagine her dismay when she meets her new neighbor Jude (just Jude), who has a slight Bohemian flair and thinks out of the box.

When Carole discovers a Body on the Beach, followed by dangerous confrontations, she reluctantly welcomes Jude’s support. In the way of all cozy mysteries, the two form an alliance to figure out who that body is, and why it disappeared after Carole reported it to the police. The two confer and plan, and they ply their neighbors with intrusive questions that no one would ever ask or answer in real life unless one of them is the police. In Fethering though, with judicious use of “good cop/bad cop” tactics (Carole show more is the bad cop), the pair manages to get answers.

Actually, this brings up a good point: every aspect of this crime is solved by Carole and Jude, who are completely unhindered by any hint of police involvement – or any hint of police, period. Where is the cozy mystery staple: the dimwitted inspector? What about the goodhearted sergeant who bales out the amateur sleuths at the last minute?

Will I continue to listen to this series? Yes, and here’s why: 1) I want to know what’s up with Jude. 2)The author has built the beginnings of a nice imaginary world. 3) Geoffrey Howard (Ralph Cosham) narrates. 4) Many of the audiobooks in the series are included in my Audible membership. 5) I want to see if the police ever actually show up.

If you decide to read or listen, you should know that the facts surrounding that dead body are very dark – darker than usually seen in a village mystery. show less

Carole Seddon is not someone I’d like to meet in real life. In her 50′s and retired from a job in the Home Office she has established a very orderly life for herself in the village of Fethering. She has a long list of rules about what constitutes acceptable and unacceptable behaviours and seems to judge people on the most insignificant of factors. As this book opens she is walking her dog Gulliver on the beach when they discover a body. After making her way home and washing the dog Carole notifies the Police but when they look in the spot Carole has described there is no body. Being a little shocked at finding a body and at having been treated like a silly old lady by the Police, Carole takes the unusual step of talking to her new show more neighbour about the events.

Jude (just Jude, no surname) is the woman who has moved in next door to Carole and is her complete opposite in terms of personality. She has no set rules for acceptable behaviour as can be evidenced by her ordering large glasses of wine (sometimes at lunch time) and beating her rugs in the front garden! But though Jude isn’t ‘a Fethering sort of person at all’ she listens to Carole and doesn’t think she’s crazy so the two women embark on a friendship of sorts and decide to investigate what happened to the body they are both convinced that Carole saw. Through a series of orchestrated meetings with key players in the village they start to build up a picture of what might have gone on.

As the setting is described in a fair amount of detail the story here is slow to get going but once it does there’s a nice build up of suspense, though the plot is not terribly difficult to work out for people who’ve read a lot of crime fiction. However if English village mysteries are your thing then I think you’d really enjoy this book as Brett has done a great job of depicting the place and its various characters so that not all is as idyllic as it might first appear. Somewhat unusually for this kind of story the motive for murder and associated covering up activities is really very credible when finally revealed.

There are a further 11 books (so far) in this series and because there are hints that Carole’s very prim and proper personality might be weakening towards the end of this book I could be tempted to read another if for no other reason than to find out if she does join the human race after all. The Body on the Beach certainly has decent plotting, an intricately drawn setting and credible, if not likable, characters to recommend it as a promising start to a series. show less

Carole, a buttoned-down, highly OCD sort, lives in a small country town, Featherings. When a younger woman named Jude moves into the cottage next door, Carole enlists her help when she finds a body on the beach, which subsequently disappeared.

The two women form an unlikely pact to find out just what is going on.

Enjoyable cozy mystery which had me laughing out loud at several points as Carole details the strictures on Feathering's social structure. The mystery was interesting with twists and turns but the mystery wasn't the most important aspect of the book. Rather Carole and Jude and the town's inhabitants were front and center.

Carole, retired from a job with the Home Office, settled in the quiet village of Fethering. A mysterious neighbor Jude moves in next door. While walking her dog, Carole discovers a body on the beach. Before calling the police, she washes her dog and tidies the kitchen. When they arrive at the scene, the body is missing, and they don't put much stock in her story. Her neighbor Jude is the only one who believes her account. A woman comes to Carole's door threatening her with a gun. She escapes out the back when Jude comes calling. Jude talks Carole into going to the local pub, even though Carole is not a pub person. Strange things occur at the yacht club, and ultimately that venue along with scenes with its members in other locations, show more provides most of the action for the book. The characters are quirky. I am not naturally drawn to them. I think the novel would have been strengthened by making it a police procedural. Carole and Jude are not the most endearing investigative team. I listened to the audio version read by Geoffrey Howard. show less

I started this novel with a strong dislike of the main character, but I must say, she grew on me. By the end of the book, I was very fond of her and fascinated by the mysteries she was investigated.