Aunt Dimity Takes a Holiday

I think what I like the most about the Aunt Dimity books is that the characters are not "perfect". Lori, our heroine, is moody, sometimes uncertain, brash, rash and has some indecent thoughts about the male supporting characters in the various adventures even though she's married and a mom of twin boys. Bill, her husband, has even admitted that he's not a saint (he is a lawyer LOL). Her neighbours, Emma and Derek, have their moments as well. They are a fun read.

This is actually book 8 in the Aunt Dimity series, but it's the first of them I've read. I'm usually a bit of a stickler for reading series in order, but a friend gave me a copy of this one, and I figure with most mystery series it probably doesn't matter all that much where you start. And, indeed, I had no trouble jumping in here, although I do kind of wonder whether I might have found the characters a little more interesting if I'd already known them going in.

The series appears to involve a woman who solves minor mysteries with the help of the ghost of an old lady who communicates with her by making words appear in a journal. In this installment, an aristocratic family gets together in their stately English home to work out some show more inheritance issues, and someone is making anonymous threats towards one of the family members.

It's a readable enough novel, I guess, and I find the fact that there's no actual murder involved a little refreshing, but mostly it just kind of bored me. The ghost gimmick sounded potentially interesting, but it's actually completely extraneous here, and could easily have been left out entirely. The mystery was mildly interesting for a while, but it's solved in a very unsatisfying way, with a third party basically coming in and telling us the answer, rather than the protagonist working things out herself. And the family issues are all resolved in a really pat and unbelievable way.

Oh, well. At least it was short. And I do suppose that someone who's a bigger fan of cozy mysteries than I am, or who is less tired of English aristocrats in stately homes -- I think watching Downton Abbey met my quota of those approximately forever -- might find it at least a little less dull. Still, I don't really think I'll be bothering with any of the rest of the series. show less

Lori Shepherd's neighbors Derek and Emma are summoned to Hailesham Park for a family reunion. But this is not an ordinary reunion since Derek has been estranged from his father for 20 years. Lori and her husband, Bill, will also be going as Bill is one of Lord Elstyn's lawyers. Soon after meeting all of the family Lori learns that Derek's cousin, Simon, has been receiving threatening notes. More notes arrive and a topiary is burned and accidents occur. Lori and Simon try to solve the mystery with Aunt Dimity's ghostly advise. Not a great mystery but all the regulars get a chance to unfold more of their background. And again Lori is momentarily tempted with an attractive man. I wish the author would leave this need for a triangle out of show more her mysteries. show less

Not bad for a simple non-murder mystery. Lori Sheperd has just learned that her best friend Emma's husband Derek is a real English earl, estranged from his family. Derek has been called back to his childhood home. Emma asks Lori to accompany them. But, as luck would have it, Lori's husband Bill has also been summoned to the estate, as unbeknownst to Lori, Bill is a lawyer to Derek's father, the current earl. Intrigue abounds. Topiaries are burned, poison pen letters are written, horses are throwing riders, old family relationships are renewed, and newer relationships face rough water. Lori, doesn't head to the estate alone with Bill, she also brings Dimity, her homestead's ghost. A cute short read. Nothing deep, cardboard characters, show more generic settings, and simple plots. show less

Nancy Atherton is the queen of the cozy mysteries. This is a fun and light series that keeps you guessing. And you always get a new recipe out of the deal! What an added surprise!

Another fast reading Aunt Dimity, no one got killed, mystery.