First published 2013
Gloria French arrives in the Cotswold village of Piddlebury as the perfect newcomer. She organizes church fundraisers and tends to elderly residents. But Gloria takes things from her neighbors and never brings them back. When someone kills her, the villagers feel little grief over her death. Parish councillor Jerry Tarrant calls in private detective Agatha Raisin to solve the murder. Piddlebury proves strange and closed off. The residents block Agatha's questions and seem determined to protect the killer's identity. Agatha struggles to focus on the case when she learns devastating personal news. Her former husband James Lacey has started a romance with Agatha's young assistant. The investigation becomes a test of Agatha's professional skills and emotional resilience as she navigates both village secrets and personal heartbreak.
Genres: mystery, crime, contemporary, cozy-mystery
Vibes: cozy, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, found-family
Setting: Cotswold, Piddlebury
304 pages · Hardcover · Minotaur Books