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Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House
by M. C. Beaton
Solid British mystery enlivened with traces of humor.
This is the fourteenth installment in the Agatha Raisin saga. The author,
M. C. Beaton, has also penned nineteen Hamish Macbeth mysteries along
with a handful of other books. Our feisty, middle aged heroine is retired
from a successful career in public relations in London and now lives in the
English village of Carsely. Anyone who has read any Miss Marple stories
knows that quiet English villages can be very dangerous places to live.
In this adventure, Ms. Raisin teams up with her next door neighbor Paul
Chatterton , a handsome man-- also middle aged-- who is currently living
apart from his wife. Agatha and Paul decide to investigate the newspaper
story about an elderly Mrs. Witherspoon, who claims her house is
haunted. After a notably unsuccessful night trying to catch a ghost, the
two would-be detectives retreat until, sometime late! r, the old woman is
found dead. Murder most foul rekindles their curiosity and the chase is
on--much to the chagrin of the local police.
Beaton moves the story along at a brisk pace, introducing a cast of
possible suspects and other colorful characters as she goes. The author
also weaves in an historical manuscript that may tell the location of
buried treasure. As the murders mount up, Agatha and Paul amass clues, but
readers will have to suspend disbelief as solutions to the various
mysteries come, perhaps once too often, out of the blue. Agatha Raisin
fans will remember her continuing quest to find (and marry) a man. This
theme, wearing a bit thin by now, seems to be taken to unnecessary lengths
in this story. Still, Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House will appeal to
readers who like a good mystery without too much gore.
Title: Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House
Author: M. C. Beaton
Publisher: St. Martin's Minataur
ISBN: 031227697
Review written by: William Keogan
Reviewer's Rating:7.5
Reader's Rating: 7.00
Reader's Votes: 1
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