Synopses & Reviews
Agatha Raisin is lonely. Busy as she is with her detective agency and the meetings of the Carsely Ladies' Society, she still misses her ex-husband, James Lacey, so she welcomes his return to the cottage next door with her usual triumph of optimism over experience---especially when he invites her on holiday at a surprise location that was once very dear to him. With visions of a romantic hideaway in Italy or the Pacific dancing in her head, Agatha goes off happily with James to...Snoth-on-Sea, in Sussex.
While James may have fond memories of boyhood holidays there, Snoth-on-Sea has seen better days, as has the once-grand Palace Hotel, now run-down and tacky and freezing cold. Nor do the other guests have much to recommend them, especially the brassy honeymoon couple, Mr. and Mrs. Jankers, who pick a fight with Agatha in the dining room. But trouble has a way of following Agatha even if romance does not: Just as she and James are preparing to flee to warmer climes, Geraldine Jankers is found dead on the beach---strangled with Agatha's scarf. So much for Agatha's holiday fantasies: Not only is it time to put her detective skills to work, but the police are not even sure that she'll be allowed to leave town.
Review
Acclaim for Agatha Raisin and M. C. Beaton
“Few things in life are more satisfying than to discover a brand-new Agatha Raisin mystery.”
---The Tampa Tribune
“The irascible but endearing personality of Agatha Raisin is like a heady dash of curry. May we have another serving, please?”
---Detroit Free Press
“If youve never read an Agatha Raisin novel, its time to start.... All of them are cunningly plotted, beautifully written, and more fun than you can imagine.”
---The Globe and Mail
“Beaton has a winner in the irrepressible, romance-hungry Agatha.”
---Chicago Sun-Times
“Anyone interested in...intelligent, amusing reading will want to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Agatha Raisin.”
---The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Outwardly bossy and vain, inwardly insecure and vulnerable, Agatha grows more endearing with each installment.”
---The Plain Dealer
“Welcome back to Carsely, the charming Cotswold village thats home to the sixteenth Agatha Raisin mystery. (If youve missed the first fifteen, just imagine a Barbara Pym novel with murder, mayhem and the sexual longings of a fiftysomething divorced lady sleuth.”
---Publishers Weekly on The Perfect Paragon
Review
"Beaton has a winner in the irrepressible, romance-hungry Agatha."
--Chicago Sun-Times "Another highly satisfying Beaton cozy, this one is long on the kind of social comedy that uses character, plot, and atmosphere to produce the laughter."--Booklist
"Driven by Agatha's strong personality, [Love, Lies, and Liquor] will please devoted fans."--Publishers Weekly
Synopsis
When a woman in her hotel is murdered, Agatha's notoriously prickly demeanor soon gets her into trouble as she's pegged the prime suspect. If she can't solve the murder in time, she'll be meddling in all her future cases from inside a prison cell.
Synopsis
20 Years of Agatha Raisin—Brand-New Bonus Story Included! Agatha Raisin is lonely. Busy as she is with her detective agency and the meetings of the Carsely Ladies Society, she still misses her ex-husband, James Lacey. So when he suddenly resurfaces and invites her on holiday at a surprise location, shes ready to go yesterday. With visions of a romantic hideaway in Italy or the Pacific dancing in her head, Agatha sets off with James to...Snoth-on-Sea, in Sussex. While James may have fond memories of boyhood holidays there, the once-grand Palace Hotel is in shambles and freezing cold—as are fellow guests and newlyweds Mr. and Mrs. Jankers, who pick a fight with Agatha one night. Just as she and James prepare to flee to warmer climes, Geraldine Jankers is found dead on the beach…strangled with Agathas scarf. So much for holiday fantasies: For Agatha, trouble has a way of following her even when romance does not…
Synopsis
Agatha Raisin is lonely. Busy as she is with her detective agency and the meetings of the Carsely Ladies Society, she still misses her ex-husband, James Lacey. So when he suddenly resurfaces and invites her on holiday at a surprise location, shes ready to go yesterday. With visions of a romantic hideaway in Italy or the Pacific dancing in her head, Agatha sets off with James to...Snoth-on-Sea, in Sussex. While James may have fond memories of boyhood holidays there, the once-grand Palace Hotel is in shambles and freezing cold—as are fellow guests and newlyweds Mr. and Mrs. Jankers, who pick a fight with Agatha one night. Just as she and James prepare to flee to warmer climes, Geraldine Jankers is found dead on the beach…strangled with Agathas scarf. So much for holiday fantasies: For Agatha, trouble has a way of following her even when romance does not…
Synopsis
OLD HABITS DIE HARD Agatha Raisin is lonely. Busy as she is with her detective agency and the meetings of the Carsely Ladies' Society, she still misses her ex-husband, James Lacey. So when he suddenly resurfaces and invites her on holiday at a surprise location, she's ready to go yesterday. With visions of a romantic hideaway in Italy or the Pacific dancing in her head, Agatha sets off with James to...Snoth-on-Sea, in Sussex. While James may have fond memories of boyhood holidays there, the once-grand Palace Hotel is in shambles and freezing cold--as are fellow guests and newlyweds Mr. and Mrs. Jankers, who pick a fight with Agatha one night. Just as she and James prepare to flee to warmer climes, Geraldine Jankers is found dead on the beach...strangled with Agatha's scarf. So much for holiday fantasies: For Agatha, trouble has a way of following her even when romance does not...
"Beaton has a winner in the irrepressible, romance-hungry Agatha."
--Chicago Sun-Times
About the Author
M. C. Beaton has been hailed as “the new Queen of Crime.” She is The New York Times bestselling author of the Agatha Raisin mysteries, including As the Pig Turns and Busy Body, set in the English Cotswolds, as well as the Hamish Macbeth mysteries set in Scotland. She has also written historical romance novels and an Edwardian mystery series under the name Marion Chesney. Before writing her first novels, Beaton worked as a bookseller, a newspaper reporter, a fashion critic, and a waitress in a greasy spoon. Born in Scotland, she currently divides her time between Paris and a village in the Cotswolds. She was selected the British Guest of Honor for the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention in 2006.