Murder in a Cornish Teashop - Fliss Chester

A Cornish clifftop, a sunny afternoon, a quaint little teashop… but wait a minute. Is that jam, or blood? Maddie Penrose is determined to find out!

Maddie Penrose is staying with her beloved grandmother, Nor, at her gorgeously idyllic Cornish farm. She’s looking forward to days helping out in Nor’s little teashop and evenings wandering down the cliff path to watch the sunset. But before Maddie has even finished serving up scones on her first morning, a man bursts through the door: Nor’s neighbour Clive has found a body in the field behind the teashop…

Maddie is straight to the scene, fancying herself as a bit of an Agatha Christie. But solving this mystery is far from a piece of cake. Her list of suspects is jam-packed with locals, with some a little too close to home: the newcomer renting out one of Nor’s barns is acting suspiciously, the victim’s boyfriend has disappeared without trace, and Clive isn’t really Maddie’s cup of tea either…

But the proof is in the pudding when there’s another murder – her prime suspect is dead. And when Maddie finds a backpack belonging to the first murder victim, her diligent notetaking and quick thinking leads her to discover that the killer will act again, and soon. Maddie is horrified to discover that it looks like she is their next target…

Can Maddie and Nor work as a team to piece together the puzzle? Or will murdering Maddie be the icing on the cake for the killer?

A totally addictive, witty and warm cozy mystery that will keep you reading late into the night, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Verity Bright.

My Review

There is always a bit of trepidation when it comes to starting a new series by an author whose previous books you've loved. Will it be as good? Are you ready to move on from previous characters and start something new and different? Do I really just want more of the same?

I've already read all of the Cressida Fawcett and Fen Churche books by Fliss Chester and really loved them, so I was both excited and slightly nervous about giving this new series a go. Of course, I shouldn't have been concerned. I was drawn quickly into the unfolding mystery and loved this new setting. Unlike previous series, this isn't a historical murder mystery, but it was still really good. We've got a great cast of supporting characters. I particularly liked both Maddie's Gran and the two cats who seem to get the blame for anything that goes wrong around the farm. Most of all, though, I enjoyed the interactions between Maddy and 'her policeman', and I'm looking forward to seeing how that develops in future books.

I had more or less solved the mystery before Maddy, although there were some twists and turns that I didn't see coming. I liked the way it all fit into the small community that Maddy has come to live in with her grandmother.

I'm really looking forward to more in this series, although I still hope we might get more of Cressida and Fen in the future, as I've really enjoyed both of those series so far, too.