More than Murder by Jayne Chard

About the book:

TWO ESTRANGED SISTERS. ONE DISAPPEARING BODY.

A witty, cosy mystery packed with twists, turns and tea!

When her flamboyant and spirited half-sister, Frankie, returns to Little Clarsden to claim her share of Rose Cottage, left to them by their Aunt Lucy, she is met with a frosty reception from Julia, who still harbours an old grievance. In an attempt to mend their fractured relationship, the sisters attend a murder mystery weekend at the grand country house of the Medfield estate in the rolling hills of Somerset.

After the first evening’s supper, a “poisoned dart” “kills” one of the guests. In the classic whodunit style of a country house mystery, the game of tracking down the “killer” is afoot.

The playful intrigue takes a sinister turn when the sisters discover a real body hidden in a secret passage. When the body disappears before anyone else can see it, no one believes it ever existed.

As night falls, dark clouds are massing like a cloak of a thousand ravens. A fierce storm leaves the guests trapped in the mansion. With fallen trees and debris rendering the guest’s escape impossible, the killer strikes again. This time, everyone believes the sisters.

With the body count rising and two murders to solve, our sharp-witted, sleuthing sisters set aside their differences, determined to unravel the tangled clues of the murder mystery, track down the real killer, and uncover the truth.

Amid the glamour and intrigue of the other guests and the actors slipping in and out of character, it’s difficult to distinguish between fact and fiction. Nothing and no one is as they seem.

As the sisters get closer to the truth, someone wants them silenced—permanently. With laugh-out-loud banter, a hint of danger, and a twist even Agatha Christie would admire, can Julia and Frankie catch the culprit before the murder weekend becomes their last?

With witty and charming characters and a plot with more twists and turns than a country road, More Than Murder is a delightful blend of humour, mystery and the classic country house crime, perfect for fans of Richard Osman, M.C. Beaton and Benjamin Stevenson.

More Than Murder is the first book in this cosy crime series.

233 pages

My thoughts:

I generally enjoy traditional mysteries that are set in the English countryside. They can provide a welcome escape from day to day life. As a further inducement, this one features a murder mystery weekend at a grand estate. This allows for a variety of characters/suspects and an interesting plot. It also gives the protagonist, who is not enjoying her retirement, quite the focus.

The story features Julia (retired) and Frankie (Julia’s half sister); they have a few things to work out in their history. When the fictional mystery weekend begins to include real murders, will these two work together to solve a perplexing case?

Here is a story that has fun characters, some humor and twists, and a good plot. There are also Shakespeare quotes at the beginning of each chapter. I enjoyed this novel and look forward to others in the series.

Many thanks to Hannah Hargrave for an early copy of this title. All opinions are my own.

About the author:

Jayne Chard

Jayne started writing plays when she was eight and wrote her first “book” at fourteen. After graduating with a degree in psychology and drama, Jayne went on to win the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Buzz Goodbody’s Director Award. Whilst continuing to write, she started working as a professional theatre director , and two of her plays were performed at the London Fringe. Attracted to the small screen, Jayne became absorbed in TV drama directing. Now a multi-award-winning film and TV drama producer, her credits include the BBC flagship brand SILENT WITNESS. . In addition to a successful film and television career, Jayne was integral in setting up a veterinary clinic on the remote island of Koh Tao in Thailand. She has also worked as a radio presenter. Jayne lives in the West Country with her partner and two cuddly cockapoos. MORE THAN MURDER is Jayne’s debut novel and the first in this edgy, cosy crime series. .