Kindle Edition Amazon.com Amazon Category:  Crime Publisher: Crooked Cat ISBN-10:  B07RM4M5WR Type: Fiction Pages: 292 Copyright: June 25, 2019 A dead bridge player. A determined mother. A new case Beth Haldane is on the verge of having everything she’s ever wanted. Her son is starting secondary school, her personal life seems to have settled – even her pets are getting on. Then the phone rings. It’s Beth’s high-maintenance mother, Wendy, with terrible news. Her bridge partner, Alfie Pole, has died suddenly. While Beth, and most of Dulwich, is convinced that Alfie has pegged out from exhaustion, thanks to playing with Wendy for years, Beth’s mother is certain that foul play is afoot. Before she knows it, Beth is plunged into her most complicated mystery yet, involving the Dulwich Bridge Club, allotment holders, the Dulwich Open Garden set and, of course, her long-suffering boyfriend, Metropolitan Police Detective Inspector Harry York. The case stirs up old wounds which are much closer to home than Beth would like. Can she come up trumps in time to stop the culprit striking again? Or does the murderer hold the winning hand this time?

Funny, clever and insightful
Beth is back in investigatory mode when her mother’s bridge partner dies, in suspicious circumstances, in the middle of a game. Her boyfriend Harry is working the case and as usual telling Beth to keep out of it. She can’t. Her mother ends up in hospital and now it’s personal. As always, I love the way these stories are told – humorously, with great insight into human nature and the unseen pressures of being the supermum that all your child’s friends have. This story leaves us feeling some conclusion has been reached between Beth and Harry. I sincerely hope the series continues!

Fun murder mystery with great characters
Beth Haldane is a single Mum, though she does have a "boyfriend" - Metropolitan Police Detective Inspector Harry York. Her son is about to start attending the prestigious Wyatt's secondary school which is also the place where she supposedly works as an archivist. The reason for the supposedly is that she seems to keep getting distracted from her job by mysterious events which have her acting like Dulwich's younger answer to Miss Marple! This time it is her Mum who calls to get Beth to investigate the mysterious demise of Alfie Poe, her Mum's bridge partner.

This is a highly entertaining and somewhat satirical read with great characters, plenty of intrigue, lots of laughs and a plethora of red herrings as the mystery unfolds. Nothing is straightforward in this, probably Beth's most complicated investigation so far. Beth is dealing with the members of the Dulwich Bridge Club, digging for information from the allotment holders and still trying to keep her son and boyfriend happy. Her antics are often laugh out loud funny but this is a dangerous investigation that will put her and others at risk. The ending is superb at linking things together and the story is a great read throughout and there's also a great surprise for Beth to keep you wondering what will happen in the next book in this series.

Whilst this is the sixth book in this brilliant series, I suspect it could be read and thoroughly enjoyed even if you've missed the previous five. Having typed that, I'll add a slight warning that once you've read one you'll probably want to go grab yourself copies of the earlier books to read, too! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this intriguing story and have no hesitation in highly recommending it to anyone who enjoys escaping into a small community based murder mystery with great character and plenty to keep you enthralled and smiling.