Review: THE MODEL MURDER, Amanda Hampson

• 
  this edition published by Penguin Books 2026
  
• ISBN 978-1-76135-034-4
• 324 pages  

Synopsis (publisher)

Never underestimate a tea lady.

Sydney, 1968. When a popular local man is murdered, police are quick to pin the blame on his glamorous model fiancée, who has since disappeared. But Hazel suspects a criminal cover-up and rallies the tea ladies to investigate; a quest that brings danger right to her door.

Meanwhile, Merl’s long-buried family secret threatens to unravel her carefully constructed life. When she stumbles on evidence that her detective son-in-law is corrupt, she’s forced to swallow her pride and reunite with the other tea ladies, enlisting their help to expose him.

Betty becomes immersed in a local theatre group where there is more drama offstage than on it, further complicated by her infatuation with the enigmatic leading man.
Irene aspires to a new career as a debt collector but her first case has more frustrations and obstacles than she bargained for, even with the help of a new weapon. 

My Take

Although a cozy, I found the plot had too many strands, and I seemed constantly to be getting the main characters muddled up.

My rating: 4.3 

I've also read

4.4, THE TEA LADIES

4.4, THE CRYPTIC CLUE 

Review: ONE LESS SNAKE, Rhys Dylan

• 
  This edition read as an e-book on my Kindle
  
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0DT4RG4D4
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Wyrmwood Books, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 22 April 2025
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 298 pages
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1915185426
• Book 16 of 21 ‏ : ‎ DCI Evan Warlow Crime Thriller

Synopsis (AmazonAU) 

Even sleepy, picturesque coastal towns have their secrets.

Welcome to Solva, where a burned-out car, a corpse, and a hauntingly precise execution greets a morning walker.

DCI Evan Warlow faces a case steeped in fear and the worst of modern crimes.

As clues lead him down twisting trails, Warlow must confront not only the killer’s identity but also the lingering echoes of a community’s darkest sins and the intersection of power, revenge, and justice.

My Take

Matt Gittings was one of those politicians who really only thought of what he could get out of his position. That he would come to a nasty end was probably inevitable. But his death in a burning vehicle provides DCI Evan Warlow and his team with a real puzzle.

These stories continue to be entertaining, well planned and thought-provoking, although in this one the "dad" jokes are a bit overwhelming. 

My rating: 4.4

I've also read

4.6, THE ENGINE HOUSE - #1

4.5, CAUTION: DEATH AT WORK -#2

4.6, ICE COLD MALICE - #3

4.5, SUFFER THE DEAD - #4

4.6, GRAVELY CONCERNED - #5 

4.5, A MARK OF IMPERFECTION - #6

4.5, BURNT ECHO - #7 

4.6, A BODY OF WATER - #8

4.5, LINES OF INQUIRY - #9 

4.5, NO ONE NEAR - #10 

4.6, THE LIGHT REMAINS - #11

4.6, A MATTER OF EVIDENCE - #12

4.5, THE LAST THROW - #13 

4.6, DRAGON'S BREATH - #14

4.6, THE BOWMAN - #15 

4.5, DRUID'S MOOR - #18

Review: NO SMOKE WITHOUT FIRE, Paul Gitsham

• 
  this version an e-book on Libby through my local library
  
• Publisher, HarperCollins Publishers, 21 July 2018
• ISBN 9780008389154 
• #2 in series DCI Warren Jones

Synopsis (Overdrive)

DCI Warren Jones has a bad feeling when the body of a young woman turns up in Beaconsfield Woods. She's been raped and strangled but the murderer has been careful to leave no DNA evidence. 

There are, of course, suspects – boyfriend, father – to check out but, worryingly, it looks more and more like a stranger murder. 

Warren's worst fears are confirmed when another young woman is killed in the same way. The MO fits that of Richard Cameron who served twelve years for rape. But Cameron never killed his victims and he has a cast-iron alibi. 

Then personal tragedy intervenes and Warren is off the case. But the pressure is mounting and another woman goes missing. Warren is back but will the break he desperately needs come before there's another victim?

My Take

I enjoyed reading this novel although I "solved" the mystery about half way through. However there were a number of quite distracting red herrings. Sadly my library does not have any more of this series either in print or e-book. I guess that is to be expected as they are not recently published. 

My rating: 4.5

I've also read

4.5, THE LAST STRAW - #1 

Review: THE CUTTING, Michael Campling

• 
  This edition read as an ebook on my Kindle (AmazonAU)
  
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0H199HCHD
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Shadowstone Books, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 2 June 2026
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 652 pages
• Book 2 of 2 ‏ : ‎ The DC Spiller Mysteries   

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

The body was in a mess. The victim, a young man, was found naked in the street, face and upper body slashed, fingertips shredded, teeth broken. And all while he was alive.

Detective Constable Spiller has seen nothing like it. Stranger still, the victim was found in a quiet residential street and nobody seems to know who he was.

But this young man was only the first victim to be found. The murderer hasn't stopped, and to make matters worse, the police can find no link between the victims.

Is this the work of a sociopathic murderer, a sadistic serial killer targeting victims at random?

It’s 1993 and DC Spiller has been in the job for a year. This is his toughest case yet, but along with the team at Exeter CID, he’ll stop at nothing to bring the killer in.

Even if it means putting his life on the line.

Venture into Exeter’s shadowy streets with DC Spiller on the hunt for a serial killer in The Cutting.

My Take

This story takes us back over 30 years when technologies that we take for granted were really just emerging. Police investigations took much longer and procedures were much emphasised. However DC Tim Spiller is inclined to bypass the procedures and to trust his intuition a little too much. This is only his second year in the job and he often needs restraint and yoking to a more experienced officer.

A body found on a street, naked, outside the house of a former policeman, appears to have been tortured, and DC Tim Spiller becomes part of the team of investigating officers.

This is a well constructed tale with a good plot. 

My rating: 4.5

I have also read the following by the same author

4.3, A STUDY IN STONE

Review: THREE BAGS FULL, Leonie Swann

• 
  This edition read on my Kindle (AmazonAU)
  
• aka THE SHEEP DETECTIVES
• Anthea Bell (Translator)
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0DT4QXTD9
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Allison & Busby, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 20 March 2025
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 347 pages 
• First published in 2005, English translation from German by Anthea Bell 2006, published Random House 2006, 351 pages, ISBN 978-0-385-60994-4
• Review written in 2009 

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

On a hillside near the quaint Irish village of Glennkill, the flock gathers around the dead body of their shepherd, George, who lies pinned to the ground with a spade. George cared deeply for the sheep, reading to them daily, and as a result they are far smarter than your average flock.

Led by Miss Maple, the sharpest sheep in Glennkill (and possibly the world), they set out to find George's killer. With an assortment of woolly investigators on the case, there are furtive missions into the village and a collection of two-legged suspects to chew over.

Dazzingly original, Three Bags Full introduces a band of detectives who are a breed apart.

My Take

Just recently the film THE SHEEP DETECTIVES starring Hugh Jackman has been recently released and The Chooser in our book group decided the book that the film was based on, THREE BAGS FULL,  would be on our list this month. For me this was a re-read as I originally read the book soon after it was released. My review from 2009 is here.

A word of warning for would-be readers. The film THE SHEEP DETECTIVES has a PG rating. The film really takes one or two themes out of the original book, the main one being the death of the shepherd and the attempts by his sheep to solve the problem of his murder. Various other cozy elements were then added to the story. The original book went well beyond that.

In fact after originally reading the book over 17 years ago I had forgotten most of the story, and began to feel a little bit duped because the plots were far from identical to that of the film.  

Once I had got over those feelings, I did enjoy the re-read, and the rather woolly sense of humour embedded in it. 

My rating: 4.4

Review: THE CURSED ROAD, Laura McCluskey

• 
  This edition, a paperback by QBD books
• ISBN 9781460765593 
  
• Published 24 / 02 / 2026
• Book 2 of 2: George Lennox and Richie Stewart 
• 352 pages 

Synopsis (publisher) 

The hauntingly atmospheric and gripping new novel from the author of The Wolf Tree

In a mountainous region of the Scottish Highlands, a young woman's body has been found on a remote stretch of road. Though the manner of her death suggests a terrible accident, a name carved into her arm hints at something more sinister. And when a personal connection to the name is revealed, DIs Georgina Lennox and Richard Stewart are sent to investigate. As George and Richie question locals, they discover that the road has a bloody history. 

Fearing that more women will be harmed, they track the killer through a rugged wilderness where ancient feuds, generational curses and the unforgiving elements fight for supremacy. But there are more secrets to the road than just its history - and the people living along it will do whatever it takes to stop those secrets from coming out.

My Take

Recently I came across a review which described a book as a "chiller" and that strikes me as an apt adjective for this one too.

George and Richie have not been in touch much recently, both in fact trying in their own ways get over the impact of their recent case together. George regards Richie as her mentor but is not sure that she can work with him again. After their last case she became drug dependent and, although she is now clean, she is sure he will be disapproving. 

Their boss is keen to get them working together again, she can't afford to have her two best detectives sidelined. 

There is a lot of pressure on them to solve this case quickly but it is difficult to identify the victim and something is not quite right with the information locals are giving. This book hooks you, and you have to keep reading! 

My rating: 4.6

I've also read

4.8, THE WOLF TREE  

Review: LORD EDGWARE DIES, Agatha Christie

• 
  This edition read as an e-book on my Kindle
  
• originally published 1933 as LORD EDGWARE DIES in the UK, aka THIRTEEN AT DINNER for the American release
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0046A9MP4
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins, Publication date ‏ : ‎ 14 October 2010
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 290 pages
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0007422432
• Book 9 of 38: Hercule Poirot  

Synopsis (AmazonAU)

Agatha Christie’s famous murder mystery, reissued with a striking cover designed to appeal to the latest generation of Agatha Christie fans and book lovers.

Poirot had been present when Jane bragged of her plan to ‘get rid of’ her estranged husband. Now the monstrous man was dead. And yet the great Belgian detective couldn’t help feeling that he was being taken for a ride.

After all, how could Jane have stabbed Lord Edgware to death in his library at exactly the same time she was seen dining with friends? And what could be her motive now that the aristocrat had finally granted her a divorce?

My Take - apologies for possible spoilers

I have read this several times over the last 60 years; this re-read is for discussion with my U3A Agatha Christie Reading group.  My first review on this blog can be found here. 

This novel is narrated by Poirot's companion Captain Arthur Hastings whose approach to solving any crime provides a foil to Poirot's "brilliance". He tells us to start with that Poirot regards this case as one of his failures mainly because initially he followed a number of red herrings, because he was duped by the murderer and also because he failed to prevent the murders. 

Some readers have a very adverse reaction to the racism and anti-Semitism that Christie expresses. In 1933, when she was writing the novel, many of her readers would have concurred with these sentiments. Poirot tells Hastings for example that Carlotta Adams is obviously a Jewess, as is that is obvious from her face, and others support that later by telling Poirot that making money is at the centre of her character. 

Once the first murder is committed, that of Lord Edgware, Inspector Japp of Scotland Yard become involved. He thinks it is pretty obvious that Lady Edgware has committed the murder - after all she told Poirot she wanted to get rid of her husband - but Poirot is adamant that she is innocent. However Japp does not then arrest her, but the man who has inherited the title. Later he has to let him go.

Japp gives Poirot a lot of leeway as Poirot suggests various solutions. Poirot does most of his "investigation" from the comfort of his armchair, using his little "grey cells", while Hastings becomes frustrated as he thinks Poirot should be more active. Poirot is content to send Hastings on errands, and to let Japp do the physical stuff. Japp is getting the evidence together and Poirot will have no hesitation in using what suits him. Hastings tells Poirot he is getting lazy.

Memorable quote: Why keep a dog and bark yourself? 

In the long run it is Poirot who gets the credit for solving the case although for most of the time he was wrong. Poirot says he wants to get the answers to 5 questions and until he knows those answers he will not be satisfied.

1. Why did Lord Edgware change his mind on the subject of divorce?
2. What happened to the letter that Edgware sent telling his wife she could have her divorce?
3. What was the meaning of the expression that Hastings had seen on Lord Edgware's face?
4. Why was there a pince-nez in Carlotta Adam's bag?
5. Why did someone phone to find out if Jane Wilkinson was at the dinner party that established her alibi? 

After he establishes the answers to those questions we get the full explanation of what happened, and who did what. 

My rating: 4.5 

I have read all the Agatha Christie novels as part of a challenge I set myself to read them in order of publication. My reviews can be found here.