- this edition an e-book on Kindle (Amazon)
- Dorothy Martin Mystery Book 1
- Winner of the Agatha Award for Best First Novel.
- ASIN : B08JVKFM1W
- Publisher : Joffe Books cozy crime and mystery (September 22, 2020)
- Book originally published by Harper Torch in 1996
- Print length : 228 pages
Synopsis (Amazon)
It's Christmas Eve in the small town of Sherebury. Dorothy Martin, a recently widowed American, is having her first Christmas in England.
But as she leaves the cathedral's midnight mass, she literally stumbles over a dead body — and it’s one of the priests, Canon Billings.
He wasn’t very popular and the list of suspects includes most of the town. But Dorothy doesn’t give up easily when it comes to finding out the truth.
Of course, she does get to meet Chief Constable Alan Nesbitt, and a good mystery on a chilly English night does have some appeal.
THE DETECTIVE
Dorothy Martin, sixtyish widow from Indiana and retired schoolteacher, moves to England shortly after her husband dies. A move they had planned to make together. Like the author, she has a taste for fabulous hats.
SETTING
The fictitious cathedral city of Sherebury, located somewhere in the southeast of England. A small and beautiful town, it is a mix of many real cities and towns in the England so loved by the author. She guarantees that no American fast-food chains will ever crop up on the High Street of Sherebury, where pubs, tea shops, and Indian restaurants thrive.
My Take
I have bought a Kindle edition of Books 1-5 of this series and I see that there are are 17 books in the series. (see the list of titles below)
Dorothy Martin's sleuthing idols are Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot. Once she has the scent of a mystery she can't let go. Leaving the cathedral near her home on Christmas Eve she comes across what she initially thinks is a heap of clothing, and then discovers it is a very unpopular canon.
Despite the fact that there are finally 3 murders, this is a light cozy read, and I feel that I will probably enjoy reading further into the series. The characters in this title are interesting and there seems to be a good basis for further development. The structure of the plot is Christie like with various characters being held up for scrutiny as suspects and then discounted. The strands of the plot hang together reasonably well, but the whole thing is not too demanding. I suspect it is another series that you need to read in order.
DOROTHY MARTIN MYSTERY SERIES
Book 1: THE BODY IN THE TRANSEPT
Book 2: TROUBLE IN THE TOWN HALL
Book 3: HOLY TERROR IN THE HEBRIDES
Book 4: MALICE IN MINIATURE
Book 5: THE VICTIM IN VICTORIA STATION
Book 6: KILLING CASSIDY
Book 7: TO PERISH IN PENZANCE
Book 8: SINS OUT OF SCHOOL
Book 9: WINTER OF DISCONTENT
Book 10: A DARK AND STORMY NIGHT
Book 11: THE EVIL THAT MEN DO
Book 12: THE CORPSE OF ST JAMES’S
Book 13: MURDER AT THE CASTLE
Book 14: SHADOWS OF DEATH
Book 15: DAY OF VENGEANCE
Book 16: THE GENTLE ART OF MURDER
Book 17: BLOOD WILL TELL
My rating: 4.3
About the author
Jeanne M. Dams has lived in South Bend, Indiana, all her life. Her love of England was born of almost obsessive reading of English mysteries from an early age, and was cemented by a brief visit to London after her graduation from Purdue University. Many years and many visits later, she continues to love the British Isles and especially their people. She is also interested in history, has written one historical series, and is beginning another.
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