Yvonne
This is a meme for all you ‘page surfers’ out there!
MYSTERY AT THE OLD MILL by CLARE CHASE
‘TEASER TUESDAYS‘ EXTRACT
“Eve swallowed. She could hardly believe the affable man she’d chatted with at the midwinter party had written the response. From the father’s letter, there was every chance the girl was in some kind of trouble. She might be coping with a dilemma she didn’t know how to share, questions about her identity, or friendship problems. It could be any number of things. Even if her problem was solely her relationship with her dad, how could attempting to make her feel abandoned be a sensible solution?
What Harry had suggested wasn’t illegal, but surely it was criminally irresponsible and cruel? There had to be a better way. At the very least Harry could have advised the father to make it clear he wanted to help, despite his feelings of frustration.
Harry hadn’t told Eve what he really did, but when he’d said he found people fascinating she’d thought they had something in common. Now, she felt sick. She had to make a living, just like him, but she would never use the information she gathered in such an irresponsible way.
If you were going to involve yourself in people’s personal lives, you had to do it with the utmost care, and only for the right ends. Harry’s advice had been deliberately provocative. She bet the mag had loved it. It would have created controversy and driven traffic to their website. But what had motivated Harry to be so ruthless and cavalier? The desire to make himself indispensable to the Real Story? Or did he truly believe in the harsh methods he’d advocated?”
Check out the book’s full premise below.
My ‘Books On Tour Review’ is scheduled for 9th December 2020
When the calm of Saxford St Peter is disrupted by a deadly fire at the Old Mill, amateur sleuth Eve Mallow finds herself investigating a most surprising mystery!
Everyone in Saxford St Peter is desperate to know more about Harry Tennant, the newcomer who owns the Old Mill. He usually keeps himself to himself, but he’s finally invited the villagers round for drinks, and Eve Mallow isn’t the only one looking forward to having some questions answered.
But two days before the party, a terrible fire sweeps through the mill, and Harry is found dead. When Eve passes the burned remains of his beautiful house, she can’t resist the call to investigate. Especially when it turns out quiet, charming Harry was living a double life as the famous advice writer Pippa Longford. Eve has to wonder what revelations were contained in the letters he received… and whether one of them was worth killing for.
Accompanied by her reliable dachshund sidekick Gus, Eve starts digging. She soon realises Harry was at the centre of a web of lives – and lies. There’s an uncle desperate to inherit, two women who thought they were his one and only, not to mention everyone who shared their darkest secrets with him. Was one of those strangers much closer to home than Harry knew? And can Eve untangle the truth before she finds herself face to face with a killer?
A completely charming page-turner, perfect for fans of Faith Martin, Agatha Christie and Betty Rowlands.
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by:
Ambrosia at ‘The Purple Booker‘
Each week Ambrosia shares her own teaser lines and invites other bloggers to do the same. So if you have a few moments, why not stop by and see what’s on offer this time, after all, you never know where that next great read is going to come from!
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That beautiful cover alone would make me want to read this, Yvonne. Plus, I like the sound of the book very much. I shall investigate…
Hi Cath,
Kelly actually commented on a previous post, that this picture would make a great jigsaw puzzle, although I’m not so sure that I could handle all that sky!!
And I’ll say no more than that the mill doesn’t stay looking like this for too long!
It’s a bit of a cozy mystery, with a great protagonist and a gutsy small dog called ‘GUS’.
If you are a member of NetGalley, this one is still available to request!
Hope all is well with you and thanks for stopping by 🙂
This does sound entertaining! But the title made me laugh – so much like a Nancy Drew!
Hi Connie,
Thanks for stopping by today, it is great to ‘meet’ you. I always appreciate every visit and comment 🙂
I had put this one down as a story quite suited to the fans of Agatha Christie, although I can see where you are coming from with the Nancy Drew title comparison. I didn’t read the ND books as a child, as sadly I am of an age where getting hold of ‘foreign’ books when I was a child was almost impossible. My own equivalent childhood author would have probably been Enid Blyton, who I can see now might have used very similar titles for her ‘Famous Five’ and ‘Secret Seven’ stories!
I don’t read too many ‘cozy’ mysteries, however some of the series and individual book titles really do make me smile, as they really seem quite naive.
Have a good election day and I hope it is a peaceful one 🙂
It’s an intriguing teaser selection. I enjoy a good cozy. My teaser is from Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero. https://razzberrycoloredglasses.blogspot.com/2020/11/teaser-tuesday-meddling-kids-by-edgar.html
Hi Laura,
I don’t read too many cozy stories, or at least I didn’t until recently, when a whole schedule of them came up for Blog Tour Reviews. I have to say that I have quite enjoyed myself reading them all, so I shall definitely be open to more in the future, although quite selectively, as there are just so many books in the genre!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope that all is well with you 🙂
Based on this excerpt, I (like the villagers) want to know more about Harry, too… and why he ends up dead!
Now that it’s been mentioned, I’ll agree the title is reminiscent of a Nancy Drew mystery! (and that’s not a bad thing!) 🙂
Hi Kelly,
Ah! Harry has a secret, although it’s not really a secret to some people, but it will end up costing him his life!
This might be a small village, where everyone knows everyone else and all their personal business, but some of the ‘model’ residents, are not as charming as they seem!
I must admit that I do struggle with the titles of some of the cozy mysteries, that’s why I’m a bit selective about those I choose to read. Some of them are a bit too comic, more of a mystery caper than a cozy mystery!
Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Hi Yvonne! I do like the sound of this one. Especially if it’s anything like Agatha Christies’ books. The title reminds me of the Nancy Drew series. I will keep an eye out for your blog tour on the 9th of December. It’s my birthday then!
I did a Wondrous Words Wednesday today. Really want to do it more often, but time…
Hope you are still well!
Hi Mareli,
Everyone says this title reminds them of a Nancy Drew book, however those are books I haven’t come across before, so I checked them out! I would still definitely say that this series has more of an Agatha Christie ‘Miss Marple’ feel to it, especially as our amateur sleuth Eve Mallow, is a middle-aged woman.
I’ll leave a link to author Clare Chase’s page on Fantastic Fiction and you can check out some of her other books, as they all sound really good.
https://www.fantasticfiction.com/c/clare-chase/
I didn’t get the chance to post a Wondrous Words Wednesday today, but I shall stop by and check out your words this week and if Ii don’t get to chat with you again, have a lovely birthday on Monday! 🙂