False Witness

December 4, 2020
Heley's latest installment in her Bea Abbot series is the urban equivalent of a British village cozy. It's set in London but retains the inviting charm of a small-town mystery. Bea's ward, Bernice, has brought home her boarding-school roommate, Evie Trescott, whom Bernice has unkindly dubbed "the dum-dum" because of Evie's seeming lack of intelligence. Evie's parents died tragically in a car crash, so her Aunt April and Uncle Constant have taken her in. But as part of the extremely wealthy Trescott dynasty, Evie is the only thing standing between April and Constant and the massive Trescott fortune. Bea suspects that Evie is being exploited, or, even worse, that she's targeted as part of a deadly scheme to take over her inheritance. While Bea's busy keeping Evie safe and corralling the always feisty Bernice, she's also grappling with the reappearance of her charming former husband and trying to keep her domestic employment agency running smoothly. A likable heroine, who can play the dithery old lady while cracking challenging cases, combines with suspenseful twists, quirky supporting characters, and a satisfying ending to make this a delight for fans of British mysteries.

COPYRIGHT(2020) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 1, 2024
Bea Abbott has known Julian since she rescued him when he was a poor orphan. To his shock, Julian learns he is the son of a wealthy aristocrat and has inherited the family's country estate. So far, though, his inheritance has been no fairytale. Julian's uncle Frederick mismanaged the estate, Frederick's son tried to kill Julian, and Frederick siphoned the money Julian's grandfather left him to an inaccessible offshore account. Julian has incurred the enmity of the locals who lost their jobs at the estate after he was forced to close it for health and safety reasons, and there's a whole cast of distant relations who resent him for "stealing" their inheritance. So when Julian asks Bea to help find out who's trying to kill him--again--she naturally says yes. Not one to be baffled or stymied, Bea employs her keen intelligence, strong intuition, no-nonsense approach, and tenacity to unravel the mystery and expose a dreadful but deadly plot. Heley's latest in her popular Abbot Agency series (after False Name, 2023) is sure to please fans who enjoy clever heroines, complex plots, gentle humor, and danger.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 15, 2024
The owner of a domestic agency expands her definition of domestic problems to include murder. Inheriting his family's country estate has been a mixed blessing for Sir Julian Marston-Lang and Polly, his young wife. The place promises plenty of space and a good income if the pair can ever get the neglected property into working order. In the meantime, local villagers are angry at Sir Julian because he closed down the estate's decrepit farm and the adjacent amusement park, costing many their jobs. The couple is living temporarily in the Tithe Barn with their infant son while a feckless band of local workmen try to repair the ancient plumbing and electrical systems in the main house. But Sir Julian's struggles with his employees are only one reason he summons Bea Abbot to his estate. Someone's been trying to kill Sir Julian, taking potshots at his head and spooking his horse, causing a fall that's left him badly injured. Even worse, a woman's been found hanged in his stables. Since Bea intervened successfully the last time his life was in danger, Sir Julian naturally wants her to use her magic touch again. Bea's happy to oblige, since her husband, Piers, is off painting a portrait "some place in the Balkans," and her agency's in the capable hands of her London staff. Although this new threat to Sir Julian's life seems more diffuse and nebulous than the earlier one, Bea is still the established champion of the vulnerable. And who could be more vulnerable than a young nobleman trying to protect his wife, his child, and the local villagers? Heley's heroine does her best, but the perils faced by those titled Brits strain credulity.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.