Aunt Dimity and The King's Ransom
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
In the 23rd installment of the bestselling Aunt Dimity series, a dark and stormy night kicks off a ghost chase in rural England
On a dull and dreary October day, Lori Shepherd and her husband Bill set off for the historic town of Rye, on the southeast coast of England, for a quiet weekend together without the kids. Bill must first pay a visit to a reclusive client--but after Lori drops him off, a powerful storm drives her off course and leaves her stranded in an ancient, rambling inn called The King's Ransom. When Lori is spooked by ghostly noises in the night, Aunt Dimity reminds her rather tartly that not all ghosts intend to harm the living.
But the longer Lori is stuck at the inn, the stranger things seem. She learns that the inn was once a hangout for smugglers, and that it's riddled with secret tunnels the smugglers used to reach a network of hidden caves. Then there's the inn's cook--a brawny, gruff ex-con--who seems to have a beef with a mysterious French guest. Are the noises Lori hears made by the spirits of long dead smugglers? Or should she be more worried by the inn's living inhabitants? Joining forces with her new friend Bishop Wyndham, and guided by Aunt Dimity's wise counsel, Lori sets out to discover once and for all who--or what--is haunting The King's Ransom.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Atherton's genial 23rd paranormal cozy (after 2017's Aunt Dimity and the Widow's Curse) finds American Lori Shepherd and her husband, Bill, setting off from the English village of Finch for a romantic getaway from their three children. Plans go awry before they reach their destination of Rye when a coastal storm maroons Lori in an unfamiliar town miles away from Bill. Taking refuge in a dimly lit church, Laurie fears for her life when a strange man garbed in dark clothing approaches her. So begins a series of quick judgments and mishaps that lead Lori and her new friend, a retired bishop, on a quest to discover why the local King's Ransom Inn is haunted. The inn filled with stranded travelers, including Lori was once a smugglers' haven. Is the cook, a surly ex-con, using the inn's tunnels and secret passages for criminal pursuits? Is a particularly unpleasant guest a criminal, too? And is the inn truly haunted? Aunt Dimity, a ghost who communicates with Lori through a journal, assists in the sleuthing. Fans of sweet mysteries will be well satisfied.
