Killer Kitsch

Scotland's Coastal Villages Look Picture-Perfect. Looks Can Kill.

Footdee is all painted fences, eccentric locals, and gardens crammed with cheerful ceramic Highland coos. When DCI Fraser sends Joana and Brian to investigate a spate of smashed figurines, neither is thrilled. Kitsch vandalism. But then the broken coos start connecting to bodies across the North East of Scotland. And a crime against neighbourhood knick-knacks turns out to be something far deadlier.

Joana, naturally, thinks she has it solved already, and marches off to interrogate a beautician, a care home manager, and a group of models trying to survive on a freezing Scottish beach in bikinis. She’d never admit it, but she’s lost without Brian, her best mate from London. His signature chaos, from purple face masks to waterlogged lobbies, has a strange way of uncovering the truth.

A Highland Mystery, Book 5, but easily read as a standalone. As much comedy as cosy crime, with a sleuthing pair who don't take themselves too seriously. Their friendship has outlasted most marriages, possibly because they can never agree on anything, though they're firmly on the same side when it matters. A proper whodunit with a fast, page-turning plot and the kind of dry British humour that can bite. And, as ever, Scotland steals the show.

Perfect for fans of Midsomer Murders and Agatha Raisin.