The Marmalade Murders
A Penny Brannigan Mystery
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
The Marmalade Murders is the ninth book in Elizabeth J. Duncan's award-winning mystery series, celebrated for its small-town charm and picturesque Welsh setting and starring amateur sleuth Penny Brannigan.
The competition is friendly and just a little fierce at the annual Llanelen agricultural show as town and country folk gather for the outdoor judging of farm animals and indoor judging of cakes, pies, pastries, chutneys, jams and jellies, along with vegetables, fruit and flowers. But this year, there’s a new show category: murder.
Local artist, Spa owner, and amateur sleuth Penny Brannigan agrees to help with the intake of the domestic arts entries and to judge the children’s pet competition on show day. When the president of the Welsh Women's Guild isn’t on hand to see her granddaughter and pet pug win a prize, the family becomes concerned. When a carrot cake entered in the competition goes missing, something is clearly amiss.
A black Labrador Retriever belonging to the agricultural show’s president discovers the body of the missing woman under the baked goods table. A newcomer to town, a transgender woman, is suspected, but amateur sleuth Penny Brannigan believes her to be innocent. She sets out to find the real killer, but when a second body is discovered days later, the case is thrown into confusion, and Penny knows it’s up to her to figure out what happened—and why.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Set in Llanelen, Wales, Duncan's middling ninth Penny Brannigan mystery (after 2017's Murder Is for Keeps) finds Penny and Victoria Hopkirk, co-owners of Llanelen Spa, volunteering to help at the home crafts section of the town's agricultural show. The pair are greeted by Joyce Devlin, president of the show committee, and everything goes smoothly until they realize they're missing entries from Gaynor Lewis, president of the Welsh Women's Guild, and their friend Florence Semple. Florence's jam wins a first, but her marmalade and carrot cake have disappeared. When Penny looks under the home crafts table for the missing items, she discovers Gaynor's body. Insp. Bethan Morgan may be in charge of the subsequent murder investigation, but Penny's knowledge and insight, plus her insatiable curiosity, prove to be invaluable to the case. Another death raises the stakes. Figuring out the meaning of the missing marmalade could be the key to the mystery. Duncan's inviting picture of life in rural Wales compensates only in part for unremarkable characters and a strained plot.)
Customer Reviews
Ninth book in series!
The Marmalade Murders by Elizabeth J. Duncan is the ninth book in A Penny Brannigan Mystery series. Mrs. Lloyd has wrangled Penny Brannigan into assisting with the annual Llanelen agriculture show. Penny and Victoria Hopkirk co-own Llanelen Spa in Llanelen, North Wales. They are accepting the domestic arts entries and get their instructions from Joyce Devlin, president of the show committee. A half an hour before the deadline, they notice that Florence Semble has yet to drop off her entries and give her a call. It seems that someone had telephoned and told her she could drop off her entries the next morning (odd). Penny is judging the children’s pet competition the next day when a little girl gets upset because her grandmother, Gaynor Lewis failed to show up. Gaynor is not the only thing missing at the agriculture show. Florence’s carrot cake and her marmalade entries have disappeared as well. Joyce’s dog soon finds Florence’s cake under a table in the judging tent along with Gaynor Lewis. Was someone trying to eliminate the competition? Penny looks into the victim’s life to see who could have wished her harm and soon discovers that these competitions are taken seriously by the competitors. One women has something to important to tell Penny, but she ends up dead before she can speak with her. Penny needs to work quickly to expose the killer or she could be next.
The Marmalade Murders can be read alone. The information a reader needs is included in the book. I thought The Marmalade Murders was well-written and had a nice pace which made the story easy to read and enjoy. The characters are established and relatable (especially to those who live in small towns). Mrs. Lloyd and Florence are delightful. They provide levity to the story. I especially appreciate that the main character is in her 50s. It is a refreshing change from other cozy mysteries where the characters are in their late 20s and early 30s. Penny is smart, friendly, caring and level-headed. The village of Llanelen is charming and the author’s descriptions of the Welsh countryside brought it alive for me. Llanelen is a small village where the people grew up together, everyone knows each other’s business, and the rumor mill is alive and well. I think it is funny that after living in Llanelen for thirty years, Penny is still considered an outsider. The mystery has several suspects who each have a good motive for doing in the victim. I liked the misdirection that could easily lead readers down the wrong path. The investigation consists of Penny asking questions of the various townspeople. I felt that the story could have used some action. Inspector Bethan Morgan is a friendly detective who values Penny’s input into the case. She realizes that Penny has access to information that she does not. I did enjoy the historical information on Speke Hall (there really is a Speke Hall outside Liverpool). The Speke Hall in the book has a priest hole and an eavesdropper (just like the real Speke Hall). The Marmalade Murders has a sweet, heartwarming moment at the end. I am giving The Marmalade Murders 4 out of 5 stars (I liked it). It was lovely to visit Llanelen again and spend time with Penny, Mrs. Lloyd and the other villagers. I look forward to returning to Wales in the next A Penny Brannigan Mystery.