Murders at the Winterbottom Women’s Institute

By Gina Kirkham

What it’s about?

It’s a quiet English village-except for one crazed murderer-in this delightful romp by the author of the Constable Mavis Upton series.

Librarian Prunella Pearce has left heartbreak behind to start a new life in the village of Winterbottom, where there’s little social life to be had aside from the meetings of The Winterbottom Women’s Institute at the parish hall.

But a bit of excitement ensues when the group is about to elect a new president-and the nominees for the position begin dropping like flies. One is found facedown in a lemon drizzle cake, stabbed with a crochet needle. Another nearly dies spectacularly in the revolving doors of a Harrogate hotel. When Pru and her friend Bree agree to do some undercover snooping to help the police, little do they know that one of the Winterbottom women is hiding a scandalous secret . .

What I think:

This is such a fun read.

Yes there are murders galore, but there is so much humour and a cast of wonderful characters.

Pru is looking to make some friends and settle into village life. Her friend Bree drags her along to the village WI where gossiping over cake is rife. A new WI President has to be elected and there are plenty of potential candidates.

After the meeting one of the nominees is found dead. The murder shocks the village. There doesn’t seem to be any motive and with no suspects the police are baffled.

When more WI members are murdered and the police are no closer to catching the killer, Pru starts her own enquiring. Using her library skills she starts researching the past and follows some leads of her own.

Pru is a fabulous character. She is both confident and witty and nervous. There are some genuinely laughing out loud moments, especially as her relationship with the delectable detective Andy develops.

What’s interesting about the structure is that the reader knows how the murders happen and who the villain is from the outset. There’s real tension in seeing how and when they will get caught. Dilys/Phyllis is hiding in plain sight and no one even remembers her name, let alone suspects her of such spiteful crimes.

I really enjoyed this fast- paced mystery. It’s easy to read and the dialogue is fun with lots of jokes and silliness. The heroes are plucky, the villains are dastardly and there’s some great twists along the way. This will definitely make you laugh and the ending is enormously satisfying.

Thank you to Love Books Tours for inviting me to be a part of this blog tour.