Aunt Dimity: Detective

FROM OUR EDITORS

Mystery lovers' favorite ghost discovers secrets, scandals, and resurrected family feuds when the nasty murder of busybody Prunella "Pruneface" Hooper disrupts the idyllic English village of Finch.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The "irresistible flair and charm" (Publishers Weekly) of Nancy Atherton's lovable heroine and her phantom aunt intensify with each new adventure. This time, in Aunt Dimity: Detective, murder comes to roost in Lori Shepherd's own village.

Nobody in the little town of Finch was really surprised when Prunella "Pruneface" Hooper came to a nasty end—but murder? There hadn't been a murder in Finch since 1872 when one shepherd bashed another with the hook of his crook. Despite her hectic home schedule with her three-year-old twins, Lori agrees to investigate. But narrowing the list of suspects is a major challenge: the newly arrived Pruneface had quickly become privy to everyone's secrets—and used her secret knowledge to plant rumors, nurture backbiting, resurrect feuds, and season it all with downright lies. Almost everyone had a reason to want her dead. Fortunately, Aunt Dimity's supernatural skills—and her insight into uncovering the true goodness of human nature—make the experience of unraveling the mystery "as cozy as a warm fire on a winter's night" (The Denver Post).

Author Biography: Nancy Atherton is the author of six Aunt Dimity novels: Aunt Dimity's Death, Aunt Dimity and the Duke, Aunt Dimity's Good Deed, Aunt Dimity Digs In, Aunt Dimity's Christmas, and Aunt Dimity Beats the Devil (all available from Penguin).

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

For an American, Atherton nicely captures the British cozy spirit, but her ghostly gimmick is not for every taste. In her seventh appearance (after 2000's Aunt Dimity Meets the Devil), Lori Shepherd, her husband and two-year-old twins have returned home to a cold, rainy English April after a three-month family visit to the U.S. to find that there has been a murder in Finch, their idyllic Cotswold village. Prunella Hooper "Pruneface" to most villagers was found dead of a blow to the head in her home, Crabtree Cottage. Given her malicious nature, the residents of Finch aren't surprised by her death; in fact, they seem relieved and yet are strangely reticent to come forward with any information. The list of suspects seems endless. So, with the aid of the Pym sisters' gingerbread cookies (a recipe for which is provided at book's end) and the sage advice of phantom counselor Aunt Dimity, who appears to Lori supernaturally on the blank pages of a journal, Lori and the vicar's nephew, Nicholas, begin a quest to unearth the truth behind the murder. In the process, they uncover a multitude of village secrets, including a few pertaining to themselves. With eccentric village characters, a tightly woven, well-executed plot and a spunky heroine, Atherton has created a cozy as spicy and zestful as the Pym sisters' gingerbread. Series fans are sure to be pleased. For some, however, the fantasy of Aunt Dimity is like the edible gold leaf on the cookies a nice touch if you like it, but it would taste better plain. 5-city author tour. (Oct. 1) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

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