It starts as such an ordinary day in the sleepy little town of Abbeymead. Flora opens her little bookstore as usual, sets up the till, straightens the shelves ... and discovers a body. He is a stranger, and why would he break in to her shop? Word travels fast and soon there are no customers. Then a local gardener dies. What, if anything, is the connection? Flora wants to get this solved as it is affecting business, not to mention it is affecting her friends, too. Lots of interesting twists, see if you can figure it out! The Bookshop Murder is a Flora Steele Mystery by Merryn Allingham.

The Snows of Weston Moor, the eighth in the Lord Edginton Investigates series by Benedict Brown is a nice homage to Agatha Christie! It's winter, the roads are bad and the car slips off the road. There are lights in the distance so Edginton (going under a rather fun fake name) and his grandson seek refuge in a large, isolated house full of, um, interesting characters. Some are actors, there is no staff to speak of, it's almost Christmas, phone lines have been cut off, a dark and mysterious man arrives, also seeking refuge ... all the necessary elements for an excellent mystery are here. A body shows up, of course, under the Christmas tree. Think scandals and secrets from the past. Money. Fame. It would have been fun to read this closer to Christmas, but it was still an excellent read.

Reading Hermit With Dog