"They say sharing is caring, but sharing a husband? That's a grave mistake.

And Hell hath no fury like three widows with a murder to solve...

Albert Franklynn's sudden and mysterious death leaves everyone in the pretty village of Monksworthy in shock - especially his wife Sylvie, who runs the local tearoom.

But the real surprise comes at the mortuary, where not one, but three grieving widows show up to identify his body.

It turns out that Albert wasn't just a devoted husband to Sylvie.... He had two other wives as well.

As everyone reels from the revelation of Albert's double - or triple - life, three widows reluctantly team up to investigate a mystery more tangled than the village's gaudy bunting: who killed Albert - and why.

It turns out Albert's list of enemies is longer than the village bake sale sign-up sheet. Can these three unlikely sleuths resolve their differences to become partners in crime-solving...before the killer writes them out of the story for good?

The start of an unmissable cosy crime series, this gripping mystery about murder, mayhem and marital mischief is perfect for fans of Faith Martin, the Reverend Richard Coles, Kristen Perrin, Veronica Heley or Fiona Leitch."

The real mystery to me is how anyone would have the energy to have multiple lives and wives.

4* Misleading title but a good cosy mystery and wow, a total WTF??? start.

OK, so start this with a huge dose of suspension of disbelief, tuck in, and enjoy! But, don't expect what the title hints at as that's almost inconsequential.

It's a really well-written tale, plausible if you can do willing suspension of disbelief, with surprising warmth. I loved the relationship between the widows; wanted to smack Simon; wanted to hug Sir Barny (the 'pig song' was 😂); Sir Ralph and his mother were a brilliant addition and another 'I did not see that coming!), and I wanted more than a clump of hair torn from the person who got their just desserts at the end, improbable as said ending and circumstances were.

The dialogue was funny in parts, sad in others, very British upper lip, with bits of snobbery on the part of some who eventually let go of their stuff upper lips. It was lovely to see a tale set in the good old UK, one that sets the tone for a pretty good series to come, if this tale is anything to go by.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Joffe Books for my reading pleasure.