False Witness

I want to thank NetGalley and Severn House Publishing for the opportunity to read this early draft before publishing. False Witness is book 17 of the Abbott Agency mystery series, but is the first in the series for me. However, for a book late in a long series I had no trouble getting into it and following along. Apparently this was, while a separate story, a continuation of an earlier tale. But again, that did not prove to be a problem, in fact, I quite enjoyed it. The main character in the series, is a bit different from those in most other series that I have read. Bea Abbott is the owner of an employment agency, but with a talent for solving mysteries. The story takes place in a remote country estate, who's new owner is in the midst of some badly needed updates and repairs. However, as the estate is the main source of employment in the community, having it shut down even for necessary repairs does not go over well with some. In fact, there have been attempts on his life. It's a good dark cozy mystery, with very interesting characters and an array of possible culprits. I enjoyed the authors writing style which draws you smoothly along, a with a well described setting and good humor to go along with the engaging mystery. If you enjoy Agatha Christie style mysteries you will enjoy this book.

Someone doesn't want Julian to renovate Marston Hall. There have been attempts on his life and now a body in the stables. Bea Abbott, our intrepid amateur (although at book 17, she's really just an unofficial investigator rather than an amateur), is drafted to answer the question of who and why. This is a zippy little cozy with good atmospherics and characters. Yes it's the latest in a long running series but it will be fine as a standalone. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good one.

I had a lot of fun in reading this cozy mystery as I love Bea Abbot and it was a well done and solid mystery.
There's plenty of surprises, red herring, and I was to catch with these characters
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Edgy cozy mystery

Bea Abbot runs a domestic agency, and it seems a sideline in solving mysteries like murder. Her husband Piers whom we catch glimpses of through phone calls is a renowned portrait artist. He’s off in the Balkans having troubles of his own.
( I’m not sure what to make of Piers. Perhaps previous novels give a clue.)
Bea receives a phone call from friend and previous client the now Sir Julian Marston-Lang.
Julian, much to his surprise, has inherited a manor complete with disgruntled relatives, missing funds, and angry previous employees. Julian now finds himself with a mouldering pile of a house that needs extensive repairs and no funds as they’ve been stuck in an offshore account by his “some kind of uncle” Frederick, who’d thought he was the rightful heir. Julian’s had to close down the Amusement Park and the Home Farm due to health and safety concerns. The villagers are angry over lost jobs. All background to the fact that Julian’s been shot at, and accused of murder. Someone’s trying to kill him! Who’s behind this?
Bea goes to assist, and along the way engages the unassumingly, awesome, almost archangel Rosemary Sweeting, to help sort out the mystery of the missing monies and other aspects of the property renovation.
This is my first Bea Abbot mystery. I enjoyed its slightly off beat entanglements immensely. So much so that I’m thinking of reading the previous sixteen of the series I’ve missed.

A Severn House ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

Veronica Heley is an English author of more than 70 books. She’s best known for her two contemporary mystery series, one about Ellie Quicke, a recently widowed middle-aged woman in the London suburbs who is finding her voice and her life after an unhappy marriage. She is a classic amateur sleuth, learning by happenstance that she has a gift for investigation. The other is about Bea Abbot who runs a catering and domestic services agency with a little investigation here and there. Both series are long running: there are 22 books about Ellie Quicke and the 17th book about the Abbot Agency will be released on 2 July 2024.

In False Witness (Severn House, July 2024) Bea Abbot is asked by former client Sir Julian Marston-Lang to look into odd occurrences at Marston Hall. He’d been shot at while out riding. A local woman was found murdered in a stall in one of the Marston Hall barns, and someone has started a rumor that Marston-Lang is the killer. The police are very interested in establishing his alibi. The locals are upset by the loss of their jobs while Marston-Lang renovates the buildings and brings them up to current building codes, so he supposed it could be one of them. But then cousins had thought to inherit the estate and they were still grumbling so maybe one of them was angry enough to step outside the law. The estate itself is bankrupt and Marston-Lang has sunk every penny of his own money into building supplies and contractors to try to return grounds to a self-supporting state so why anyone might want it in its current state is unknown.

Abbot moves in and brings one of her best operatives masquerading as a personal assistant to help sort through the endless paperwork. The seemingly innocuous assistant carries a gun and is a skilled combatant. She deserves a few books of her own. While the assistant protects Marston-Lang, Abbot searches for the person behind the strange goings-on at Marston Hall.

A smoothly paced and tightly plotted story, which might reasonably be expected from an author as experienced as Heley. An interesting subplot involves Abbot’s artist husband who is in a politically unstable Caribbean country; whether he will escape before the unrest turns into outright rebellion is unclear.

Followers of the series will welcome this addition to the adventures of the Abbot Agency. Readers of cozy mysteries looking for a new series should consider this one and the books about Ellie Quicke.