Join us for our July book club in person on Sunday, July 21, at 2 p.m. or on zoom on Wednesday, July 24 at 7 p.m. to discuss The Canal Murders by J.R. Ellis. All are welcome – message us on facebook or email us at store(at) auntagathas.com for either the address or the zoom link.
Here’s the publisher’s description: Life moves at a slower pace on the canals. But death always comes when you least expect it. The last thing DS Stephanie Johnson and DS Andy Carter expected during their much-needed canal holiday was a murder. When retired folk musician Annie Shipton is found stabbed through the neck at the helm of her barge, the couple can’t help investigating the seemingly impossible crime. Nobody else boarded Annie’s boat—so how was she killed from behind? With the method a perplexing mystery, DCI Oldroyd is summoned from Harrogate, and it’s not long before the detectives have a long list of potential suspects with a motive to want Annie dead. There’s the young cyclist she argued with over access to the towpath, an ambitious and arrogant local developer she clashed with repeatedly, an estranged husband…and more than a few lingering issues with her former bandmates, most of whom live along the canal. When a second shocking murder sends shockwaves through the community, the locals start talking about a curse on the waterway. It seems the killer will go to any lengths to avoid detection. But can Oldroyd hunt them down before someone else becomes the next target? read more
Even though this is book five in an established series, I was able to comfortably settle in with Berry’s characters, setting, and story right away. The series features antiques expert Kate Hamilton, and in this instalment she’s on honeymoon in Devon with her police detective husband, Tom Mallory. In true mystery tradition, it’s a busman’s honeymoon, as they’ve also taken on a private job to verify the provenance of a blood covered dress from the 1880s, which supposedly belonged to a murderess.
