Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham (Agatha Raisin Mysteries, No. 8)

I really enjoyed this book because Agatha was helping others to understand their self worth - but she cannot see her own. I think M.C. needs to get Agatha a mirrror and let her see her own self worth. Other than that - this was the best read in the series so far (I am reading them in numerical order). I love the town, and the wonderful descriptions of the people and surrounding country side. There are more people to get into and it was really well done. This is a 5 star book!!

Agatha Raisin had attempted to color her first grey hairs herself and had managed to dye the hairs purple instead. When she went to the popular new hair stylist that everyone in Carsely was raving about she too found Mr. John to be quite charming and a genius at his job. Something though about him just didn't seem quite right, and urged on by her friend Sir Charles, began to investigate Mr. John. Soon the investigations took Agatha's mind off her grey hair as the dead bodies began to accumulate. As always with this popular cozy series the true attraction is the life and loves of Agatha and her circle of friends in Carsely. The mystery here is only moderately challenging although the reader will probably be surprised once or twice along the way. This is the eighth novel in the series, and does build on backstories established earlier in the series. Those fans of cozies who are new to this series will do better to begin with AGATHA RAISIN AND THE QUICHE OF DEATH, the first in the series and then proceed in order as much as possible.

I couldn't put it down. The usual feisty Agatha dealing with that most closed of worlds-- inside the hairdresser. Inside the hairdresser lurks jealousy, sexual fantasy, blackmail, murder and the dark underside of small idyllic rural village life, not to mention a local baronet. A real page turner. It happily ensconced me during all 7 hours of a trans-Atlantic flight.

I read this book in two sittings, and it's the first I've read in the series. Honestly, I love M.C. Beaton now. So, I went and bought a bunch of Raisin Novels. Strangely, I found 3 typographical errors in the novel, which seemed strange, as I wonder who proofed the work before publishing, but it was very minor errors like, "I think you're silly," sad Agatha. Instead, it should have been "said". One thinks with everything done now in Windows, when you hit "spell check," it's only going to find misspellings...not incorrect words.Other than that, it was a fantastic read !!!Mike

In the 8th book in the Agatha Raisin series, Agatha turns to a "wizard of a hairdresser" to repair the damage she has caused to her hair with a home coloring kit. The hairdresser, Mr. John, is good-looking and quickly charms all of his clients. Agatha soon falls under his spell, and spills her confidences to him. When several of his clients appear to be afraid of him, and then he is found dead, Agatha begins to be suspicious that he was murdered. Sir Charles Fraith, a friend of Agatha's from previous books, suggests to Agatha that Mr. John may have been blackmailing some clients, and one of them killed him to stop the blackmail. Agatha and Charles set out to discover the murderer, before Agatha gets more than just a bad haircut.I am a huge fan of the Agatha Raisin series and I highly enjoyed this installment. Noticeably absent in this book is Agatha's on-again, off-again love interest, James Lacey and I since I am not a huge fan of his character, I was glad he was on holiday. Overall, this is a wonderful book to read if you like cozy mysteries, or want to laugh aloud at some of the troubles with being a middle-aged, single woman.The first book in the series is "Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death". Enjoy!