The Deadly Dance: An Agatha Raisin Mystery

Agatha must learn to rely on others to solve a complicated murder mystery. She dismisses twinges in her hips, and gets out of dangerous situations with her usual elan. A fun read!

With considerable trepidation I picked up the book that re-sets the benchmark for Agatha Raisin's detections: she turns pro. Few amateurs manage that evolution in real life; fewer still make a successful transition in fiction. M.C. Beaton sails right into the different layers of this story: the tribulations of setting up a business, the trials of Agatha's love life, her nuanced friendship with the rector's wife, and -- oh, yes! -- a mystery. Agatha's small twinges of self-awareness continue to develop an interesting (if not always likeable) central character. So much Agatha Raisin history provides near and distant context in this novel that I might hesitate to ask someone who has not yet made her acquaintance to begin here. But for those who, like me, have come to know Agatha as a surrogate for our own small town grandees and busybodies, this is another delightful read. Not being English and never having lived in a Cotswold village, I cannot vouch for the authenticity of Beaton's portrayal of that slice of life. Strikingly, though, she again describes a setting brimming with personalities who, even in "walk-on" roles, obviously lead full lives with stories of their own. It is Beaton's consistent ability to avoid flattening even characters most at the story's edge and her way of evoking a complete community that make the Agatha Raisin mysteries so satisfying to read and, once put aside, to ponder.

In her 15th outing, the irascible Agatha Raisin continues to attract murder and mayhem. After being mugged in France, she decides to open her own detective agency. She's no Sam Spade, however, and what people are hiring her for is mainly to find missing cats and runaway teens. That is, until the very wealthy Mrs. Laggatt-Brown enters her office. Raisin Investigations is off and running in a slightly madcap, slightly convoluted, but always entertaining story. Discovering who wants to murder Mrs. Laggatt-Brown's daughter and preventing the murder consumes Agatha and her staff. Agatha still retains her biting humor but does appear to be softening a bit. She not only worries over losing friends, but she actually breaks down and cries in this one. As always, there is a love interest. But devoted followers of the series will be relieved to know that finally a woman, and not a potential lover, has moved into the cottage next door. Will Agatha bond with new neighbor Emma Comfrey or will the cottage be up for sale yet again? All the series favorites are in this one---Ron Silver is down from London and more flamboyant than ever, Mrs. Bloxby is there with her always comforting shoulder to cry on, and Bill Wong aids and abets Agatha's antics once again. Most interesting of all, we are finally given an inside look at the home life of Sir Charles Fraith and his aunt and manservant provide a lot of the biting humor. All in all, an excellent addition to a most enjoyable series. One that leaves us wanting more, more, more of the wacky Agatha.

The fifteenth novel featuring the rich but tightwad, bossy and vain, raunchy, crude and cranky Agatha Raisin. Now she has opened her own private detective agency. While waiting for an exciting case she gets hired to find missing cats, cars taken by young men leaving home, not very exciting. But of course that changes when .. and the bodies .... Like the best of traditional British mysteries, this book is funny, filled with plot twists, interesting characters, and a clean and clear outcome. If you haven't already, this is an excellent way to introduce yourself to Agatha while you collect the rest of the series.

They're all here: Agatha, Mrs. Bloxby, Bill Wong, Charles, Roy, the cats and the whole Carsley crew. What gives this book an extra wumph is the addition of a truly interesting would-be murderess worthy of the best writer of English Cosies working today. You'll laugh out loud from the first page. How Beaton does it again and again is one of the greatest mysteries here. By-the-bye, why, oh why, hasn't somebody put Agatha on the screen? Who would you suggest? I've been thinking of Annette Benning. Can she do accents?