Title: Murder in the Meadows by Faith Martin
Publisher: Joffe Books.
Date published: 8th January 2018
Genre: Mystery/thriller.
Description:
Looking for a brilliant best-selling murder mystery with a feisty female detective?
Meet DI HILLARY GREENE, a policewoman struggling to save her career and catch criminals.
Wayne Sutton is found dead by a stream in a beautiful meadow. His head has been bashed in and a red paper heart left on his body. The handsome young artist had a reputation as a ladies’ man.
DI Hillary Greene discovers that there were many wealthy married women buying his paintings and taking ‘private’ art lesson from him.
It appears that several of them might have wanted him dead.
Hillary also has a new detective sergeant, Gemma Fordham. Seemingly efficient and pleasant, she harbours a secret agenda.
Can Hillary get to the bottom of a complex case involving jealousy, love, and cold-blooded murder?
This is a crime mystery full of well-observed characters, which will have you gripped from start to finish.
MURDER IN THE MEADOW is the seventh in a series of page-turning crime thrillers set in Oxfordshire.
Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Colin Dexter, or Ruth Rendell.
THE LOCATION
The pretty iron stone village of Deddington. Not far from the market town of Banbury (noted for its famous Banbury Cross of the nursery rhyme “Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross, to see a fine lady upon a white horse, with rings on her fingers and bells on her toes, she shall have music wherever she goes.”) It has an attractive and unusual church, antique shop and hotel, and several pubs known locally for their cuisine. Although not a tourist spot as such, it is a picturesque spot. Water meadows, such as the one where the body is found, are a feature of valleys in the area, and regularly flood in the winter time, adding nutrients to the soil, making them especially lovely in the spring and summer, when they can flower quite spectacularly.
THE DETECTIVES
DI Hillary Greene
An attractive woman in her forties, Hillary Greene is a police officer of many years’ experience, and came up through the ranks. Consequently, she knows how the system works, and is fiercely loyal to the force without being blinkered to its faults. She is a long-standing friend of her immediate superior officer, ‘Mellow’ Mallow and enjoys a rather enigmatic relationship with the steely Superintendent Marcus Donleavy. Popular with the rank and file for her no-nonsense attitude and competence.
DCI Philip ‘Mellow’ Mallow
Mel appreciates Hillary’s first-rate ability to solve her cases, and isn’t happy about her harassment by the officers from York. Known for his sartorial elegance and laid-back manners, he has a sharp mind, and an eye for the ladies. A good friend and ally for Hillary in her recent tribulations, he’s determined to keep his best investigator focused on the problems at hand.
PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A REVISED EDITION OF A BOOK FIRST PUBLISHED AS “BESIDE A NARROW STREAM.”
DI HILLARY GREENE SERIES
BOOK 1: MURDER ON THE OXFORD CANAL
BOOK 2: MURDER AT THE UNIVERSITY
BOOK 3: MURDER OF THE BRIDE
BOOK 4: MURDER IN THE VILLAGE
BOOK 5: MURDER IN THE FAMILY
BOOK 6: MURDER AT HOME
BOOK 7: MURDER IN THE MEADOW
Books 8-11 coming soon!
Review:
So this is the seventh in the Hillary Greene series. I have to admit apart from this one I’ve only read the first book in the series Murder on the Oxford Canal (you can read my review here.), I thought I would have missed a good chunk of the storyline but I was pleasantly surprised that I hadn’t really and was able to pick up the story straight away.
The book opens with two young boys finding the body of known Lothario and artist Wayne Sutton in a meadow. There’s no shortage of suspects, including clingy lovers, rival artists and jealous husbands. To complicate matters Hillary has a new DS, Gemma Fordham, who on paper seems perfect but she can sense the DS has motive for moving to her team.
Hillary is still as feisty as ever. She’s still living on a canal boat but is now in a relationship with Mike Regis, a fellow officer in the Vice squad but her boss DCI Danvers also has an eye on her. Gemma Fordham makes an interesting addition to Hillary’s team, weirdly I like her even though she’s seems a bit dodgy.
This was a really enjoyable read. Well written, fast paced with lots of suspects and a good dollop of red herrings.
I am definitely going to have to pick up the books I have missed.
Rating: 4/5
Author Bio:
Faith Martin has been writing for over 25 years, in four genres and under four different pen
names. She was born in Oxford and sets most of her crime novels within sight of the city of dreaming spires. A real nature lover and afficionado of the countryside, descriptions of wildlife and native flora often find their way into her manuscripts. Right now, JOFFE BOOKS are re-issuing the first eleven of the DI Hillary Greene novels in new updated editions! And the first of these, MURDER ON THE OXFORD CANAL. MURDER AT THE UNIVERSITY, MURDER OF THE BRIDE, MURDER IN THE VILLAGE, MURDER IN THE FAMILY and MURDER AT HOME are available now. Books 8-11 coming soon!
Her romance novels, written under the name of Maxine Barry, are now available from Corazon Books. IMPOSTERS In PARADISE, and HEART OF FIRE are both out, and others will very quickly become available in the future.
Her first foray into writing ‘spooky’ crime, (and written under the pen name of Jessie Daniels) comes out in November 2017. THE LAVENDER LADY CASEFILE is published by Robert Hale, an imprint of Crowood Press.
As Joyce Cato, she writes more classically-inspired ‘proper’ whodunits. So if you like an amateur sleuth, plenty of clues and red herrings, plus a baffling murder mystery to solve, these are the books for you.
On The Shelf Reviews 
Great review! This one sounds really good. I keep hearing good things about this series. Hopefully I’ll get a chance to read it someday!
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Thank you!
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