The Coniston Case
by Rebecca Tope
on Tour September 2016
Valentine's Day is fast approaching and business at Persimmon 'Simmy' Brown's flower shop is booming. But when Simmy fulfills a string of anonymous delivery orders, she is startled to realize that each contains a secretly menacing message for the recipients. When one of the people who receives a bouquet disappears, it seems that her worst fears have been confirmed.
As if that isn't enough, Simmy's friend Kathy turns up, on the trail of her wayward daughter Joanna, who she fears has grown too close to one of her university tutors. When Kathy attempts to reason with her daughter she finds that Joanna's older lover may be even more dangerous than she had imagined. With both Kathy and Joanna in peril, Simmy and her friends find themselves caught up in a web of deception, blackmail and murder…
I truly do enjoy reading cozy mysteries. They are always so much fun to read, so easy going while still having to pay attention to solve the mystery. And I always enjoy it when the sleuth has such a mundane job as (in this case) owning a flower shop and then somehow getting sucked into trying to solve a murder.Book Details:
Genre: Cozy Mystery & Detective Published by: Harper Collins/Witness Impulse Publication Date: August 12, 2016 Number of Pages: 384 ISBN: 9780062567420 Series: Lake District Mysteries #2 Purchase The Coniston Case on Amazon & Barnes & Noble. Or Learn More at Goodreads.
I really liked Ben, the sixth former who hangs out in the flowershop during his lunch breaks, being all into the mystery. Oh and he is sure climate change isn't real and will try to convince you of his opinion on the matter. All the characters are very well developed and have their own quirky ways, but Ben stole show for me.
The plot wasn't all that but that is all forgotten with the scenery, who doesn't love that scenery? Rebecca Tope did a great job capturing it and now I want to visit. I do love the English countryside just so you know.
My rating: 3/5
Read an excerpt:
‘It’s not the same,’ Melanie argued. ‘She can do some shopping when she comes here. Nobody wants to shop in Coniston, do they? Making a delivery over there really is a waste of time and petrol. And you’re not supposed to do too much driving, remember.’ Melanie’s protectiveness had become a habit since Simmy had suffered an injury, shortly before Christmas, and been forbidden to drive until early in February. She had used crutches throughout most of January. Damage to her head had necessitated a shaven area, which prompted her to have a very short all-over haircut that still felt strange.
‘Well it’s too late now. I just hope it doesn’t go mad tomorrow or I’ll be turning orders away. You know you’ll be doing all the local ones, don’t you?’ ‘Yeah, yeah. My feet’ll be worn away to nothing by the time I’ve done them all.’ There had been a degree of discord about how Melanie might best make the deliveries of flowers in the streets of Windermere and Bowness. Her battered car was deemed by Simmy to be bad for the image of the business, but she had compromised slightly, and agreed that it could be left full of flowers in the Bowness car park, and again at the northern end of Windermere, for increased efficiency. She had also, as a major concession, permitted Melanie to use the van while she herself had been unable to drive. As a resident of an area renowned for walking, the girl was almost a freak in her reluctance to use her own legs as a means of transport.
‘Well it’s too late now. I just hope it doesn’t go mad tomorrow or I’ll be turning orders away. You know you’ll be doing all the local ones, don’t you?’ ‘Yeah, yeah. My feet’ll be worn away to nothing by the time I’ve done them all.’ There had been a degree of discord about how Melanie might best make the deliveries of flowers in the streets of Windermere and Bowness. Her battered car was deemed by Simmy to be bad for the image of the business, but she had compromised slightly, and agreed that it could be left full of flowers in the Bowness car park, and again at the northern end of Windermere, for increased efficiency. She had also, as a major concession, permitted Melanie to use the van while she herself had been unable to drive. As a resident of an area renowned for walking, the girl was almost a freak in her reluctance to use her own legs as a means of transport.
I read this is thought it was a suspenseful cozy.
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