Review: Mystery at Maplemead Castle by Kitty French

I absolutely love, love, love this series. I'm at that point where I wish Kitty French was a new-to-me author, and had written ten books in this series already, and I could read them all back-to-back. Why do I love them so much? First, it's the characters. I adore them. I want to go ghostbusting with them. I want hot reporter Fletcher Gunn to shadow my every move (don't tell my husband) and Marina to bring me cakes fresh from Nonna's kitchen. I wouldn't even mind giving Leo Dark advice on unrequited love - although it would be very tempting to tell him to get his hair cut and to ditch the cloak.

Confused? Let me explain. At the grand old age of 27, Melody 'I see dead people' Bittersweet has decided to stop fighting the unique talent which is persistently getting her fired/losing her potential boyfriends, and has set up The Girls' Ghostbusting Agency. Along for the ride are best friend Marina, the terrifyingly efficient Glenda, and naive young Artie, who has just enough sense to dig the girls out of trouble if they need it. Each book has a haunting and it's Melody's job to find out what is keeping the ghost or ghosts from moving on. In this story Maplemead Castle is haunted by circus folk - two trapeze artists and their ringmaster - doomed to repeat the events that led to their deaths every single night. And also haunted by something else I won't mention, because you'll have far more fun reading that scene without a spoiler!

This series would appeal to fans of romantic comedies, mysteries and the kind of ghost stories that don't take themselves too seriously. Imagine a cross between Scooby Doo and the Shopaholic series - only with ghosts instead of designer handbags. You don't have to read this series in order, but you would be missing a treat if you didn't. Thoroughly recommended! One of my favourite books this year.


Thank you to Kitty French, Bookouture and Netgalley for my copy of this book, which I received in exchange for an honest review. I chose it myself, no one asked me to review it and I don't know the author.

Related Reviews:

Melody Bittersweet and Girls Ghostbusting Agency by Kitty French

(now published as The Skeletons at Scarborough House)

Review: Another Little Christmas Murder by Lorna Nicoll Morgan

I was attracted to this book because of the cover and the title*, which goes to show just how shallow I am! At the time, the ebook version was a little bit expensive (it has since come down in price) so I borrowed a copy from the library. Because I was so keen to start reading it, I also downloaded a sample to my Kindle, and was initially disappointed because the first six pages were a long description of the heroine driving through snowy Yorkshire. I thought I'd made a horrible mistake! But when my library copy arrived I gave it another go, and became completely hooked!

The story is a typical cosy murder mystery. It was written in 1947 and it would be easy to make comparisons with Agatha Christie, but their writing styles are completely different. (Christie's  stories are more fast-paced, with fiendishly clever plots). But I liked the inter-action between Morgan's characters and they were different to the usual retired colonel/vicar/spinster types. For a start, our heroine (Dilys) is a commercial traveller - a partner in a firm of manufacturing chemists. Determined to reach her next stop by nightfall, she drives through the hills of Yorkshire and gets stuck in a snowstorm. She is quite pragmatic about it (something I loved about this character!) but ends up being rescued by Inigo Brown, who is on his way to stay with his uncle at Wintry Wold. Such is the snowstorm, they are soon joined by many others, much to the indignation of Inigo's new, young, and very glamorous Aunt Theresa.

Although the story starts off a bit waffly, once it gets going there is lots of witty dialogue, particularly between Dilys and Inigo, and even a hint of a romance. The potential suspects are introduced gradually, so the reader can get a real sense of who is who, and Dilys is a very likeable, almost modern heroine. I was well on the way to giving the book 5 stars, but towards the end it became a bit farce-like, with lots of 'mysterious' goings-on in the middle of the night, the heroine stalking the corridors with a poker, and cars being sabotaged. Although one strand of the mystery was easy to guess at, the identity of the murderer took me completely by surprise. 

If you love vintage murder mysteries, you will enjoy Another Little Christmas Murder, and I would have loved to have seen Dilys in more stories. 

*One niggle: there was no mention of Christmas until the epilogue, when one character mentions going to 'spend Christmas' with their family!

Review: Hallowe'en Party (Poirot) by Agatha Christie

I did read all of Agatha Christie's novels when I was a teenager, including this one, and I watched the ITV dramatisation a few years back, but I still couldn't remember who the villain was, so I decided to read this one again as part of my Halloween Reads.

This is a Poirot story, one of the later ones - written and set in the late 1960s - a fact I hadn't appreciated until I reached the line: 'The younger one was wearing a rose-coloured velvet coat, mauve trousers and a kind of frilled shirting.' Helping Poirot solve the mystery is his friend Ariadne Oliver, a crime writer - and one of my favourite Christie characters - I wish she'd had a series of her own!

The story starts with Ariadne going to stay with a new friend, Judith Butler, whom she met on a Greek cruise. Judith is a widow with a young daughter, Miranda. Also living in the village is the incredibly bossy Rowena Drake, who is organising a Halloween party for all the children. Unfortunately (or fortunately, as it turns out) Miranda is unable to attend because she is ill, but Ariadne still goes along to help. The descriptions of the various games brought back a few memories of the Halloween parties I went to as a child! I'd never liked apple bobbling - with good reason, as it turns out, because during this party thirteen-year-old Joyce is murdered by having her head shoved into the apple bobbing bucket. Why Joyce? Well, earlier she had been trying to impress Ariadne by telling her how she had once witnessed a murder, although 'I didn't know it was a murder when I saw it.' Of course, no one believes Joyce, because she is known for being a liar...

The story is mostly told from the point of view of Ariadne and Poirot. Once the murder has taken place, each chapter concentrates on a different suspect, very much like the game of Cluedo. You have to concentrate hard to remember what each person has said and pick out the clues from the red herrings - a style of crime fiction I've never much cared for, because it can feel a bit repetitive.

I worked out the villain without too much effort, although there were a few clever twists I didn't see coming! And I did enjoy the story - I'd forgotten how funny Christie could be - but I don't think I'll be rushing to re-read any more.

Review: Melody Bittersweet and The Girls' Ghostbusting Agency by Kitty French

I absolutely loved this book! It took a while for me to get into it, as I'd just read several 'traditional' Victorian ghost stories back-to-back, and this is a very bouncy, fast-paced romantic comedy, so it was a bit of a shock to the system - but in a good way!

At the grand old age of 27, Melody 'I see dead people' Bittersweet decides to stop fighting the unique talent which is persistently getting her fired/losing her potential boyfriends, and sets up The Girls' Ghostbusting Agency. Along for the ride are best friend Marina, the terrifyingly efficient Glenda, and young Artie, who is soon completely out of his depth: 'I've never been locked in a cellar before. This is the best job I've ever had.' 

Unfortunately Melody is not the only psychic in the village. The deliciously gothic Leo Dark, complete with swirling cloak and a legion of fans known as 'Darklings', is the ex who trampled over her heart in his rush to get his own TV show. Now Melody and Leo are in direct competition trying to help the three Scarborough brothers move on to the other side. All they have to do is solve the mystery of who murdered cricket-loving Douglas way back in 1910, allowing the spooky old family mansion to be sold for development. Simple. Or maybe not.

Why did I enjoy this story so much? Well, it was a lot of fun and I loved the characters and the way they interacted with each other, particularly poor put-upon Artie. There is also a bit of a love interest with two 'heroes' for Melody to choose from, the aforementioned Leo, who might not be quite as ruthless as he appears, and Melody's Nemesis, journalist Fletcher Gunn, who is out to prove both Melody and Leo are a couple of con-artists. 

If you're the kind of person who loves Scooby Doo and Ghostbusters you will love this, and you'll also enjoy spotting all the references to classic British and American TV shows. If you want your romantic comedy to have a little bit more edge, you will adore the mystery and the spooky bits, but if you're expecting to die of fright, it's not going to happen. You might die of laughing though.