Book Review: The Rhyme of the Magpie by Marty Wingate


Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this ebook, free of charge,from Random House, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it



The Rhyme of the Magpie cover


Synopsis:


This high-flying new Birds of a Feather mystery series from Marty Wingate begins as a British woman gets caught up in a dangerous plot when her celebrity father disappears.

With her personal life in disarray, Julia Lanchester feels she has no option but to quit her job on her father’s hit BBC Two nature show, A Bird in the Hand. Accepting a tourist management position in Smeaton-under-Lyme, a quaint village in the English countryside, Julia throws herself into her new life, delighting sightseers (and a local member of the gentry) with tales of ancient Romans and pillaging Vikings.
But the past is front and center when her father, Rupert, tracks her down in a moment of desperation. Julia refuses to hear him out; his quick remarriage after her mother’s death was one of the reasons Julia flew the coop. But later she gets a distressed call from her new stepmum: Rupert has gone missing. Julia decides to investigate—she owes him that much, at least—and her father’s new assistant, the infuriatingly dapper Michael Sedgwick, offers to help. Little does the unlikely pair realize that awaiting them is a tightly woven nest of lies and murder.



Review:

This was a fun quick mystery read! I had totally forgotten the old English Magpie rhyme, and it was fun to read a mystery based on it. Julia is an every woman character- women can relate to her wanting to get away from everything and have space, and attempt something new with her life. This is a tidy little mystery, with shades of Agatha Christie in it, that will keep you guessing until the last couple of chapters. Being a fan of Marty's Potting Shed mysteries (I'll be reviewing the latest book in the series, Between a Rock and a Hard Place,  later this Summer). and gardening books, this was a fun change of pace, switching to birds. You may end of learning a whole lot about birds while reading this book. this is the perfect light read for the beach or pool!


About the Author:

Marty is a member of the Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime, as well as the Royal Horticultural Society and the Garden Writers Association. She leads small-group garden tours to European destinations including England, Scotland, Ireland, France, and on North American journeys. Marty doesn't believe that the thin veneer of tourism - successive one-night stops in a series of hotels - can ever replace getting to know the people, history and culture of a region, and so, when arranging her tours, she always includes time for a cup of tea, a pint of beer, or a glass of wine. Connect with Marty on Facebook or on her website: martywingate.com.

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