A Smattering of Reviews
‘A new Simon Brett is an event for mystery fans.’
P.D.JAMES
-o0o-
‘Simon Brett writes stunning detective stories. I would recommend them to anyone.’
JILLY COOPER
-o0o-
‘Murder most enjoyable... An author who never takes himself that seriously, and for whom any fictional murder can frequently form part of the entertainment industry.’
COLIN DEXTER
-o0o-
‘One of the wittiest crime writers around.’
ANTONIA FRASER
-o0o-
‘Simon Brett writes the kind of good whodunits that could have been written fifty years ago... and he has a sly sense of humour.’
THE TIMES
-o0o-
‘Simon Brett is one of British crime’s most assured craftsmen, with idiosyncratic characters proving winning creations... A feast of red herrings, broadly drawn characters, and gentle thrills and spills litter the witty plot. Crime writing just like in the good old days, and perfect entertainment.’
THE GUARDIAN
-o0o-
‘One of the exceptional detective story writers around.’
DAILY TELEGRAPH
-o0o-
‘Few crime writers are so enchantingly gifted... as Simon Brett.’
THE SUNDAY TIMES
-o0o-
‘Like all the best English whodunits, this murder mystery is set in one of those old Home Counties villages where everything looks immaculate on the outside but old secrets have been simmering. Beautifully plotted, with a sharp eye for the social comedy of middle-class, middle England.’
DAILY MAIL
-o0o-
‘Like a little malice in your mysteries? Some cynicism in your cosies? Simon Brett is happy to oblige.’
THE NEW YORK TIMES
-o0o-
‘England’s pre-eminent author of the comic mystery story.’
SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER
-o0o-
‘No one delivers more pure entertainment.’
SAN DIEGO UNION
-o0o-
‘The great British mystery writers, P.D. James, Ruth Rendell, and Brett, have a way of making murder so, well, civilised.’
MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL
Waste of a Life
Declutterer Ellen Curtis has been working to bring order into the life of Cedric Waites, a recluse in his eighties who hasn't left his house or let anyone inside it since his wife died. On one of her regular visits, Ellen finds the old man dead.
Sad but, given his age, perhaps not unexpected. Nothing to get worked up about . . . until the police raise the suspicion that Cedric might have been poisoned! The cause seems be something he ate, and as Ellen cleared away the old man's food containers, she is under suspicion. As is Dodge, who works for Ellen and has unhelpfully done a runner . . .
Meanwhile, a rival declutterer is out to sabotage Ellen's reputable business, her two grown-up children are back home and in crisis, and she has a potential love interest. Ellen's life has taken on a chaotic turn of its own! Can she uncover the killer and bring order back to her own life?