Mrs Pargeter's Past: 10 (A Mrs Pargeter Mystery)

A gambler on the run. A widow with deep pockets. A pair of criminal brothers with a secret agenda. The new instalment of the quirky, inventive and charming mystery series featuring widow Mrs Pargeter - whose late husband was absolutely NOT one of the most notorious villains in Essex (the very idea).

Mrs Pargeter's friends know two important details about her marriage to her late husband. First, that it was blissfully happy. And second, that Mr Pargeter was not a man to bring his work home with him. So, while the chance of her ever being asked by the police what he did for a living is, naturally, remote, Mrs Pargeter would be able to reply, in all honesty, that she doesn't know.

What she does know is that Mr Pargeter's former associates are all respectable members of society, and if they were ever criminals, they are now 100% reformed. So when she learns that Short Head Shimmings, her late husband's former accountant, has fallen on hard times, she springs into action, chequebook at the ready.

But Short Head has borrowed from the wrong people, and the infamous Batinga Brothers aren't out for his money - they're out for blood. The only way to save Short Head is to dismantle their criminal empire. But how can the highly law-abiding Mrs Pargeter, whose only weapons are her charm, her quick wits and her little black book of Mr Pargeter's contacts, hope to do such an impossible thing?

Cosy mystery-meets-crime caper in this witty, light-hearted and terribly British novel from CWA Diamond Dagger-winner Simon Brett, which is perfect for fans of Richard Osman, Janice Hallett and M.C. Beaton.