New York Times bestseller M. C. Beaton’s cranky, crafty Agatha Raisin–now the star of a hit T.V. show–is back on the case again in Beating About the Bush. She won’t let any moss grow under her feet… When private detective Agatha Raisin comes across a severed leg in a roadside hedge, it looks like she is about to become involved in a particularly gruesome murder. Looks, however, can be … particularly gruesome murder. Looks, however, can be deceiving, as Agatha discovers when she is employed to investigate a case of industrial espionage at a factory where nothing is quite what it seems.
The factory mystery soon turns to murder and a bad-tempered donkey turns Agatha into a national celebrity, before bringing her ridicule and shame. To add to her woes, Agatha finds herself grappling with growing feelings for her friend and occasional lover, Sir Charles Fraith. Then, as a possible solution to the factory murder unfolds, her own life is thrown into deadly peril. Will Agatha get her man at last? Or will the killer get her first?
“M. C. Beaton has a foolproof plot for the village mystery.” —The New York Times Book Review
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Loved this latest and possibly final adventure of Agatha Raisin. RIP Marion Chesney aka M. C. Beaton
“Raisin Investigations” has been called in by Morrison’s, a local engineering company, to look into the possibility of industrial espionage at their plant. The R&D division had recently experienced a fire of a suspicious nature that gutted their building and hampered their ability to move forward on developing a revolutionary new automobile battery.
Agatha Raisin and her business partner, Toni Gilmour, take on the case and immediately get the feeling that something is just not right at the place. Their primary contact, Mrs. Dunwiddy, Mr. Morrison’s right hand, is knowledgeable and helpful but is oddly afraid of the plant security detail. And when leaving the facility one afternoon, Agatha and Toni discover a severed leg, wearing a stocking and shoe similar to the ones worn by Mrs. Dunwiddy, tossed into the brushy undergrowth on the side of the road. Although the leg turns out to be a fake, the true meaning behind its being left for Agatha to find is clear: someone wants to discredit Raisin Investigations and frighten Mrs. Dunwiddy. But, rather than scaring anyone away, the incident only spurs Agatha on to greater effort.
Then one evening at the plant’s welcome back reception for the owner’s wife (she’d been at a facility to break an alcohol problem), Agatha finds Mrs. Dunwiddy’s body in the stable yard, apparently bashed in the head by the wife’s pet donkey. But Agatha, charmed by the frightened animal, realizes it didn’t trample the woman, and this is a case of murder.
Agatha is on her game in this adventure. She has all her quirks, but there’s a bit more reflection in her dealings with Toni (who shares many of Agatha’s traits) and Sir Charles Fraith. James Lacey is mentioned a few times, but it felt like Agatha has really come to terms with the real James and not the dream man she’s kept on a pedestal all these years. In addition, there are appearances by other well-known faces such as Mrs. Bloxby, Bill Wong, and Roy, and the introduction of a new nemesis and a new romantic interest as well.
The story is a solid what-the-heck-is-going-on one, and as usual, Agatha susses out some of the details and blunders into the others, making for a delightful book from start to finish. The things that happen to this woman go from funny to harrowing but never stray from being plausible. This is one of Agatha’s better cases. I recommend this series and this installment, and I especially enjoyed the Audible Audio narrated by Penelope Keith. (She’s terrific.)
Have Toni and Agatha finally buried their resentment of each other? A donkey sanctuary actually gets built in a British mystery!
I love all her flawed characters–especially Agatha
Another great Agatha Raisin cozy mystery. Sadly it will be the authors last due to her recent passing. Lots of fun, an easy, breezy read.
Loved this latest and possibly final adventure of Agatha Raisin. RIP Marion Chesney aka M. C. Beaton
BEATING ABOUT THE BUSH by M. C. Beaton
I thoroughly enjoyed this adventure with Agatha Raisin and associates. Agatha may have been upstaged by Wizz-Wazz the brave, loyal, cranky, smelly donkey, but in true Agatha fashion, she makes the best of every opportunity. There are mysteries to solve, and mistreated people (and donkey) to stand up for, and an environment to protect. Electric cars are only as good as their batteries, and a longer-lasting one would increase range of car, but something is amiss. Agatha is called in to project the factory from industrial espionage and sabotage, but all is not as it seems. Agatha, AKA the donkey lady puts all her skills to work in the “Wizz-Wazz is innocent!” campaign. How could she not? The adorable, cranky donkey clearly loves and trusts Agatha — kindred spirits? This is one of my favorites in this series, #30, but you don’t have to read in order.
Beating About the Bush by M.C. Beaton is vintage Agatha Raisin. Agatha is so popular because she is a real mature woman with all the self-doubt and self-recrimination one faces with the aging process firmly ensconced in her life. She has a second career as a private investigator, a successful one supporting several employees but it is not high profile. She is used to being in the spotlight, the worst thing for an investigator trying to be low key. She is happy, but lonely and she thinks about it constantly. Now she discovers her friend and sometime bedmate, Charles, is engaged to a much younger woman. Not good for the ego. What’s a gal to do?
She has been hired by Morrison’s, a high profile and cutting edge battery manufacturer, to look into possible industrial espionage involving a fire in their R&D department, where a new battery was being developed. Such a bunch of odd personalities as Agatha has ever met, including a donkey named Wizz-Wazz. The more they investigate, the odder the situation becomes until Agatha questions whether there is a new battery at all. Then there is a murder. It looks like and accident, though until Agatha looks further. There are many interesting characters and subplots in this story, all woven together to make Agatha Raisin fans very satisfied. I recommend it.
I received a free ARC of Beating About the Bush from Negalley. #netgalley #beatingaboutthebush
Agatha may not be everybody’s cup of tea but her attitude and her relationships with men are what make her stand out from the usual cozy detective story. She and her partner in detecting, Toni, are hired to investigate a case of possible industrial espionage. The company has some security concerns. I was so surprised when Agatha becomes smitten with the company’s donkey, Wizz-Wazz. On top of that, the poor donkey has been accused of homicide. And that’s just the start. Things heat up when Agatha refuses to believe the donkey is in any way responsible for the woman’s death. The police are ready to close the case but Agatha is determined and that has unforeseen consequences.
Reading time spent with Agatha and the rest of the usual supporting cast is always fun. Maybe not always believable but always funny. Sometimes I think I’m reading them more for the characters than the mystery. Now if she could only sort out her relationships with certain men.
It’s amazing that this is #30 in the series and it was nice to see that neither Agatha nor her creator have lost one tiny bit of their spark.