Assigned to St. Clement’s Church in an inner-city borough just outside Hackney in London, Reverend Annabelle Dixon brings an enthusiasm and drive to her clerical position that baffles her mentor, Father John, but which soon gains her fans and admiration. Annabelle is not your typical vicar, but her strengths prove to serve her, and those around her, very well.
When Annabelle plans to meet her … Annabelle plans to meet her longtime friend, Sister Mary, a Catholic nun visiting from West Africa, at a local café, little does she know that she will soon find herself embroiled in a mystery of deadly design. Their meeting place is awash with horror, with Sister Mary standing in the middle, shaking, her hand over her mouth and a dead woman at her feet.
Armed only with a note, a disappearing dart, vague hints, and a love of cake, this quick-thinking, quick-footed holy woman must gather the clues, pacify a detective, and find the real perpetrator before both she and her friend wind up in jail.
Part Sherlock, part Father Dowling, Annabelle is a new kind of detective – one who sees the truth in the most unlikely places. If you love solving puzzles, then this suspense-filled, endearing, cozy mystery is just for you. Enjoy following our amateur sleuth as she careers around London. It will have you guessing until the very end!
Included in this book are recipes for:
– Cherishable Cherry Blossom Cupcakes
– Cherubic Chocolate Caramel Bars
– Jubilicious Jam Turnovers
– Teresa’s Surprise Cake
Interview with the Author of the Series
Q – So, what makes the Reverend Annabelle Dixon series special?
A – Annabelle. When I set out to write these books, I wanted to create a series that featured a heart-warming, smart, sometimes ditzy, ultimately good protagonist that we all undisputedly adore. It is Annabelle – her humanity, her empathy, her big heart – who makes the series so special. With her sometimes partner, sometimes antagonist, Inspector Mike Nicholls, they create some fun and drama as the small town mysteries unfold with humor and intrigue.
If you enjoy the TV series’, The Vicar of Dibley, Miranda, or Midsomer Murders, I think you will enjoy the Reverend Annabelle cozy mysteries.
Q – In what order should I read the books?
A – The Reverend Annabelle Dixon cozy mysteries can be read, and enjoyed, in any order. The prequel, Death at the Café is set in London and takes place a few years before the rest in the series. All the books are complete mysteries.
If you do want to read them in order, I’d suggest the following sequence:
– Death at the Café (prequel)
– Murder at the Mansion
– Body in the Woods
Q – Why should readers give these books a try?
A – Because the Reverend Annabelle series is a gentle, but colorful romp through the beautiful English countryside in a place that is picturesque and peaceful on the outside but one filled with amoral and snobbish eccentrics with all kinds of vices on the inside.
Annabelle is a fun, uncomplicated character who is soulful, devout, smart, and funny with penchant for cake. Both Jamie and I are English and we feature many English countryside rituals, institutions and customs in these stories.
Ultimately, readers who enjoy gentle pacing with a plot that twists and turns, features much fun, drama, quintessential Britishness, and small town murder all the way to the end will get a kick out of this series. It will make you laugh and you will, I hope, become invested in the characters and be rooting for them to come out on top.
Reverend Annabelle Dixon Book Categories:
– Cozy Mysteries
– Mystery Series
– British Detectives
– Small Town Mysteries
– Humorous Cozy Mysteries
– Traditional British
– International Mystery and Crimemore
Received this free for a review. I enjoy Annabelle mysteries and this one did not disappoint me. The characters catch your attention and don’t let go.
This was a fun and quick read. Our protagonist Annabelle is well-developed, a free-spirit, strong, determined, and observant. The other characters are equally as entertaining and complex. The mystery moves at a fast pace and is full of twists and turns to keep the reader engaged.
All thoughts and opinions are my own, and in no way have I been influenced by anyone.
Murder at the Cafe – a review by Rosemary Kenny
A great introduction to the main character, Reverend Annabelle Dixon, this book is a charming, gentle whodunit and a worthy addition to the library of any Cozy Mystery fan.
As the title would suggest a death does indeed take place in the cafe – meeting place of Reverend Annabelle and her old friend Sister Mary who’s on a fund-raising mission from a convent in West Africa. Murder and mayhem ensue instead of the cosy tea and cupcakes that Annabelle anticipated with joy and things go even further awry when another of Sister Mary’s friends is murdered – leaving Mary as the prime suspect!
Can Annabelle clear things up and prove her friend’s innocence? What is the involvement of the mysterious cat’s -eye emeralds?
Was there a link between the two victims? Has Sister Mary’s unfortunate magnetic ability to attract trouble followed her to the Dark Continent and back again, or is she just as much a victim as the dead women?
These and other questions [and some answers], will be revealed in this (free) ‘saintly’ mystery by the talented Alison Golden…put the kettle on and ‘tuck in’ to find out how!
I would strongly recommend this easy-read of a book to fans of Father Brown and the Vicar of Dibley and those who enjoy a gentler-paced mystery to a rip-roaring thriller of one. In my opinion, Reverend Annabelle is of the Miss Marple genre of sleuths, although a more modern Miss by far and I can’t wait to read more in the series… I’m sure you will agree!
Could the nun be a killer?
A simple meeting of Reverand Annabelle is only supposed to with her childhood friend, Sister Mary, for tea turns into murder most foul and the police seem to be eying Sister Mary with suspicion. When Annabelle and Mary are present at a second murder, Annabelle is determined to find the real killer before they find themselves charged with murder.
This is the first book I have read in this cozy series. An Anglican Vicar and a Catholic Nun seemed more like the start of a joke than sleuths but I enjoyed the interaction between Reverand Annabelle and Sister Mary and it was a fun read.
Delightful Cozy Mystery!
This is a fun book with Rev. Dixon at the helm. I always get a kick out of her. An enjoyable book, not heavy, fun characters and tricky plot.
This is a very nice cozy mystery with a reasonable plot, interesting characters, and clear, concise writing and NO TYPOS. I enjoyed it.
This is the first book in this series that I have read. I had read that this book was written after the first book and that is why it is #0.5. This book sets up and gives a little background. For me it was a great way to start this new series. I have already started the next book 1 and loving it. Annabelle reminds me a little of a TV show that I loved The Vicar of Dibley. Can’t wait to to see what Annabelle and Mary get into.
A good story. Reverend Annabelle in her early career makes a wonderful character.
I received a copy of this book as a gift. I am leaving my honest review.
I enjoyed meeting the characters in this book. Annabelle is a wonderful main character full of charm. The story flows well and is a very easy read. I am looking forward to further books in this series.
This was like the female version of Father Brown but in the city. I love reading Cozy Mysteries and look forward to the next book.
A lady Vicar and detective . She seems to always get in the middle of a crime.
She is fun and interesting to follow. Meeting a friend a a café she see a person stare at her and fall down dead. Why and who killed her. Surprise ending.