Have the smugglers made a grave mistake?Customs & Excise are tracking a gang of cigar-smugglers who operate on the quiet Kent coast near Plummergen, home to retired art teacher Miss Emily Seeton. Their attempt at a midnight ambush goes wrong, and a man is found dead.As Miss Seeton sketches the most notorious tomb in Plummergen churchyard – the one built for 19th-century smuggler Abraham … the one built for 19th-century smuggler Abraham Voller – she meets a young American tourist. He claims to be a descendant of the Voller family, but is he a truly innocent ancestor-hunter, or do smugglers inherit their trade?
When the school concert includes a performance of Kipling’s “A Smuggler’s Song” it begins to seem that everyone is at it … but we can rely on Miss Seeton to ensure that the police will get their man, and the smugglers’ dreams will go up in smoke!
Serene amidst every kind of skulduggery, this eccentric English spinster steps in where Scotland Yard stumbles, armed with nothing more than her sketchpad and umbrella.
What people are saying about Miss Seeton:
“What a joy Miss Seeton is. Why did I wait so long to read them? Splashy characters, lovely setting, and just plain funny.”
“I’ve become a Miss Ess addict. Great characters that get better with each book. A must for anyone who loves a good British cozy with a twist, and surprising revelations of what a good brollie can do in a pinch.”
“What a great series. This is one of the best in English light reading mysteries.”
“Miss Seeton is a delightful sendup of the amateur sleuth. If your doctor has prescribed laughter as the best medicine, run and buy the entire series as fast as you can.”
Editorial reviews:
“A most beguiling protagonist!” New York Times
“Miss Seeton gets into wild drama with fine touches of farce . . . This is a lovely mixture of the funny and the exciting.” San Francisco Chronicle
“This is not so much black comedy as black-currant comedy . . . You can’t stop reading. Or laughing.” The Sun
“Depth of description and lively characters bring this English village to life.” Publishers Weekly
“Fun to be had with a full cast of endearingly zany villagers . . . and the ever gently intuitive Miss Seeton.” Kirkus Reviews
“Miss Seeton is the most delightfully satisfactory character since Miss Marple.” Ogden Nash
“I think, on the whole, Miss Seeton is the most loveable and entertaining of any of today’s fiction detectives. May she live forever.” London Mystery Selection
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I always enjoy the Miss Seeton stories, great retro seventies crime fun
Smugglers Revisited
The wait is over and another tale from the life and times of Emily Dorothea Seeton, spinster and adopted maiden aunt, brings fresh breath to the 1970s. Lovingly interwoven with not hundreds, but thousands of years of local history (the grudge with Murreystone goes back to the Vikings!), as missing fences and traffic signs, and a ghastly murder, set the story aflight. Yes, you ornithologists, there is a rare bird sighting, as well. You will want to whip out your Rudyard Kipling to read (or reread) the poem inspiring much of the action when titivated by the Mixed Infants’ rendition for a school fundraiser. Hamilton Crane continues to wave the banner of humor (sorry, “humour”) and mystery with panache.
Watch The Wall, Miss Seeton is the twenty-fifth book in the A Miss Seeton Mystery series.
After a twenty year hiatus, Hamilton Crane has returned to bring this enjoyable series back to life. I started this series when Hamilton Crane took over the series from Hampton Charles and was sorry when it ended. But, rejoice, Miss Seeton is back once again ready to prepare sketches to help the police solve the mysteries that they are having a problem.
In this book, the reader gets to spend more time with Superintendent Brinton and his assistant Detective Constable Foxon with the Ashford Police Department and Chief Inspector Harry Furneux in a nearby community just over the county line from Brinton’s county. And of course, Chief Superintendent Delphick and his assistant, Bob Ranger, are around to work with Miss Seeton.
The police departments are looking to solve two different mysteries. One is that thieves are stealing anything metal, street signs, park benches, gates, and fences. They begin calling on scrap metal dealers in hopes that someone will be able to get them some clue as to who the thieves might be. The second is that a dead body is found in a field and police feel that it is the body of a poacher. But they soon believe that the poacher while setting his snares might have interrupted a smuggling operation. Finally, they call on Miss Seeton to see if she can sketch something that will lead them to the guilty party.
This is another wonderful story featuring Miss Seeton and rural England. This series always has a cast of wonderful characters that will have the reader chuckling and shaking their heads. Miss Seeton is still in awe as to how her “scribbles” can lead the police in the right direction. And the police are just as surprised that with so little information given to her she can get them in the right direction. I wish Miss Seeton would have been more involved in the book. On the other hand, it was quite enjoyable to watch the interaction of Brinton and Foxon.
I am looking forward to reading more of these wonderful stories with Miss Seeton.