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The latest novel in a series of “cosy murder mysteries”
(This review is based on a free review copy from the publisher via Net Galley UK)
A twice-retired detective sergeant attends, mainly in order to sell meat pies, a music festival site accompanied by her teenage daughter, her mother, her dog, and her fiancé who is a serving detective chief inspector. The festival is well-described and comes across as a cheerful Cornish parody of the larger, grander, much more earnest and hippy-infested, Glastonbury festival in neighbouring Somerset. It is almost certainly meant to and has much gentle fun with this theme.
There then ensues a murder (of course) a drink-spiking, a kidnap and unlawful imprisonment.
There are some (very) faded rock stars, adults bravely taking an enlightened view of teenage soft drug consumption whilst consuming rather more meat pies than enlightened medical opinion would countenance these days, an obvious suspect whom no-one really wants to be guilty and a motive hidden in the mists of time and on the other side of the Atlantic. These are good ingredients for a good story, and this is.
The Cornish Campsite Murder by Fiona Leitch is published by Harpur Collins on the 28th of June, 2024.