Tuesday, June 5, 2018

Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet

Agatha Raisin and the Vicious Vet
By M. C. Beaton
St. Martin's Press, 1993. 213 pages. Mystery

Agatha Raisin has retired to the Cotswolds after a successful career as a PR executive.  After solving a murder the previous year, Agatha is ready to settle down for a quiet life of trying to attract the eye of her handsome new neighbor James Lacey.  But Agatha finds his interest is only piqued by the murder of a local vet.  Suspicious of the circumstances of the vet's death herself, she decides to team up with James to investigate, and if a little love blossoms between them as a result, what can be the harm?

This second book in the Agatha Raisin series is a solid mystery, but the real draw of the series is Agatha herself.  Agatha is a strong heroine who has a deeply vulnerable side that she tries to hide from others, and as such I find her very relatable.  Readers looking for strong, capable characters in a cozy mystery would do well to check out this series.

BHG