Bea Abbot, who was previously featured in several light English mysteries, is visiting her friend Sir Julian Marston-Lang at Marston Hall outside London. What is intended as a relaxing break with Sir Julian, his wife Polly and their small child Pip, turns into serious trouble over FALSE GOLD.
Some local troublemaking youths are trespassing on the extensive grounds with metal detectors, looking for rumoured buried treasure. Sir Julian agrees that some church plates or family goods could have been buried over the centuries, but he’s not hopeful. He and Polly have recently come to the inheritance and he is redeveloping to modernise while preserving character. A predecessor left a derelict amusement park on the grounds; he’s still deciding on its future, but the new estate manager, Major Ian Charpentier, encourages Sir Julian to sell off housing, or even the whole estate. Then the vandals go too far and the night security guard, Pete, is found dead.
Sir Julian doesn’t agree that this body is really Pete. Where are Pete’s smartphone and his border collie, Beauty? Pete has a wife shortly about to give birth, and Bea is required to aid her after the shocking news is delivered. The whole village gets into the story, as any work at the hall affects everyone. A wide variety of people live here nowadays, but the longtime residents naturally resent rich ‘incomers’ buying up housing for holiday cottages.
I love Bruno the German shepherd dog, that guards Polly who is expecting her second child. Oddly, Polly claims to have some pepper spray, when this is illegal in Britain, and possession of this offensive weapon could get her jailed. I think Bruno does a good enough job. Bea runs a London domestic agency, Abbot Agency – which means she finds staff such as nannies and housekeepers. It’s extremely noticeable that here money is no object when it comes to hiring men such as security guards, builders and estate managers. Yet, few women are hired to assist Polly – Bea is the one who pushes for a nanny when Polly is clearly unwell.
Village mysteries show up divisions, between rich and poor, new and old, this village and that one. FALSE GOLD is the eighteenth Abbot Agency mystery by Veronica Heley. I’d be keen to visit the earlier trip to Marston Hall, which appears to have been extremely lively. This is an enjoyable read with perhaps too many names for a newcomer to follow, but otherwise, it reads fine as a standalone.
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