"blends a police procedural with an amateur sleuth cozy"
Lois Meade loves her family though her teenage daughter is
driving her crazy. She supplements the income brought
in by her electrician husband by cleaning homes in the
nearby village of Long Farnden. She especially takes pride
in keeping her mouth shut, as she knows plenty about her
clients. One of Lois' customers Gloria Hathaway sits on the parish
council. During a session, Gloria went to make tea, but
soon is found strangled to death. PC Keith Simpson needs
help to solve the homicides as Gloria made many enemies so
that the motives are abundant. He asks Gloria to do some
sleuthing when she cleans the homes of the residents of
Long Farnden. Though it goes against her nature to
gossip, Gloria agrees to snoop. Soon she finds a
blackmailer's dream, though she would never use the
information for personal gain, as she uncovers the dark
secrets of some of the village's leading citizens. This
shocks her as she had no idea what was going in this quiet
village. MURDER ON MONDAY is the ideal village mystery due a strong
blending of a police procedural with an amateur sleuth cozy
that fans of both sub-genres will appreciate. The story
line feels authentic mostly because Gloria feels more like
a real person than a character and the secondary cast
provides the village, family, and mystery with depth. Ann
Purser will gain plenty of fans for this tale and readers
will look forward to her future "day of the week" novels. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted September 30, 2003
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