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Agatha Raisin and the Busy Body
- Agatha Raisin, Book 21
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Series: Agatha Raisin Mysteries, Book 21
- Length: 6 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, Thriller & Suspense
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Agatha Raisin: As the Pig Turns
- Agatha Raisin, Book 22
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Winter Parva, a traditional Cotswolds village next door to Carsely, has decided to throw a celebratory hog roast to mark the beginning of the winter holiday festivities and Agatha Raisin has arrived with friend and rival in the sleuthing business, Toni, to enjoy the merriment. But as the spit pig is carried towards the bed of fiery charcoal Agatha - and the rest of the village - realise that things aren’t as they seem....
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excellent story
- By Anonymous User on 10-05-2019
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Agatha Raisin: Hiss and Hers
- Agatha Raisin, Book 23
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Agatha has fallen in love - again. This time it's the local gardener, George Marston, she has her eye on. But competition for his attention abounds. With her shameless determination Agatha will do anything to get her man - including footing the bill for a charity ball in town just for the chance to dance with him.
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loved it
- By Anonymous User on 17-02-2018
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Agatha Raisin: There Goes the Bride
- Agatha Raisin, Book 20
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Agatha Raisin's ex-husband James has become engaged to a beautiful young woman and Agatha has been kindly invited to the wedding. This is a difficult pill to swallow, so to take her mind off it Agatha begins a flirtation with Sylvan, a Frenchman she met at James's engagement party. She also decides to holiday in Istanbul, where unfortunately she bumps into James and his fiancée, not once but twice - convincing him she is stalking them.
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Agatha Raisin and the Blood of an Englishman
- Agatha Raisin Series, Book 25
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Even though Agatha Raisin loathes Christmas panto, her friend, Mrs Bloxby, the vicar's wife, has persuaded her to support the local am dram society in their festive offering. Stifling a yawn at the production of Babes in the Wood, Agatha watches the baker playing an ogre strut and threaten onstage until a trapdoor opens, followed by a scream and silence! Surely this wasn't the way the scene was rehearsed. When it turns out the local baker had been murdered most horribly, Agatha puts her team of detectives on the case.
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Perfect holiday reading
- By Eosaphrodite on 30-03-2016
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Agatha Raisin and Kissing Christmas Goodbye
- Agatha Raisin, Book 18
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Penelope Keith - who starred as Agatha Raisin in the popular BBC Radio 4 series - reads M.C. Beaton’s entertaining murder mystery. During the grey days of early December, Agatha is obsessed by only two things – Christmas, and her ex, James Lacey. Although she says she feels nothing for James now, she’s sure that planning the perfect Dickensian Christmas for all her friends will somehow reanimate her love. Even the murder of Mrs Tamworthy , does little to distract Agatha.
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Different
- By Anonymous User on 23-12-2019
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Agatha Raisin: Something Borrowed, Someone Dead
- Agatha Raisin, Book 24
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Penelope Keith - who starred as Agatha Raisin in the popular BBC Radio 4 series - reads M. C. Beaton's entertaining murder mystery. Incomer Gloria French is at first welcomed in the Cotswold village of Piddlebury. She seems like a do-gooder par excellence, raising funds for the church and caring for the elderly. But she has a bad habit of borrowing things and not giving them back, so when she is discovered dead, poisoned by a bottle of elderberry wine, folk in the village don't mourn her passing too intently.
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Agatha Raisin: As the Pig Turns
- Agatha Raisin, Book 22
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Winter Parva, a traditional Cotswolds village next door to Carsely, has decided to throw a celebratory hog roast to mark the beginning of the winter holiday festivities and Agatha Raisin has arrived with friend and rival in the sleuthing business, Toni, to enjoy the merriment. But as the spit pig is carried towards the bed of fiery charcoal Agatha - and the rest of the village - realise that things aren’t as they seem....
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excellent story
- By Anonymous User on 10-05-2019
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Agatha Raisin: Hiss and Hers
- Agatha Raisin, Book 23
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Agatha has fallen in love - again. This time it's the local gardener, George Marston, she has her eye on. But competition for his attention abounds. With her shameless determination Agatha will do anything to get her man - including footing the bill for a charity ball in town just for the chance to dance with him.
-
-
loved it
- By Anonymous User on 17-02-2018
-
Agatha Raisin: There Goes the Bride
- Agatha Raisin, Book 20
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Agatha Raisin's ex-husband James has become engaged to a beautiful young woman and Agatha has been kindly invited to the wedding. This is a difficult pill to swallow, so to take her mind off it Agatha begins a flirtation with Sylvan, a Frenchman she met at James's engagement party. She also decides to holiday in Istanbul, where unfortunately she bumps into James and his fiancée, not once but twice - convincing him she is stalking them.
-
Agatha Raisin and the Blood of an Englishman
- Agatha Raisin Series, Book 25
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
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Performance
-
Story
Even though Agatha Raisin loathes Christmas panto, her friend, Mrs Bloxby, the vicar's wife, has persuaded her to support the local am dram society in their festive offering. Stifling a yawn at the production of Babes in the Wood, Agatha watches the baker playing an ogre strut and threaten onstage until a trapdoor opens, followed by a scream and silence! Surely this wasn't the way the scene was rehearsed. When it turns out the local baker had been murdered most horribly, Agatha puts her team of detectives on the case.
-
-
Perfect holiday reading
- By Eosaphrodite on 30-03-2016
-
Agatha Raisin and Kissing Christmas Goodbye
- Agatha Raisin, Book 18
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Penelope Keith - who starred as Agatha Raisin in the popular BBC Radio 4 series - reads M.C. Beaton’s entertaining murder mystery. During the grey days of early December, Agatha is obsessed by only two things – Christmas, and her ex, James Lacey. Although she says she feels nothing for James now, she’s sure that planning the perfect Dickensian Christmas for all her friends will somehow reanimate her love. Even the murder of Mrs Tamworthy , does little to distract Agatha.
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Different
- By Anonymous User on 23-12-2019
-
Agatha Raisin: Something Borrowed, Someone Dead
- Agatha Raisin, Book 24
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Penelope Keith - who starred as Agatha Raisin in the popular BBC Radio 4 series - reads M. C. Beaton's entertaining murder mystery. Incomer Gloria French is at first welcomed in the Cotswold village of Piddlebury. She seems like a do-gooder par excellence, raising funds for the church and caring for the elderly. But she has a bad habit of borrowing things and not giving them back, so when she is discovered dead, poisoned by a bottle of elderberry wine, folk in the village don't mourn her passing too intently.
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Agatha Raisin and a Spoonful of Poison
- Agatha Raisin, Book 19
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Agatha Raisin's detective agency has become so successful that she decides to take time off for rest and relaxation. But as soon as she does, she remembers that when she does have time on her hands, she doesn't know what to do with it. So it doesn't take much for the vicar of a nearby village to persuade her to help publicise the church fete - especially when the event organiser, George Selby, turns out to be a handsome widower.
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Agatha Raisin and the Perfect Paragon
- Agatha Raisin, Book 16
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs
- Unabridged
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Story
After being nearly killed by both a hired hit man and her former secretary, Agatha Raisin could use some low-key cases. So when Robert Smedley walks through the door of her detective agency, determined to prove that his wife is cheating on him, Raisin Investigations immediately offers to help. Unfortunately for Agatha, Mabel Smedley appears to be the perfect wife: young, pretty and a regular volunteer at church.
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Aggie Rules
- By Alison Lewis on 24-08-2021
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Agatha Raisin and Love, Lies and Liquor
- Agatha Raisin, Book 17
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Story
Sea, sand ... and the slammer for Agatha! Agatha Raisin thinks she's in for a treat when her ex-husband, James Lacey, invites her on holiday, but - horrors! - his idea of an idyllic break is the small, run-down resort of Burryhill-on-Sea. And from there on, things go from bad to worse. So when a fellow guest in their hotel is found murdered, Agatha herself is chief suspect - and has to solve this case from a locked police cell!
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Agatha Raisin: Dishing the Dirt
- Agatha Raisin Series, Book 26
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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A therapist moved into the village of Carsely, and Agatha Raisin hated her. Not only was this therapist, Jill Davent, romancing Agatha's ex-husband, but she had dug up details of Agatha's slum background. Added to that, Jill was counselling a woman called Gwen Simple from Winter Parva, and Agatha firmly believed Gwen to have assisted her son in some grisly murders, although has no proof she had done so.
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Fun and enjoyable
- By Eosaphrodite on 04-04-2016
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Agatha Raisin and the Dead Ringer
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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The team of bells at St. Ethelred church is the pride and glory of the idyllic Cotswolds village of Thirk Magna, together with the most dedicated bell ringers in the whole of England: the twins Mavis and Millicent Dupin. As the village gets ready for the Bishop's visit, the twins get overly excited at the prospect of ringing the special peal of bells created for the occasion and start bullying the other bell ringers, forcing them to rehearse and rehearse...so much so that Joseph Kennell, a retired lawyer, yells at the sisters that he 'felt like killing them'!
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A great disappointment
- By Robert Head on 15-12-2021
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Agatha Raisin and the Day the Floods Came
- Agatha Raisin, Book 12
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Abandoned by new husband James, Agatha Raisin hops on a plane to the South Pacific in the hope that an idyllic holiday will bring some consolation. There, she befriends a honeymooning couple, but tragically, the young bride is accidentally drowned. Returning home to the Cotswolds, Agatha finds herself involved in a strangely similar situation: a woman, dressed in a wedding gown, is found floating in the river. The police say suicide, but Agatha, spurred on by bitter reflections on the married state, sets out to prove them wrong.
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excellent book
- By Anonymous User on 25-01-2020
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Agatha Raisin: Beating About the Bush
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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When private detective Agatha Raisin comes across a severed leg in a roadside hedge, it looks like she is about to become involved in a particularly gruesome murder. Looks, however, can be deceiving, as Agatha discovers when she is employed to investigate a case of industrial espionage at a factory where nothing is quite what it seems. The factory mystery soon turns to murder, and a bad-tempered donkey turns Agatha into a national celebrity, before bringing her ridicule and shame.
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Love love Agatha
- By elizabeth b. on 31-12-2021
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Agatha Raisin and the Deadly Dance
- Agatha Raisin, Book 15
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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An unabridged reading of an Agatha Raisin mystery from M. C. Beaton, read by Penelope Keith. There may be trouble ahead...so will Agatha face the music? Can the feisty Agatha cut it as a private investigator? She soon learns that running her own detective agency in the Cotswolds is not quite like starring in a Raymond Chandler movie. But then walks in wealthy divorcee Catherine Laggat-Brown, and Agatha is given her first real case.
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Love Agatha
- By elizabeth b. on 15-11-2020
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Agatha Raisin: The Witches' Tree
- Agatha Raisin, Book 28
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Cotswolds inhabitants are used to inclement weather, but the night sky is especially foggy as Rory and Molly Devere, the new vicar and his wife, drive home from a dinner party in their village of Sumpton Harcourt. They strain to see the road ahead - and then suddenly brake, screeching to a halt. Right in front of them, aglow in the headlights, a body hangs from a gnarled tree at the edge of town. Margaret Darby, an elderly spinster, has been murdered - and the villagers are bewildered as to who would commit such a crime.
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Disappointing
- By Anonymous User on 06-02-2022
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Agatha Raisin: Pushing Up Daisies
- Agatha Raisin Series, Book 27
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Allotment wars! Lord Bellingham, Carsely's biggest landholder, has enraged locals by saying he is going to sell off their allotments to make way for a new housing development. So when he turns up dead, poisoned by antifreeze, nobody mourns his passing. On another fine summer's day, Agatha visits Carsley's allotments, where everything looks peaceful and perfect: people of all ages digging in the soil and working hard to grow their own fruit and veg.
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Last agatha
- By Gianetta on 26-09-2016
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Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House
- Agatha Raisin, Book 14
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 6 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Reports of a haunted house soon have amateur sleuth Agatha Raisin snooping around, only to discover the victim of the haunting is a universally disliked old biddy on whom someone is playing a practical joke. But then the old lady is murdered, and, for Agatha - Miss Marple with attitude - solving a crime is much more fun than ghostbusting. Very soon she’s up to her usual tricks, involving the villagers, local police, and, naturally, her handsome new neighbour....
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Perferction
- By Anonymous User on 16-12-2020
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Agatha Raisin and the Love from Hell
- Agatha Raisin, Book 11
- By: M. C. Beaton
- Narrated by: Penelope Keith
- Length: 7 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Recently married to James Lacey, Agatha quickly finds out that it's not all 'happy ever after' - before long the newlyweds are living in separate cottages and accusing each other of infidelity. After a fight down the local pub, James vanishes completely, leaving a bloodstain as the only clue to his fate. Naturally, Agatha is Prime Suspect. Determined to clear her name and find her husband, Agatha begins her investigation - and promptly finds a murdered mistress....
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Fabulous
- By Alison Lewis on 19-09-2020
Publisher's Summary
Penelope Keith - who starred as Agatha Raisin in the popular BBC Radio 4 series – reads M. C. Beaton’s eagerly-awaited murder mystery.
Agatha Raisin has never been one for enforced holiday cheer, but her friendly little village of Carsely has always prided itself on its traditional Christmas festivities. However, this year Mr John Sunday, an officer with the Cotswold Health and Safety Board, has chosen Christmas as the time to crack down on what he sees as gross misconduct by everyone. But when Mr Sunday goes too far, he is soon found lying face down in the petunias, very much dead. Agatha is on the case, but with so many people having threatened the life of the victim, it’s hard to know where to start....
What listeners say about Agatha Raisin and the Busy Body
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
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Performance
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- Paulette Shewfelt
- 28-12-2011
Beaton cannot be beat!
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Agatha is perfect. The story is fun. Beaton is a genius. Technically you can start anywhere in the series and it is blast. One Agatha Raison book and you will automatically be searching for the rest. This narrator is good. She does a very good job helping the listener recognise the various characters. Highly recommened.
What other book might you compare Agatha Raisin and the Busy Body to and why?
The only one whol comes close is the Maggody series by Joan Hess, and only the earliest ones.
What about Penelope Keith’s performance did you like?
She is engaging, elloquent and professional.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
There is no way to stop a rollercoaster on an incline and who wants to? Pressing pause is a tough decision!
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- Ursula
- 12-12-2011
A series of short stories not a novel.
I was a little disappointed to discover that it was a short story initially. However it is a good set of short stories. Well-written.
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- Ernest
- 04-01-2011
Agatha Raisin and the Busy Body
This book was a good choice for me, for straight after the holiday. I enjoyed the fast moving story that had lots of different characters, I found them easy to visualise. The descriptions were good, and not 'too wordy' the story had a few twists and turns too. Everything that M C Beaton writes is worth reading, in my opinion. Penelope Keith is superb as a narrator of this genre. Recommended!
7 people found this helpful
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Overall

- Debra
- 22-12-2010
Worth the money!
Thoroughly enjoyed the story brilliantly read by Penelope Keith. If you are looking for something more than a straightforward whodunnit but not so grand as a classic, this is a good choice.
5 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 19-02-2020
Ludicrous
I used to enjoy these stories but the authors reactionary attitude makes this book rather tedious , however I am sure members of the Brexit Party will lap it up. Be warned though the final third of the story is simply ridiculous
4 people found this helpful
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- Nicola
- 16-10-2020
No 21 - and still fun
I enjoy this series as a light and easy read - and find it very amusing.
3 people found this helpful
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- Gillian M.
- 27-12-2020
Disappointing!!
I had hoped for a cozy Christmas mystery narrated by a quality actor. The story is disappointing, the narration was skilled - except for the the accents which are are remarkably appalling! I only finished listening to the book as I wanted to find out who had done it. I won't be listening to any more in the series.
2 people found this helpful
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Overall

- laizydaizy
- 08-05-2021
Entertaining
As always it keeps you wanting just a bit more. The narration by Penelope Keith is wonderful and in my mind when listening can just imagine she is agatha
1 person found this helpful
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- Ms Kay-Elizabeth Kent
- 16-08-2020
enjoyable
good story but I find that thee later Agatha Raisin books are marred slightly by the old fashioned phrases and sayings the author gives her young characters, and of course the constant reappearance if the boring James Lacey.
but as always beautiful read.
1 person found this helpful
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- Susan B.
- 16-12-2019
Wonderful Agatha
I love listening to the Agatha Raisin books. Penelope Keith IS Agatha. I enjoyed the whodunnit element of the book, but Agatha’s love life always makes me laugh. Easy listening.
1 person found this helpful
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- Liz Smith
- 10-05-2022
Terrible accents
I’ve listened to a lot of Agatha read by Penelope Keith, they’ve been very entertaining and read nicely … but this one is terrible, I only listened to the first 2 chapters, so I have no idea really if the story is any good. The sample doesn’t give a true picture.
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- blackfoot
- 17-04-2022
Good Yarn
Another hilarious tale of detectives in the Cotswolds. I have enjoyed listening to this very much.
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