M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green: Down the Hatch

M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green: Down the Hatch (USA 2022)

From the Publisher:
Pick your poison...
Private detective Agatha Raisin, having recently taken up power-walking, is striding along a path in Mircester Park when she hears a cry for help. She finds an elderly couple, Mr. and Mrs. Swinburn, in the middle of the green -- with the body of an old man lying at their feet.

The deceased was known as "the Admiral," a gardener notorious for his heavy drinking. Chief Inspector Wilkes writes the death off as an accident caused by the consumption of weed killer stored in a rum bottle. Agatha is not convinced that anyone would mistake weed killer for rum, and her suspicions deepen when she receives an anonymous tip that the Admiral's death was no accident.

Local gossip points to the Swinburns themselves as the killers, spurred by a feud at the club where they and the Admiral were members. Distraught at this accusation, they turn to Agatha to clear their name, and she takes the case -- despite Inspector Wilkes's warnings to stay away. Agatha encounters one suspicious character after another, becoming further enmeshed in the Admiral's own dark and shady past. And when she's run off the road, narrowly escaping with her life, it becomes clear that someone will stop at nothing to prevent Agatha from solving the case.

"Trademark Beaton." -- BOOKLIST (STARRED)
"Once you meet Agatha Raisin, you'll keep coming back." -- NEW YORK JOURNAL OF BOOKS

M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green: Down the Hatch. An Agatha Raisin Mystery. St. Martin's Paperbacks, ISBN: 9781250816153 (August, 2022), 244 p., $8.99.

M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green: Agatha Raisin - Down the Hatch (UK 2022)

From the Publisher:
Nothing could be more relaxing or sedate than a quiet game of bowls on a pristine bowling green bathed in the sunshine of an English summer's afternoon in the Cotswolds - unless there's a dead body lying on the grass.

Agatha Raisin becomes embroiled in a turmoil of jealousy and lies when the tranquility of her local bowls club explodes into a storm of accusation and intrigue - and murder. Her private life is no less turbulent when a past suitor reappears just as her ex-husband seems intent on rekindling their romance, and her close friend, Bill Wong, is in danger of losing the woman he loves.

Events take an even darker turn when Agatha realises that, in pursuing the bowling green killer, she is putting her own life in danger...

Praise for M.C. Beaton
'Every new Agatha Raisin escapade is a total joy' -- ASHLEY JENSEN
'No wonder she's been crowned Queen of Cosy Crime' -- MAIL ON SUNDAY
'A Beaton novel is like The Archers on speed' -- DAILY MAIL
'The detective novels of M.C. Beaton have reached cult status' -- THE TIMES

M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green: Agatha Raisin - Down the Hatch. Queen of the Village Mystery. Constable, ISBN: 9780349135045 (March, 2022), 256 p., £8.99.

M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green: Down the Hatch (USA 2021)

From the Publisher:
Beloved New York Times bestseller M.C. Beaton's cranky, crafty Agatha Raisin -- the star of her own hit T.V. series -- is back on the case again in Down the Hatch.

Private detective Agatha Raisin, having recently taken up power-walking, is striding along a path in Mircester Park during her lunch break when she hears a cry for help. Rushing over, she finds an elderly couple, Mr. and Mrs. Swinburn, in the middle of the green -- with the body of an old man lying at their feet.

The man, who the coroner determines died by poisoning, was known as "the Admiral," a gardener notorious for his heavy drinking, and Chief Inspector Wilkes writes the death off as an accident caused by the consumption of weedkiller stored in a rum bottle. Agatha is not convinced that anyone would mistake weedkiller for rum but carries on with her work at Raisin Investigations, until she receives an anonymous tip that the Admiral's death was no accident.

Local gossip points to the Swinburns themselves as the killers, spurred by a feud at the club where they, as well as the Admiral, were members. Distraught at this accusation, they turn to Agatha to clear their name, and she takes the case -- despite the warnings of Chief Inspector Wilkes. Agatha encounters one suspicious character after another, becoming further enmeshed in the Admiral's own dark and shady past. And when she's run off the road, narrowly escaping with her life, and then another attack occurs, it becomes clear that someone doesn't want the case closed -- and will stop at nothing to prevent Agatha from solving it.

M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green: Down the Hatch. An Agatha Raisin Mystery. Minotaur Books, ISBN: 9781250816139 (October, 2021), 226 p., $26.99.

M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green: Agatha Raisin - Down the Hatch (UK 2021)

Events take an even darker turn when Agatha realises that, in pursuing the bowling green killer, she is putting her own life in danger...

M.C. Beaton with R.W. Green: Agatha Raisin - Down the Hatch. Queen of the Village Mystery. Constable, ISBN: 9780349135038 (October, 2021), 256 p., £16.99.