A Pen Dipped in Poison: A witty and cosy mystery story, perfect for fans of Richard Osman

Product Information

The dialogue and relationships within this book are wonderful and by the end I felt I was leaving friends. I would have liked to have a little more backstory and duscussion of the main characters to make more of a story maybe you need to read the first but i thought i was missing bits of characters.

This makes a great light mystery read for fans of the cosy genre and those formerly or currently employed in the UK education system will find plenty familiar within these pages! DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Avon Books UK, and HarperCollins Audio for providing a digital ARC of A Pen Dipped in Poison by J. A new head teacher was appointed to run the three friends' former school, and both Thelma and Liz soon find out that there are issues there. EXCERPT: In the morning, if his wife were to leave the house before him, Derek Newsome would invariably tell her to 'take care' in serious tones, as if she were some Captain-Oates-type figure who had decided against all odds to venture into an Antarctic wilderness. There were lots of mini sub plots in this read that it took a while to get my head around, but they all connected and tied up nicely in the end.The poison pen letter plot was ok but i gueesed the truth too quickly and i felt it didnt gell in places. This was my first entry into the world of retired school, teachers, Liz, Pat and Thelma, and although I hadn’t read the first case I didn’t feel that I was left behind ( I’ll be catching up with that one as soon as possible). Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK Audio, Avon for allowing me to listen to the ARC of this novel.

And apparently every one that receives one has the weakest constitution and is shattered by a letter saying something slightly mean like no one likes you. as well as the summary on the back ("one by one, careers are ended, marriages destroyed") of the book are a bit misleading. This novel is the second in a series following three women, Thelma, Pat and Liz, who get caught up in different situations.This series was inspired by Jon's long-time career as deputy headmaster of a northern primary school. And the theme of the poisoned pen letters and the reasons behind them just didn't quite work for me. This time our unlikely heroines meet with the vagaries of school academisation and encounter a spate of poison pen letters, which have unintended consequences for those who become involved.

However, there are enough twists and turns to keep you turning the pages and the three protagonists are likeable, so all in all an, it’s an enjoyable read. I hadn't read the first book, so maybe my next point is less valid for those who've read it, but I felt there were too many characters. There’s an underlying theme of change that ties in neatly with the ‘under new management’, as the retired ladies struggle to accept difference in the education environment since they were working there and also struggle with changes in their home lives – each of Thelma, Liz and Pat having some version of marital problems going on in the background of their reluctant investigation. A gently quirky cosy mystery with plenty of twists and turns , and an intriguing cast of characters – some endearing, some not so much!This time around I didn’t guess who was behind it all, and I did last time so I was expecting to be able to crack it!

It is an easy to read cozy mystery with a good pace but as in the first book, there was some unnecessary filler, which made it drag a little in places.It was good to understand how all the letter recipients were reacting, but I will admit that the book took a lot of time laying out the situation before the plot picked up its pace.