Last Friday, whilst mooching around my amazing local bookshop (Forget-me-not Toys and Books, Culcheth), this novel by @jennykaneauthor yelled “BUY ME! TAKE ME HOME!” – and as it’s exactly my genre, who was I to refuse?Maggie Tyson works in the only chip shop in Mousehole, Cornwall, and her only daughter is on the other side of the world on a gap year in New Zealand.
Newly graduated Ryan Stepney has just arrived in the village to move in with his girlfriend and find work… only his girlfriend has gone travelling, leaving him lost and alone. Maggie soon takes Ryan under her wing, securing him work in the chippy and a roof over his head, because she’s just that sort of woman – see a problem, try and solve it.
When the body of a young woman is found in the harbour, Ryan was the last known person to see her alive – putting him squarely in the frame. Maggie realises now is a good time to put her extensive detective fiction knowledge and puzzling skills to the test – can she clear Ryan’s name?
I love detective pairings with an age gap, and Jenny Kane writes both characters wonderfully. You can feel Maggie’s need to mother without becoming overbearing, she’s a very sympathetic character, but I think there’s more to learn about her. Ryan too develops throughout the novel, and he’s a likeable character so you find yourself rooting for him to find his feet, which he does with aplomb.
The Cornish setting is so vivid, you can feel yourself walking by the coast, the scent of vinegar in the air from the chip shop, and the mystery itself is well plotted with plenty of red herrings to keep readers on their toes. The characters are quirky and fun, and while the novel has a satisfying conclusion, there are plenty of unanswered questions to draw people straight back in when the next instalment is released.
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