Aunt Dimity and the King’s Ransom by Nancy Atherton
Genre: Paranormal cozy
Publisher: Viking
Publication Date: 2018
Summary
Aside from the occasional run-ins with mice, exploding diapers, and smashed vases, Lori‘s life as an American transplant to a small English village is idyllic: her husband Bill is a thoughtful partner, her children are (mostly) sweet, and the village has welcomed their young family. But Lori and Bill are due for a romantic getaway, and when Bill has to meet with a reclusive client at the client’s mansion, they plan for Lori to drive ahead and meet him at a famed inn.
A nasty storm drives Lori off-course and the flooding leaves her stranded in Shepney, where villagers are working overtime to keep everyone safe. Lori meets retired bishop Christopher Wyndham and ends up staying at The King’s Ransom, a rambling, medieval-times former alehouse-turned-inn recently bought by a young family. Thanks to French tourists stranded by the flooding, there’s (literally) no room for her in the inn. She has to stay in the dusty, crowded, and possibly haunted attic. Sure enough, mysterious noises awaken Lori throughout the night: laughter, footsteps, creaking doors.
She and the kindly Christopher team up to solve several mysteries. One, why is the inn named The King’s Ransom? Two, why did Monsieur Renault, one of the French tourists, get in an argument with Steve, the tattooed, pirate-lookalike, and amazing chef with a criminal background? And last, what on earth is making all these strange noises? (Or is it on earth at all . . .)
Thankfully, Lori has the late Aunt Dimity‘s ghost, via her special notebook, along to help guide her to answers. Or at least keep her from being too foolish.
My thoughts on Aunt Dimity and the King’s Ransom:
This is the 23rd book in the Aunt Dimity series, but the first that I’ve read. It works as a standalone.
This book is a mystery for those who like their mysteries light, funny, and bloodless. It’s a paranormal for those who like their spirits from beyond to be warm, fuzzy, and eager for a chat over a nice cuppa, curled up in front of a roaring fireplace and crackling logs.
If you’re looking for darkness, you’ll have to look elsewhere. But if you’re looking for a comfortable book, one that reminds you that you’re not alone in this world, you can’t go wrong with Lori and her Aunt Dimity.
There are many lovely things about this book. While cozy mysteries aren’t my favorite subgenre, it was a nice change from the darker material I’ve read recently. Here are a few reasons why:
Lori narrates in a cheery, off-beat, and often funny voice.
Any frazzled woman can relate to her need for a getaway and the disappointment of life’s intervention. What makes Lori such a terrific character, though, is that she doesn’t stay feeling sorry for herself. Aunt Dimity gives her a pep talk, and Lori rouses, pitches in to help the villagers by serving in the community hall, and befriends people.
Aunt Dimity is an amazing and articulate ghost.
Those who have read other books in the series are familiar with this aspect, but I wasn’t. The late Aunt Dimity was Lori’s late mama’s best friend. After both women died, the mother’s friend left Lori an inheritance that included a blank notebook. Each time Lori opens the notebook, Aunt Dimity’s handwriting appears and they “talk.” Think a text conversation, only supernatural instead of technological, and with one partner deceased. A little odd, possibly spooky, but as Lori tells us,
“her sole desire was to be as good a friend to me as she’d been to my mother” (page 60).
There’s a cast of fun, kindly, generous characters.
In particular, Christopher, the retired bishop, is a wonderful addition. He’s everything bishops should be: humble, wise, and kind. He tells children bloody stores of saints’ martyrdoms, which the children love, and willingly spends several hours with a quintet of quarrelsome geriatrics at the village hall. He has a dry sense of humor and the ability to befriend almost anyone. And he loves bookstores! (Don’t you love him already?)
Though one of the mysteries seems to take a dark turn, Atherton delighted me (and Lori) with the answers.
The villagers work together to deal with the storms and flooding.
Neighbors tend to come together after natural disasters, but the people of Shepney are exceptional in how well-prepared they are. They’ve been through flooding before, they’ll go through it again, and they’ve planned ahead–and shared those plans online, too, for the benefit of other communities. There are tensions, yes–the quarrelsome (but hilarious) quintet of geriatrics and the antics of the rector’s young son prove that–but they do care about each other, even when they won’t admit it.
The villagers handle Steve’s criminal past with a gracious spirit.
His crime is unknown, but as various characters remind each other, people should be forgiven and allowed to start over. Steve has learned culinary skills in prison–Atherton gives us “Steve’s” recipe for Apple Crumble–and is trying to stick to the straight and narrow. As Aunt Dimity wisely says,
“Wonderful things can happen when a man is given the support he needs to make the most of a second chance” (page 229).
The tone is generous and warm-hearted.
The book’s tone reminds me of an Alexander McCall-Smith novel. It gives me the feeling that nothing–not a cyclone or uprooted plans or crowded inn–is so horrible that a good cuppa can’t cure it. If that’s unrealistically optimistic, so be it. Sometimes we need to step away from the real world’s horrors and read a cozy book like this. Aunt Dimity and the King’s Ransom reminds me that people can be good.
4 1/2 stars. While this book didn’t blow me away, it was still amazing and worth reading.