It wasn't until we'd rounded the corner of the stable that I belatedly remembered: December didn't drive any more.
Or, to be accurate, he didn't drive motor cars any more.
'You're joking,' I said faintly as he hitched Lana into the donkey cart harness.
'No. Very fashionable these days. Eco-friendly - isn't that what they call it?'
That wasn't what my acquaintances would call it. I was a private investigator. We sped through our cases in an open-topped sports car, the wind in our hair and funky music pounding through our quadrophonic stereo system. It said so in all the gumshoe manuals. How could I retain my street cred if anyone saw me being pulled by one-horse (ish) power?

Now this is more like it! The first in a series of light-hearted detective stories set in an English seaside town. Private detective Grace Smith is hired to investigate the killing of a seaside donkey named Marilyn Monroe, but soon becomes convinced that his death is linked to the murder of a prostitute on the same night. Grace meets many eccentric characters as she investigates the case in hospitals, hospices, old people's homes and night clubs, before she comes to realise who killed Marilyn Monroe and why.

I'm looking forward to the next book in this series. But will it be as good if it doesn't feature December and the lads in a starring role? ( )

A very enjoyable tale. Grace is a likeable character, as are her friends and colleagues, particularly the outrageous ones. December Drysdale and his donkeys are worth the saving. ( )

Opening Sentence: '...Finding out who killed Marilyn Monroe nearly got me killed as well...'

Marilyn Monroe has been brutally murdered. Down in luck ex-cop PI Grace Smith draws the short straw and is assigned the case and hired to track down the murderer. However this is England, not LA, and in the seedy run down English beach resort, Marilyn Monroe is not a glamorous movie star but a decidedly dead male donkey. Despite this, Grace is inexorably drawn into a web of greed, betrayal and murder, where she is barely one step behind the killer.

This is the first in a series - Grace is a feisty female who only owns one feminine outfit, bludges food off everyone she comes in contact with, and is not afraid to do a little breaking and entering when the situation calls for it. She starts her investigation, only to find that it all points to a robbery and murder committed many years ago, but the mystery was never really solved, and although a man was sent to prison for the crime, it was all left rather up in the air.

I enjoyed this story, it was a well-constructed and well-paced thriller,with the occasional glimmer of humour. I have heard that Grace is being described as an English version of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum - this is not so, Grace has much more intelligence and character, and is more believable as a result. ( )

Great book, filled with action, investigation and humour. Very entertaining and witty (and English), it should find a space in your library, for those long, quiet evenings when there's nothing to do. Noir, without being trashy, and generally consistent, you may find that you like PI Grace Smith's woes and attempts at sleuthing highly entertaining indeed. ( )