Little Apple 'book of the week'

A Date with Death by Julia Chapman

This is the first in The Dales Detective series. It introduces Delilah Metcalfe who lives in the fictional town of Bruncliffe in the Dales (though the author has hinted it is based on Settle). She runs the Dales Dating agency but due to cash flow and an unexpected turn of events ends up renting office space to Samson O’Brien who is starting a detective agency.

The town is full of 'local characters' - I particularly like Ida Capstick, the local cleaner, who has a unique pricing system for her troubles, and the indomitable Mrs Hird, ex-school mistress and now resident at the Fellside Court retirement home.

It is a place where everyone knows everyone else’s business or at least thinks they do. This might have something to do with the amount of time they all seem to spend in the town pub.

The plot is well executed, keeping you guessing as the body count increases. There are moments of light humour. Samson and Delilah make a likeable pairing. It is cosy crime at its best, focussing on mystery and intrigue rather than blood and gore. There is a generous slice of dialect usage which embeds the narrative firmly in the Dales as does the vivid description of the hills through which Delilah likes to run. Oh, and if you like this one, there are two more in the series now too.

Philippa Morris, Little Apple

https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/julia-chapman/date-with-death