Product Description

The bets are on whodunnit when a body is found at the bookies ...Jude has never been averse to a bit of a flutter; her friend Carole, on the other hand, thinks that the local betting shop is a den of iniquity. But when Jude stumbles upon the body of Polish immigrant Tadeusz Jankowski - the race is on to find his killer. The odds aren't looking good. No one seems to know anything about the mysterious Tadek - even his sister can't shed any light on what he was doing in Fethering. Who was the anonymous woman in the bookies who seems to have vanished?Why was Tadek interested in the local university? And who is the 'Fifi' Tadek spoke of with his dying breath? As they question the local residents, Carol finds an unexpected friend in an inveterate gambler and Jude finds herself in potentially more trouble than she can handle with a lecherous and charming drama professor. In this race there can only be one winner, but with no leads and several suspects in the running will our lady detectives be pipped at the post by a cold and calculating killer?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #222772 in Books
• Published on: 2008-08-20
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 295 pages

From Publishers Weekly
In Brett's charming ninth Fethering mystery (after 2007's Death Under the Dryer), retiree Carole Seddon must solve a murder at the local betting shop. Jude, Carole's West Sussex neighbor and friend, discovers the body of recent Polish émigré Tadeusz Jankowski at the bookie's office. No one knows why Tadeusz was in Fethering, though his sister, Zofia, guesses he may have been in love. Carole and Jude scope out the local college, where Tadeusz was reportedly seen, and encounter a drama professor lothario who falls for Jude. Help comes from unexpected places, as Carole discovers a new friend in one of the town's habitual gamblers as she and Jude scramble to unmask the killer. Brett continues to flesh out his characters with a subplot about Carole's desire to see her new granddaughter while avoiding her ex-husband. With Brett's usual flair for smalltown snobbery and a dash of college politics, this latest cozy whodunit is sure to please longtime fans of the series. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author
Simon Brett worked as a producer in radio and television before taking up writing full time. He is married with three grown-up children and lives in an Agatha Christie-style village on the South Downs. This is the ninth novel in the popular Fethering series.

From AudioFile
In the ninth in the Fethering series, the murder of a Polish immigrant outside the local betting shop finds neighbors Jude and Carol attempting to solve the crime. While not particularly compelling, Brett's mystery is made enjoyable by his excellent performance and his vocal creation of distinctive characters. The story itself feels like a blend of clich��s, with unrequited love, a lecherous college lecturer, headstrong, romantically challenged students, anti-immigrant sentiment, and the two opposite but complementary friends who work together to solve the crime. As author-narrator, Brett obviously knows his characters and saves the day with his ability to project their personalities engagingly for listeners. M.H.N. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

Customer Reviews

fun Fethering amateur sleuth thriller
In Fethering, England, Jude takes the bets of flu ailing nonagenarian Harold Peskett to the local betting shop. While there she notices a young man stumbling before he leaves the parlor. Soon afterward, she finds him lying dead in an alley. She later learns the victim was Polish immigrant Tadeusz Jankowski who was in town studying music at nearby Clincham University.

Jude tells her stuffy but sick neighbor Carole Seddon, who is recovering from the flu. Unable to resist they begin to investigate as "amateur sleuth old biddies". When his sister Zofia arrives from Poland, she encourages Jude to keep looking into who killed her brother and why; she does think Tadeusz was in love, but she does not know with whom. With no clues, the pair keeps on digging while the killer watches their every move.

The Fethering amateur sleuths are consistently some of the most entertaining (see latest Fethering caper (see DEATH UNDER THE DRYER, THE BODY ON THE BEACH and THE STABBING IN THE STABLES). The latest one holds up that tradition as an enjoyable whodunit that showcases the social world of the betting club and somewhat the non acceptance of foreign students in England. Carole is at her best as she struggles with just entering the bet shop and with seeking her new granddaughter if that means seeing her ex. Jude escorts Carole to places she would never dared go before. Cozy fans will appreciate the newest tour of Fethering.

Harriet Klausner

Okay but not as good as first few in the series
I really, really enjoyed most of the books in the Fethering series. Brett has a very easy to read style and I do like the main characters however, the first half of this book was really dull. The second half picks up and is up to par (with the other titles). I don't believe in giving anything away in reviews. I'll only say go ahead and read it but be patient it will improve half way through.

Unsympathetic characters and a too-obvious killer
Jude and Carole are delighted when a young Polish man is murdered in their small English town and Jude is the first to find his body. They can sleuth around and find the killer, perhaps even before the police do. So, Jude and Carole set out to track down clues. Why, exactly, did Tadeusz Jankowski wander into a betting shop as he was dying? Who was the mysterious woman he'd been seen talking to at that same betting shop some months before? More ominously, what happened to the guitar and CDs that young musician kept with him at all times which don't show up in the police list of items? Finally, what was his connection to the local college? It's enough to keep Jude and Carole happily investigating for weeks.

Jude and Carole quickly learn that not everyone is especially sympathetic. Prejudice against immigrants from Eastern Europe runs strong in small-town England. The two track down one suspect after another and both meet men who raise some distinct feelings although neither believes anything serious can come of it.

Author Simon Brett writes convincingly of small-town England. The pubs, the local bigotry, the snobishness of those who attended 'public schools,' and the characters in the betting shop all come through clearly. His sleuths, Jude and Carole, in contrast, don't do as well. Their motive for involving themselves doesn't seem to justify their actions. The two are quick to jump to conclusions (both about suspects and about one another) that are both unwarranted and silly. And ultimately, all of their work isn't really necessary as the police would have discovered the killer perfectly well without their involvement. BLOOD AT THE BOOKIES is readable and there's a lot going for it, but the unsympathetic protagonists make it hard for me to recommend this mystery very highly.