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Lois Meade Mystery #13
Scandal at Six
Lois Meade has scrubbed her way through the homes in Long Farnden, and she's not afraid of dusting cobwebs and killing a few bugs. But in her role as amateur sleuth, she's learning to beware of snakes in the grass . . .
Spring has arrived in Long Farnden and with it, a mysterious infestation. Lois Meade's daughter has found her village store overrun by insects and reptiles. As Lois looks into the invasion, her investigation leads her to Robert Pettison, a seemingly unhinged zookeeper, and his nephew. The two of them are knee-deep in illegal trade, and they don't take kindly to Lois poking her nose into their business.
Lois enlists the help of her faithful cleaner Dot Nimmo and police inspector Hunter Cowgill to discover more about Pettison and a suspicious death at the zoo. And death is in store for more people if Lois doesn't put the killer behind bars soon . . .
Spring has arrived in Long Farnden and with it, a mysterious infestation. Lois Meade's daughter has found her village store overrun by insects and reptiles. As Lois looks into the invasion, her investigation leads her to Robert Pettison, a seemingly unhinged zookeeper, and his nephew. The two of them are knee-deep in illegal trade, and they don't take kindly to Lois poking her nose into their business.
Lois enlists the help of her faithful cleaner Dot Nimmo and police inspector Hunter Cowgill to discover more about Pettison and a suspicious death at the zoo. And death is in store for more people if Lois doesn't put the killer behind bars soon . . .
336 pages, Hardcover
First published December 3, 2013
11 people are currently reading
222 people want to read
About the author
Ann Purser
37 books141 followersAnn Purser lives in the East Midlands, in a small and attractive village which still has a village shop, a garage, pub and church. Here she finds her inspiration for her novels about country life. She has only to do her daily shopping down the High Street to listen to the real life of the village going on around her.
Before turning to fiction, she had a number of different careers, including journalism – she was for six years a columnist in SHE magazine – and art gallery proprietor. Running her own gallery in a 400-year-old barn behind the house, she gained fascinating insights into the characters and relationships of customers wandering around. She had no compunction about eavesdropping, and sharpened up her writer’s skills in weaving plots around strangers who spent sometimes more than an hour in her gallery.
Working in a village school added more grist to the mill, as does singing in the church choir and membership of the Women’s Guild. She reminds herself humbly that Virginia Woolf was President of her local WI…
Six years hard study won her an Open University degree, and when she faltered and threatened to fall by the wayside, writer husband Philip Purser reminded her that he was paying good money for the course. During this period, she wrote two non-fiction books, one for parents of handicapped children (she has a daughter with cerebral palsy) and the other a lighthearted book for schools, on the explosion of popular entertainment in the first forty years of the twentieth century.
Ten years of running the gallery proved to be enough, and while it was very successful she decided to sell. The business moved down the street to another barn and owner, and Pursers stayed on in their house next to the village school – another rich source of material for the stories. Time to start writing novels.
Round Ringford became Ann’s village in a series of six novels, each with a separate story, but featuring the same cast of characters with a few newcomers each time. The list of books gives details of each story, and each features an issue common to all villages in our rural countryside. “Just like our village!” is a frequent comment from Ann’s readers.
Next: the Lois Meade Mysteries, each title reflecting a day of the week. Ann has always loved detective fiction, and determined to make it her next series. So Murder on Monday was born, followed by Terror on Tuesday, and Weeping on Wednesday. The rest of the week follows!
Mornings are set aside for writing, and the rest of the day Ann spends walking the dog, retrieving bantams’ eggs from around the garden, gossiping and taking part in the life of the village. She is never bored!
Before turning to fiction, she had a number of different careers, including journalism – she was for six years a columnist in SHE magazine – and art gallery proprietor. Running her own gallery in a 400-year-old barn behind the house, she gained fascinating insights into the characters and relationships of customers wandering around. She had no compunction about eavesdropping, and sharpened up her writer’s skills in weaving plots around strangers who spent sometimes more than an hour in her gallery.
Working in a village school added more grist to the mill, as does singing in the church choir and membership of the Women’s Guild. She reminds herself humbly that Virginia Woolf was President of her local WI…
Six years hard study won her an Open University degree, and when she faltered and threatened to fall by the wayside, writer husband Philip Purser reminded her that he was paying good money for the course. During this period, she wrote two non-fiction books, one for parents of handicapped children (she has a daughter with cerebral palsy) and the other a lighthearted book for schools, on the explosion of popular entertainment in the first forty years of the twentieth century.
Ten years of running the gallery proved to be enough, and while it was very successful she decided to sell. The business moved down the street to another barn and owner, and Pursers stayed on in their house next to the village school – another rich source of material for the stories. Time to start writing novels.
Round Ringford became Ann’s village in a series of six novels, each with a separate story, but featuring the same cast of characters with a few newcomers each time. The list of books gives details of each story, and each features an issue common to all villages in our rural countryside. “Just like our village!” is a frequent comment from Ann’s readers.
Next: the Lois Meade Mysteries, each title reflecting a day of the week. Ann has always loved detective fiction, and determined to make it her next series. So Murder on Monday was born, followed by Terror on Tuesday, and Weeping on Wednesday. The rest of the week follows!
Mornings are set aside for writing, and the rest of the day Ann spends walking the dog, retrieving bantams’ eggs from around the garden, gossiping and taking part in the life of the village. She is never bored!
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
December 30, 2014
Lois Meade us is at it again with this mystery full of quirky characters and reptiles and murder. Lots of details as Lois delves into murder and mayhem.
November 11, 2017
Catching up with old friends.... Ok story. Not so heavy on the mystery.. Seems to evolve in just interpersonal activities. But I love this family of sleuths.
Lois Meade has scrubbed her way through the homes in Long Farnden, and she's not afraid of dusting cobwebs and killing a few bugs. But in her role as amateur sleuth, she's learning to beware of snakes in the grass . . .
Spring has arrived in Long Farnden and with it, a mysterious infestation. Lois Meade's daughter has found her village store overrun by insects and reptiles. As Lois looks into the invasion, her investigation leads her to Robert Pettison, a seemingly unhinged zookeeper, and his nephew. The two of them are knee-deep in illegal trade, and they don't take kindly to Lois poking her nose into their business. Lois enlists the help of her faithful cleaner Dot Nimmo and police inspector Hunter Cowgill to discover more about Pettison and a suspicious death at the zoo. And death is in store for more people if Lois doesn't put the killer behind bars soon . . .
Lois Meade has scrubbed her way through the homes in Long Farnden, and she's not afraid of dusting cobwebs and killing a few bugs. But in her role as amateur sleuth, she's learning to beware of snakes in the grass . . .
Spring has arrived in Long Farnden and with it, a mysterious infestation. Lois Meade's daughter has found her village store overrun by insects and reptiles. As Lois looks into the invasion, her investigation leads her to Robert Pettison, a seemingly unhinged zookeeper, and his nephew. The two of them are knee-deep in illegal trade, and they don't take kindly to Lois poking her nose into their business. Lois enlists the help of her faithful cleaner Dot Nimmo and police inspector Hunter Cowgill to discover more about Pettison and a suspicious death at the zoo. And death is in store for more people if Lois doesn't put the killer behind bars soon . . .
November 5, 2025
There's nothing like jumping into a series at #6 😄 Lois Meade runs a house cleaning business so when her daughter's shop is invaded with reptiles and creepy crawlies she's understandably upset. The obvious point of origin for these creatures is a nearby privately owned zoo. When she meets the zoo owner, Robert Pettison, as he looks to replace his cleaning woman, she decides he is an eccentric about the creatures in his zoo. Chimpanzee attacks, snake bites, zookeeper injuries and deaths - I found it a bit of a stretch that the zoo would still be open. The reader learns Pettison's nephew, Justin Brookes is in league with his uncle illegally importing endangered species for private collectors. This a cast of looney characters, including Lois' mother, the story delivers some laughs. I was left confused about the relationship between Lois and Inspector Cowgill but that's probably because I jumped into the middle of the series. I'll definitely backtrack and read earlier installments.
November 21, 2018
This episode in the life of Lois Meade brings to light some current issues like protecting endangered animals and people who buy exotic animals for pets. One of the important settings is a local zoo and I found that an interesting change for a book of this type. This Lois Meade adventure is focused on her family and the communities that they live in and not her cleaning business and the cleaners who work for her.
I continue to enjoy the author's descriptions of village life and the characters who turn up in this series.
I continue to enjoy the author's descriptions of village life and the characters who turn up in this series.
February 13, 2023
This is the first book that I read by this author. There is no action and the plot line moves very slowly. There is very little mystery until the murder which is halfway thru the book. The book deals with more animal rights and treatment than anything.
October 3, 2018
The adventures of Lois Meade and her New Brooms Agency continue in the thirteenth in the series.
July 18, 2019
3 - Good
July 10, 2017
Never got where the title came into play. Good read.
December 13, 2014
"Scandal at Six" is a cozy mystery. This is the thirteenth book in the series. You don't need to read the previous novels to understand this one, and this book didn't spoil the whodunits of the previous novels.
The theme of illegal rare animal trade was an interesting idea, but there actually wasn't much mystery to this story. The "bad guys" are point-of-view characters, so we know from the start who is putting snakes and such in the shop. There are a few deaths where it's implied a certain POV character caused them, but this is never definitively addressed.
The only mysterious death happens at the very end. We have all the clues from previous events, and the solution is quickly uncovered. There were enough clues that I could immediately narrow down the suspects and only one seemed likely--and that was, indeed, whodunit.
There was some bad language. There was no sex. I'd recommend this novel to those interested in the theme and who don't care about the lack of mystery.
I received this book as a review copy from the publisher.
The theme of illegal rare animal trade was an interesting idea, but there actually wasn't much mystery to this story. The "bad guys" are point-of-view characters, so we know from the start who is putting snakes and such in the shop. There are a few deaths where it's implied a certain POV character caused them, but this is never definitively addressed.
The only mysterious death happens at the very end. We have all the clues from previous events, and the solution is quickly uncovered. There were enough clues that I could immediately narrow down the suspects and only one seemed likely--and that was, indeed, whodunit.
There was some bad language. There was no sex. I'd recommend this novel to those interested in the theme and who don't care about the lack of mystery.
I received this book as a review copy from the publisher.
September 10, 2018
This is the 13th book in this series.
It was hard to read that the Meads let Gran go so unappreciated for so long that she thought of leaving.
I had a hard time getting into the story this time. The reptiles and amphibians just didn't seem that threatening to me, with the exception of the first one. I didn't see why Josie was so afraid of them.
SPOILER - When Justin asked Lois to forgive her for his rudeness she said "No." That seemed out of character for her to me, since she often took people under her wing, who wanted to make a change in their lives for the better. Lois has had rudeness from others, especially Dot, but also Gran, without holding a grudge before. Lois herself is quite capable of being rude. It wasn't Justin's fault that Lois fell and he did call an ambulance. I wondered if Justin's real unforgivable act was that he witnessed Lois embarrassing herself with that fall. She did say that she would do her best for him when talking to the police, so maybe there was more forgiveness than she admitted.
It was hard to read that the Meads let Gran go so unappreciated for so long that she thought of leaving.
I had a hard time getting into the story this time. The reptiles and amphibians just didn't seem that threatening to me, with the exception of the first one. I didn't see why Josie was so afraid of them.
SPOILER - When Justin asked Lois to forgive her for his rudeness she said "No." That seemed out of character for her to me, since she often took people under her wing, who wanted to make a change in their lives for the better. Lois has had rudeness from others, especially Dot, but also Gran, without holding a grudge before. Lois herself is quite capable of being rude. It wasn't Justin's fault that Lois fell and he did call an ambulance. I wondered if Justin's real unforgivable act was that he witnessed Lois embarrassing herself with that fall. She did say that she would do her best for him when talking to the police, so maybe there was more forgiveness than she admitted.
August 15, 2014
A delightful portrayal of life in a small English village with the slight twist that there are murders around every corner and they always seem to involve Lois Mead! Lois is set to work on the track of some very unpleasant characters, both human and reptilian in this story, but she has a particular interest as the nasty incidents that start occurring are aimed at her daughter Josie who runs the corner shop. Of course Lois in not going to let this pass without doing a bit of 'ferritin'' of her own, along with her long time friend and admirer Inspector Cowgill, whose nephew is married to Josie. The whole family become involved in solving the case, as do Loises staff at New Brooms cleaning company. Once Lois gets the bit between her teeth she never gives up and her tenacity is usually rewarded.
This was a lovely 'cozy' read but Ann Purser does touch on some very important issues in her books and highlights some of the unpleasant crimes that take place under our noses every day.
This was a lovely 'cozy' read but Ann Purser does touch on some very important issues in her books and highlights some of the unpleasant crimes that take place under our noses every day.
April 26, 2014
I've not read a book in this series in a while, and I really enjoyed re-meeting these characters. Okay, the plot was very contrived, still the story was great fun. Snakes in the village store, frogs on the stars, and a water gun filled with red dye...what??? But, the story was a hoot to read. Ann Purser comes up with the strangest crimes- like Nancy Drew with an English accent and some Clorox wipes.
February 11, 2014
This is my first book by this author and while I enjoyed the English village feel of the story the animal aspect seemed odd. Also, the relationship between Lois and Cowgill seems a bit creepy to me. I am surprised that the author does not have her husband be at all concerned with the inspector's stalker like behavior. Not sure about continuing with this series.
October 17, 2015
Dangerous acts by adults passed off as public school type pranks but when Lois cracks her noggin by tripping she won't forgive the guy she was talking to????????
Dumb plot with characters repeating stale disgruntlements from previous books.
Dumb plot with characters repeating stale disgruntlements from previous books.
March 9, 2015
In the village of Long Farnden Lois Meade is solving the mystery of wild
animals. They're showing up in the mysterious places and the owner of the local zoo is mysterious himself. Lots of interesting villagers to keep the reader entertained in this cozy mystery.
animals. They're showing up in the mysterious places and the owner of the local zoo is mysterious himself. Lots of interesting villagers to keep the reader entertained in this cozy mystery.
July 8, 2016
Nope. Nope. Nope. This was not for me. I couldn't stand the characters, I found the plot contrived and uninteresting, and the writing style a little too cutesy for me.
I think it is the genre though, and not just the author. Cozy Mysteries have yet to impress me.
I think it is the genre though, and not just the author. Cozy Mysteries have yet to impress me.
May 30, 2016
Awesome!! Started reading Suspicion at Seven. Love the Lois Meade series.
May 14, 2014
Love this series, but this is my least favorite book. Just didn't find the story interesting or the characters very good.
December 13, 2013
Lois comes across as a bit dim in this one.
January 7, 2014
I love Lois Meade and her family but this one dragged on too long. No mystery since the reader knows from the start who the guilty party is.
February 19, 2014
This series has escaped me before, but I think I must go back and catch up with the characters and the previous mysteries involving Mrs. Meade. :o)
April 10, 2014
I liked it. Much better than "Five". I wonder how long this writer can keep things going in Long Farnden, England. Everyone in the family has had something bad happen and some more than once.
August 3, 2014
This series is so much fun. I loved catching up with all the characters and going ferreting again!
May 27, 2015
So hard to engage with these characters. I don't care for them as people! They snip at each other, and just coast along. The mystery was good, but anticlimactic.
July 16, 2015
Story set in England current day. Plot ok. Obviously part of a series but I don't think I'll rush to read the rest of the books.
January 22, 2014
Another in the series with an animal rights kind of theme.
April 16, 2017
So slowly paced. I really don't like Gran. Or Lois. I'm also so tired of Cowgill being in love with her. It's the dumbest plot line. A love triangle is not necessary.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews