What do you think?
Poppy Fields Mystery #1
Murder Mysteries 1 Mondays Are Murder
First in a brand-new series of murder mysteries. Miss Marple for the younger reader!
When Poppy Fields goes on an activity holiday to a remote Scottish island, she is looking forward to a week of climbing, hill-walking and horse riding. But things take a bad turn when their instructor has what appears to be a fatal abseiling accident. When Poppy discovers that his rope was cut, and more of the instructors start to have "accidents", she and best friend Graham suspect foul play and decide to investigate.
When Poppy Fields goes on an activity holiday to a remote Scottish island, she is looking forward to a week of climbing, hill-walking and horse riding. But things take a bad turn when their instructor has what appears to be a fatal abseiling accident. When Poppy discovers that his rope was cut, and more of the instructors start to have "accidents", she and best friend Graham suspect foul play and decide to investigate.
112 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2009
About the author
Tanya Landman
76 books92 followersCarnegie Medal winning Tanya Landman is the author of more than thirty books for children and young adults.
Born and brought up in Kent, Tanya had no intention of becoming a writer until the idea for Waking Merlin popped into her head. "It came from nowhere. It was completely out of the blue."
Tanya now lives and works in Bideford and the nearby coastline was the inspiration for her Flotsam & Jetsam series.
Tanya's first books were "adventure stories with a sprinkling of magic and spoonful of humour." But then Tanya turned to crime, writing Mondays are Murder (winner of a Red House Book Award) - the first in a series of ten "Agatha-Christie-for-kids" featuring child sleuth Poppy Fields and her friend Graham. Her new highly illustrated books for younger children feature Sam Swann, an accident-prone boy sleuth and his faithful canine sidekick Watson.
Although she writes across a broad age range, Tanya is probably best known for her historical novels for young adults. Apache - set in 19th century America - was shortlisted for several UK awards including the Teenage Book Trust and the Carnegie Medal (where it was voted the Shadowing Groups favourite). The US edition won a Borders Original Voices prize and a Spur award from the Western Writers of America. The Goldsmith's Daughter - set in the Aztec empire during the Spanish invasion - was nominated for the Carnegie Medal and the Guardian Children's Fiction prize. Buffalo Soldier won the 2015 Carnegie Medal. Hell and High Water - a swashbuckling thriller set in 18th century Devon - was shortlisted for the 2016 Guardian Children's Fiction Prize and nominated for the Carnegie Medal. Her latest book Beyond the Wall is set in Roman Britain. Passing for White comes out later this year.
Born and brought up in Kent, Tanya had no intention of becoming a writer until the idea for Waking Merlin popped into her head. "It came from nowhere. It was completely out of the blue."
Tanya now lives and works in Bideford and the nearby coastline was the inspiration for her Flotsam & Jetsam series.
Tanya's first books were "adventure stories with a sprinkling of magic and spoonful of humour." But then Tanya turned to crime, writing Mondays are Murder (winner of a Red House Book Award) - the first in a series of ten "Agatha-Christie-for-kids" featuring child sleuth Poppy Fields and her friend Graham. Her new highly illustrated books for younger children feature Sam Swann, an accident-prone boy sleuth and his faithful canine sidekick Watson.
Although she writes across a broad age range, Tanya is probably best known for her historical novels for young adults. Apache - set in 19th century America - was shortlisted for several UK awards including the Teenage Book Trust and the Carnegie Medal (where it was voted the Shadowing Groups favourite). The US edition won a Borders Original Voices prize and a Spur award from the Western Writers of America. The Goldsmith's Daughter - set in the Aztec empire during the Spanish invasion - was nominated for the Carnegie Medal and the Guardian Children's Fiction prize. Buffalo Soldier won the 2015 Carnegie Medal. Hell and High Water - a swashbuckling thriller set in 18th century Devon - was shortlisted for the 2016 Guardian Children's Fiction Prize and nominated for the Carnegie Medal. Her latest book Beyond the Wall is set in Roman Britain. Passing for White comes out later this year.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
September 8, 2013
I thought the book Mondays are murder was a very good book. I actually read it a couple of years ago, but enjoy re-reading this series of books because the are so well written and exciting. Although i do feel every book in the series follows the same plot, the mysteries have a fun original twist/ theme to it. i think that every book goes that first someone dies, they think someone is the murderer, the accused then die, they come to the conclusion that it is someone else, they are then confronted by the murderer and saved by the person they accused that didn't die. Even though the plot is repetitive i still really like these books. I do however find that the peoples backstories and interesting and unexpected.
i think on the bingo board that this comes under a fantasy book.... because it was fantastic! and also i don't have the bingo board sheet and thats all i can remember. I don't remember any quotes from he book but i do remember how at the end of each chapter they had a sentence that as very powerful like ''Me and Graham had settled that ...... was the murderer. Little did we know we were going to receive information that would be breaking news''. okay so that was a terrible example but you get my point. It was kind of a mini cliffhanger.So it kind of wasn't a quote and actually more of a technique, but i remembered it so yeah.
i decided to read this book because i had read dying to be famous first, and then found out that these books were in a series. as a side note i think that the books having a nice simple cover was effective, as i knew that they were in a series better and i thought the bold colours with the black words were really effective. also having the picture above the words was good. i liked these covers because they weren't too complicated and i could see by looking at them that they were about murder. Because of the blood splatters, which then continued through the pages.
The good things about these books is that there isn't any backstory behind poppy, you don't ruin the series for yourself by reading the fifth book first. although, if i was to see this series continue, i would like to see a little bit more of a story for poppy. so that the whole book wasn't just finding clues and making accusations. But i think Tanya Landman has finished the poppy fields series so..... ok
My favourite character was probably Graham. In this book we first meet Graham, and as the series continue we get to know Graham better. We lear how he is a smart nerd which helps poppy when guessing who the murderer is.
i think on the bingo board that this comes under a fantasy book.... because it was fantastic! and also i don't have the bingo board sheet and thats all i can remember. I don't remember any quotes from he book but i do remember how at the end of each chapter they had a sentence that as very powerful like ''Me and Graham had settled that ...... was the murderer. Little did we know we were going to receive information that would be breaking news''. okay so that was a terrible example but you get my point. It was kind of a mini cliffhanger.So it kind of wasn't a quote and actually more of a technique, but i remembered it so yeah.
i decided to read this book because i had read dying to be famous first, and then found out that these books were in a series. as a side note i think that the books having a nice simple cover was effective, as i knew that they were in a series better and i thought the bold colours with the black words were really effective. also having the picture above the words was good. i liked these covers because they weren't too complicated and i could see by looking at them that they were about murder. Because of the blood splatters, which then continued through the pages.
The good things about these books is that there isn't any backstory behind poppy, you don't ruin the series for yourself by reading the fifth book first. although, if i was to see this series continue, i would like to see a little bit more of a story for poppy. so that the whole book wasn't just finding clues and making accusations. But i think Tanya Landman has finished the poppy fields series so..... ok
My favourite character was probably Graham. In this book we first meet Graham, and as the series continue we get to know Graham better. We lear how he is a smart nerd which helps poppy when guessing who the murderer is.
May 19, 2022
This was so good!
* Poppy goes off to a remote island off the coast of Scotland for an adventure holiday (free of charge because the place needs some guinea pigs).
* Unfortunately the staff begin to die in suspicious circumstances. Bruce falls while climbing, Donald gets locked in the freezer, and Isabella dies after drinking champagne, and Poppy decides that she needs to work out who the culprit is quick!
- This was really good, fast-paced, but well thought out, with plenty of mysteries so it wasn't easy to work out who had done it. A friend who helped Poppy, but who she had no romantic feelings for, and the added danger of being cut-off from the mainland by weather, and also by radio. Really impressed.
* Poppy goes off to a remote island off the coast of Scotland for an adventure holiday (free of charge because the place needs some guinea pigs).
* Unfortunately the staff begin to die in suspicious circumstances. Bruce falls while climbing, Donald gets locked in the freezer, and Isabella dies after drinking champagne, and Poppy decides that she needs to work out who the culprit is quick!
- This was really good, fast-paced, but well thought out, with plenty of mysteries so it wasn't easy to work out who had done it. A friend who helped Poppy, but who she had no romantic feelings for, and the added danger of being cut-off from the mainland by weather, and also by radio. Really impressed.
January 15, 2013
I love a good murder book! Poppy Fields has just met Graham and find themselves solving a life theatening mystery. They are supposed to have a fun week in Scotland,turns into an extreme murder holiday, where the bodies start to pile up. She notices that there is something terribly wrong, then Poppy and Graham find themselves searching for the murderer...
I really like this book because I couldn't wait to find out who the murderer was, all the clues made sence and then I knew as I got through the book.
I really like this book because I couldn't wait to find out who the murderer was, all the clues made sence and then I knew as I got through the book.
June 19, 2026
4.5......a plot twist that shocked me more when I was 10
June 30, 2018
What I really like of this book is Poppy and her ability to "read" people. This makes the story a great one for any age as it does provide bits of knowledge on reading emotions and expressions. Very good learning. Otherwise the murder case in itself is cliche and very similar to other stories around. There is a nice plot twist towards the end, when the list of suspects gets too thin to stand.
So Poppy and other kids are invited to be the guinea-pigs of a resort for outdoor activity, like in a summer camp. However, the facility is in an island, without communication with the continent. the owners of the new business all knew each other from past adventures and here is where the hidden secrets abound. One of them, each day, is murdered - or is it?
Short and at good pace it is a good "whodunit" book.
So Poppy and other kids are invited to be the guinea-pigs of a resort for outdoor activity, like in a summer camp. However, the facility is in an island, without communication with the continent. the owners of the new business all knew each other from past adventures and here is where the hidden secrets abound. One of them, each day, is murdered - or is it?
Short and at good pace it is a good "whodunit" book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 7, 2023
i read this when i was like 11 and it STUCK with me
can confirm now as an 18 year old it STILL holds up like it’s brutal it’s fast paced it’s witty it’s FAST PACED like there was a murder on every other page !!!!! THATS what i’m talking about
can confirm now as an 18 year old it STILL holds up like it’s brutal it’s fast paced it’s witty it’s FAST PACED like there was a murder on every other page !!!!! THATS what i’m talking about
June 29, 2018
It is possible the library I got this book from had it misfiled under the junior fiction section admit was surprisingly dark and somewhat grizzly with death and mayhem afoot and the themes decidedly not for them junior area. The story was OK but nothing spectacular, but it was quite dark and certainly nothing that I had expected, which is neither a good or a bad thing.
April 8, 2022
I absolutely loved reading this book. I loved trying to solve the mystery whilst reading. And I was very surprised by the ending!
You know it's a good murder mystery book when you gasp once the mystery unfolds
Thank you Tanya Landman for such a wonderful read :)
You know it's a good murder mystery book when you gasp once the mystery unfolds
Thank you Tanya Landman for such a wonderful read :)
September 2, 2026
This is exactly the sort of children's murder mystery I enjoy - short, fast, slightly ridiculous and absolutely determined to get on with killing people.
Poppy Fields heads off on a free activity holiday to a remote Scottish island and, rather inconveniently for the people running it, the staff begin dying in suspicious circumstances. There's climbing accidents, bad weather, isolation from the mainland and an increasingly impressive body count for such a tiny book.
I particularly liked the setting. Cutting everyone off on an island gives it a proper little closed-circle mystery feel, and the adventure holiday activities provide plenty of opportunities for things to go horrible wrong. Poppy and Graham also make a good investigating pair. My only quibble is that I would have liked slightly more of a story arc and character development for each of them.
The chapters race along and frequently end with little 'we thought we knew who did it, but WE WERE WRONG' style cliffhangers that are shamelessly effective.
I am genuinely sad that the library appears to be recalling these and retiring them from stock. They're exactly the sort of odd British children's books that seem to quietly disappear once they're no longer new, and I hate the thought of the whole series simply vanishing from the shelves. It makes me want to read the rest while I still can.
From Poppy's point of view - The Activity holiday from hell. Forget abseiling and hill-walking - the real extreme sport is staying alive long enough for the ferry home.
Poppy Fields heads off on a free activity holiday to a remote Scottish island and, rather inconveniently for the people running it, the staff begin dying in suspicious circumstances. There's climbing accidents, bad weather, isolation from the mainland and an increasingly impressive body count for such a tiny book.
I particularly liked the setting. Cutting everyone off on an island gives it a proper little closed-circle mystery feel, and the adventure holiday activities provide plenty of opportunities for things to go horrible wrong. Poppy and Graham also make a good investigating pair. My only quibble is that I would have liked slightly more of a story arc and character development for each of them.
The chapters race along and frequently end with little 'we thought we knew who did it, but WE WERE WRONG' style cliffhangers that are shamelessly effective.
I am genuinely sad that the library appears to be recalling these and retiring them from stock. They're exactly the sort of odd British children's books that seem to quietly disappear once they're no longer new, and I hate the thought of the whole series simply vanishing from the shelves. It makes me want to read the rest while I still can.
From Poppy's point of view - The Activity holiday from hell. Forget abseiling and hill-walking - the real extreme sport is staying alive long enough for the ferry home.
May 20, 2026
Poppy Fields is off camping on a remote Scottish island. But one by one, all the camping instructors start dropping dead. Could it be a ghost? A series of accidents? Or murder?
I don’t think I’ve read any other murder mysteries for this age group, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. For one, unlike most other books in the genre, it wasn’t a thick volume with detail after detail that the reader must remember. It’s all of 107 pages of action and adventure.
For another, I am not a fan of gore or any graphic details, and Mondays Are Murder treads the line perfectly. It’s frightening, but not too frightening. It’s satisfying and believable without being too complex. Pacy and quick, it seems like the start of a series I’ll probably like!
I don’t think I’ve read any other murder mysteries for this age group, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. For one, unlike most other books in the genre, it wasn’t a thick volume with detail after detail that the reader must remember. It’s all of 107 pages of action and adventure.
For another, I am not a fan of gore or any graphic details, and Mondays Are Murder treads the line perfectly. It’s frightening, but not too frightening. It’s satisfying and believable without being too complex. Pacy and quick, it seems like the start of a series I’ll probably like!
June 30, 2018
Poppy Fields is given a free week adventure holiday in Murray. The holiday seems to be to good to be a true. She meets a familiar face, Graham from school. Instructors on the island start dropping dead left, right and centre and it all links back to a moment in the past that haunts them all. Poppy and Graham investigate a series of murders on the island that result in believing in the paranormal.
February 9, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. The mystery is fun and intriguing. The plot is interesting and there are lots of twists, turns and red herrings. The whole book is clever and immensely enjoyable. There are lots of surprises in the plot and you can’t predict the ending which is fun. I enjoyed the perspective of the characters as they have a very human conscious. Everything fits into place nicely and it is easy to follow what is going on.
January 9, 2022
I first read it a few years ago (My book was signed by Tanya Landman too!) but I enjoyed this re-read so much! The atmosphere was described beautifully and the plot is just so well developed in such short time! A light read which I recommend to friends of all ages! Looking forward to reading the next books in the series :)
April 13, 2025
I love this book so much. It’s only around 100 pages so it is a fairly quick read. For me it is a comfort read and I just love it. It’s a light hearted murder mystery with lots of twists and turns and a plot twist! I just love love love this book!
June 23, 2018
Definitely a 5 stars. It is amazing, totally unpredictable mystery.
January 9, 2019
A fun read...
June 13, 2020
Great book for teenage readers... slightly predictable but thrilling nonetheless.
March 27, 2021
A very good book
A clever book I never had thought of the ending. It is the best duo detective book for kids around
A clever book I never had thought of the ending. It is the best duo detective book for kids around
October 23, 2021
Gripping from the very first sentence. I read this to my year 5 class and we had it finished so quickly as we were desperate to read every single day. Highly recommend.
November 9, 2021
پنج ستاره میدم بخاطر قلم دلچسب نویسنده و همین طور پایان خوبی که داشت
اصلا انتظار چنین پایانی نداشتم با این تعداد صفحات...ولی کاملا شوکم کرده نویسنده!
اصلا انتظار چنین پایانی نداشتم با این تعداد صفحات...ولی کاملا شوکم کرده نویسنده!
November 24, 2021
I love this, it was amazing and it was quite easy to read so 5/5
August 17, 2024
read this when i was like 11 and it has STUCK with me it is so good
April 15, 2025
Very interesting and great plot twist good for pre teens
November 1, 2025
definitely a very fun read!
January 3, 2026
I read it I love the book it is so interesting
I love the plot twist
I love the plot twist
February 15, 2021
In the great tradition of children’s adventure stories along comes this cracking story. At times I felt it moved a little fast and there was more story to had, but then I remembered it’s a kids book and I’m sure it will be enjoyed. I guessed th murderer quite early on but it didn’t matter
December 31, 2015
Ten Second Synopsis:
Poppy's mum sends her to a week-long camp as one of five "guinea pig" kids to test a out a new adventure sport centre before it opens to the public. When Poppy gets to the camp on a desolate island and people start dropping dead from apparent accidents, things start to get serious and Poppy uses her sharp observational skills to try and find the killer before the island becomes unpopulated.
At just over one hundred pages, this is a murder mystery that doesn't hang around and wait for you to catch up. Straight from the off, we are privy to a seriously nasty "accident" and very soon after that we are introduced to the adult cast - all of whom had better have their wits about them if they don't want to end up in a murderer's sights. Poppy is a likeable narrator and is possessed of very sharp observational skills. I must say that I was very pleased that Landman decided not to make these skills "extraordinary" or feel the need to give Poppy any other strange quirks. It was refreshing to read an ordinary teen girl character with some talents in a particular area that aren't linked to any label or diagnosis. Graham, Poppy's schoolmate and partner in not-dying, is also a fun character and I think the pair make an excellent combination. There is a ghostly element to the plot that is not overdone and while the pace is quite quick, as murder mysteries go, there are enough clues and red herrings dropped to keep young fanciers of detective stories well and truly engaged. I enjoyed this brief yet action-packed foray into Landman's world, so I will definitely be popping a few more of Poppy and Graham's adventures on my library reserve list.
Poppy's mum sends her to a week-long camp as one of five "guinea pig" kids to test a out a new adventure sport centre before it opens to the public. When Poppy gets to the camp on a desolate island and people start dropping dead from apparent accidents, things start to get serious and Poppy uses her sharp observational skills to try and find the killer before the island becomes unpopulated.
At just over one hundred pages, this is a murder mystery that doesn't hang around and wait for you to catch up. Straight from the off, we are privy to a seriously nasty "accident" and very soon after that we are introduced to the adult cast - all of whom had better have their wits about them if they don't want to end up in a murderer's sights. Poppy is a likeable narrator and is possessed of very sharp observational skills. I must say that I was very pleased that Landman decided not to make these skills "extraordinary" or feel the need to give Poppy any other strange quirks. It was refreshing to read an ordinary teen girl character with some talents in a particular area that aren't linked to any label or diagnosis. Graham, Poppy's schoolmate and partner in not-dying, is also a fun character and I think the pair make an excellent combination. There is a ghostly element to the plot that is not overdone and while the pace is quite quick, as murder mysteries go, there are enough clues and red herrings dropped to keep young fanciers of detective stories well and truly engaged. I enjoyed this brief yet action-packed foray into Landman's world, so I will definitely be popping a few more of Poppy and Graham's adventures on my library reserve list.
June 30, 2013
I decided to read this book because I wanted a change in the sort off genres I was reading and thought I would go for something like this. Something that is interesting and you don't really know what is going to happen next.
On the bingo board this book comes under "my own choice". This is because it can't really come under anything else. Because it comes under my own choice it doesn't really make it interesting however I does mean that I was the one to choice it. It isn't really for my age group but I wanted to read it.
My favourite quote from this book is when Poppy Fields says 'we both turned down the offer, just in case'. This is the very last line in the book and raps it all up. It is my favourite because it is at the very end it follows on from the whole story. But you have to know what happened to know what I mean.
Something new that I learned from this book is to give things a go and try them out first. This is because at the start of the book there is a group of children including Poppy who have been asked to try out a new holiday program and even though they didn't want to go, they still tried it out. This is good as they gave it a go.
A character in this book that I found interesting was Poppy because she was a really interesting character. She likes to look at people and figure out what sort of person they are. This is not a normal thing but it was strange through the book. She used her skills to find out what happened to all these people that were diving. She is not your normal character.
On the bingo board this book comes under "my own choice". This is because it can't really come under anything else. Because it comes under my own choice it doesn't really make it interesting however I does mean that I was the one to choice it. It isn't really for my age group but I wanted to read it.
My favourite quote from this book is when Poppy Fields says 'we both turned down the offer, just in case'. This is the very last line in the book and raps it all up. It is my favourite because it is at the very end it follows on from the whole story. But you have to know what happened to know what I mean.
Something new that I learned from this book is to give things a go and try them out first. This is because at the start of the book there is a group of children including Poppy who have been asked to try out a new holiday program and even though they didn't want to go, they still tried it out. This is good as they gave it a go.
A character in this book that I found interesting was Poppy because she was a really interesting character. She likes to look at people and figure out what sort of person they are. This is not a normal thing but it was strange through the book. She used her skills to find out what happened to all these people that were diving. She is not your normal character.
July 7, 2015
This is the first in a series of murder mysteries along the lines of an Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) for the younger readers. It is a short, traditional amateur detective story with lots of clues and a satisfying ending.
The plot itself reminded me of Christie’s “And then there were none” as the setting is a remote Scottish island where Poppy Fields is sent on an activity holiday. She is looking forward to a week involving climbing, abseiling, hill-walking and horse riding. She meets up with the other young people who will be with her and as they complete their long journey north, she closely observes the other including the rather mysterious driver. On the first full day on the island things take bad turn when an instructor (their scarred driver) has what seems to be a fatal abseiling accident. Poppy discovers that his rope was cut and confides this to the ”nerdy” Graham, the only other kid she really likes. Things become more tense as each of the other instructors start to have fatal "accidents". What can she and Graham do? What does all this have to do with a story from the past that they hear about? Poppy and Graham quietly start to investigate until someone from the mainland can get to the island but how much danger does this put them in?
It is a good story to introduce readers to the crime genre.
The plot itself reminded me of Christie’s “And then there were none” as the setting is a remote Scottish island where Poppy Fields is sent on an activity holiday. She is looking forward to a week involving climbing, abseiling, hill-walking and horse riding. She meets up with the other young people who will be with her and as they complete their long journey north, she closely observes the other including the rather mysterious driver. On the first full day on the island things take bad turn when an instructor (their scarred driver) has what seems to be a fatal abseiling accident. Poppy discovers that his rope was cut and confides this to the ”nerdy” Graham, the only other kid she really likes. Things become more tense as each of the other instructors start to have fatal "accidents". What can she and Graham do? What does all this have to do with a story from the past that they hear about? Poppy and Graham quietly start to investigate until someone from the mainland can get to the island but how much danger does this put them in?
It is a good story to introduce readers to the crime genre.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews