Deadly Errand

Kate Kinsella Mystery #1

by Christine Green

Kate Kinsella is in her office above Humberstones Funeral Directors, contemplating her first real murder case as a private investigator.

Jacky Byfield, a nurse at rundown St. Dymphna’s Hospital, was stabbed to death on the grounds while running an errand on her night shift.

The police have hit a dead end. Jacky’s family are desperate for justice, and it’s up to Kate to get results — and catch a killer.

Kate decides to go undercover at St. Dymphna’s.

But three more people die in suspicious circumstances while she’s there — including her prime suspect.Will Kate become the fifth victim?

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Mystery Thriller

266 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Christine Green is the author of Way to Victory. She is the author of many novels and lives in Wolverhampton.

Series:
* Kate Kinsella Mystery
* Detective Inspector Connor O'Neill Mystery
* Thomas Rydel and Denni Caldecote Mystery

Reviews

[Sharon Humes · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not read very far into the book.

Apart from the misspelled words, the main characters were not likable, the others were not interesting. Also dislike put downs of those who have different religious beliefs and for some reason it is open season on Christians. If lucky, we all will grow old so why make fun of the elderly.
Maybe the book improved later on but something I do rearly is I stopped and deleted.

[Robert Crouch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first time I’ve read a book by this author. It features Kate Kinsella, a former nurse who’s now a private detective. Her previous profession makes her the ideal person to investigate the murder of Jacky Byfield at a local hospital.

Kate goes undercover, working the night shift to find out what happened and why. She soon unearths some secrets that could have led to Jacky’s murder. Finding the killer proves harder and three further deaths follow.

It’s a well-written, gently paced story that puts as much effort into creating believable and engaging characters as it does with the plot. As Kate gets closer to catching the killer, the pace and tension intensify for an interesting confrontation and round up.

I enjoyed the story, and especially Kate’s friendship with landlord Hubert, which provided some welcome fun and humour. If you enjoy reading a cosy mystery with interesting characters and a story that’s a little bit different from the usual, give Deadly Errand a go.

[AngryGreyCat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Deadly Errand by Christine Green was on my TBR. I’m not really sure when I added it or why. It involves a young woman who is trained as a nurse but who wants to give up traditional nursing to be an investigator, specifically investigating medical cases. Her first case is a young nurse who is stabbed to death on the grounds of a facility during the night shift. Her family asks Kate to investigate. The case is bound up in harassment, fraud, and some religious fervor for good measure.

Everything about this was okay. It didn’t really grab me to be honest. The most interesting character was a sidekick, Kate’s landlord, Hubert, who is a mortician and she spends time discussing her cases with him. I probably will not read more in the series. Might be more interesting to people who like to read medical/nursing oriented mysteries.

[Mrs J · Rating 4 out of 5]

A saunter through a murder mystery

Kate Kinsella is a nurse who has become a private investigator, specialising in medical cases. Her nursing background gives the character some useful insights and the ability to ‘go undercover’.
Tasked with looking into a murdered nurse, Kate, soon finds herself in the company of lots of elderly woman and the odd dead body. With the police on the periphery and her undertaker landlord, Hubert, on side, she attempts to find the murderer.
An unusual take and interesting from the medical side, it’s still frustrating with the attitudes of the time and the reluctance to ask direct questions or to give full answers that litter the crime solving. We knew who the killer was two-thirds in so it was a case of waiting for the rather blasé Kate to get to a confession .

[Linden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kate is a nurse by training, but has embarked on a new career as a private detective. Her quirky landlord is Hubert, owner of the local funeral parlor. He has found her a client: a local nurse working on the night shift, Jacky, has been murdered, and her family wants Kate to find out who killed Jacky. She gets a job at the same hospital as a fill in nurse on the night shift. Jackie was supposedly very religious, but apparently there was another side to her, and Kate intends to uncover how someone became so very wealthy on a nurse's salary.

[Annette Sullivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

pretty good

I don’t often give five stars and although there are some obvious spelling mistakes through the book, it deserves 5 stars.
It may not be everyone’s taste, but it was a fun, eclectic, haphazard, spur of the moment fun with the sleuthing, with murders to solve, the best friend being a mortician.
The daily struggles of life are so well portrayed. It’s not over the top zany, just plain good writing with a healthy dose of reality.

[Sarah J Conisbee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deadly!

Deadly Errand written by Christine Green was another fascinating read. Intriguing characters none of whom seemed to have motive for murder...at least to begin with! Well done Christine, thank you...looking forward to more of the same.

[Anna Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this first in the series. Loved Hubert and enjoyed the nursing references. Looking forward to the next one!

[Jane Blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed this but the ending was so abrupt that I thought at first that the book must have some pages missing, it didn’t

[Carol Holder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Madness

The story starts of rather quite but good reading when coming down to the end. Good story line with a diffetence.

[Jack Wetzel · Rating 3 out of 5]

not my cup of tea

This author makes a mockery of faith and language and sarcasm disappointing. Story line and characters interesting
Just an ok read for me

[Samantha herbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant

I loved this story, Kate and her landlord were marvelous. Plenty of murder and mystery. I couldn't put this book down. Brilliant

[Maryam J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very slow read

The story dragged along with characters who were not very well described. Now that I finished, I don't remember much.

[Molly · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5⭐️

[Sonia Santos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting

This book was full of murders. I felt confident of whodunit and was correct but shocked by the ending. It was a thriller.

[Sue Burton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good holiday read

[Anna Kristín · Rating 3 out of 5]

Á íslensku Banvæn sendiferð

[Ulrieke Dekens · Rating 3 out of 5]

🎧📖

[Martha Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

At last -- a detective who is a nurse! First book in a series -- I look forward to this.