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Bunburry #4
Naistemehe surm
Maalilises Cotswoldsi külakeses Bunburrys on suveturismihooaeg täies hoos. Teiste külastajate seas on filmistaarilikult nägus gelato-salongi omanik Mario Bellini, kes kaalub Bunburrysse laienemist. Kuid peagi pärast saabumist leitakse ta surnult – kas tegu on traagilise õnnetusega või on teoksil midagi pahaendelisemat? Amatöördetektiiv Alfie McAlister püüab selle oma sõprade Lizi ja Marge’i abiga välja selgitada. Kui just rahalise kasu väljavaade Lizi tähelepanu liialt ei hajuta.
Bunburry mõrvalood on hea valik kõigile, kes armastavad Alexander McCall Smithi leebet stiili ja naudivad Richard Osmani „Neljapäevase mõrvaklubi“ sarja!
“Naistemehe surm” on sarja neljas raamat.
Bunburry mõrvalood on hea valik kõigile, kes armastavad Alexander McCall Smithi leebet stiili ja naudivad Richard Osmani „Neljapäevase mõrvaklubi“ sarja!
“Naistemehe surm” on sarja neljas raamat.
112 pages, Paperback
Published February 5, 2025
183 people are currently reading
201 people want to read
About the author
Helena Marchmont
41 books183 followersHelena Marchmont is a pseudonym of Olga Wojtas, who was born and brought up in Edinburgh. She was encouraged to write by an inspirational English teacher, Iona M. Cameron. Olga won a Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award in 2015, has had more than 30 short stories published in magazines and anthologies and recently published her first mystery Miss Blaine's Prefect and the Golden Samovar.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
October 2, 2024
Im vierten Band dieser Cosy Crime Reihe geht es um einen italienischen Frauenhelden, der die beste Eiscreme herstellt und jetzt auch in den Cotswolds vermarkten will. Doch dazu kommt es nicht mehr, denn er wird tot aufgefunden. Ermordet.
Ein neuer Fall für Alfie, Liz, Marge und Emma.
Ich mochte die Geschichte und ich mag auch die Reihe immer mehr. Mit jedem Band habe ich das Gefühl, die Protagonisten besser kennenzulernen.
Die Krimihandlung ist auch hier nicht überragend oder hochspannend, es ist halt ein gemütlicher Krimi, und gerade das mag ich an dieser Reihe.
Ein neuer Fall für Alfie, Liz, Marge und Emma.
Ich mochte die Geschichte und ich mag auch die Reihe immer mehr. Mit jedem Band habe ich das Gefühl, die Protagonisten besser kennenzulernen.
Die Krimihandlung ist auch hier nicht überragend oder hochspannend, es ist halt ein gemütlicher Krimi, und gerade das mag ich an dieser Reihe.
September 26, 2022
4 ⭐ = Good.
Yet another fun loving cosy mystery. Not too taxing on the little grey cells.
I could clearly picture the beautiful Cotswolds. 😁
Yet another fun loving cosy mystery. Not too taxing on the little grey cells.
I could clearly picture the beautiful Cotswolds. 😁
May 21, 2021
This fourth installment in the Bunburry village novella series equals the first. The publisher promises the series will be “Miss Marple meets Oscar Wilde”; that’s preposterous on the face of it, but both Death of a Ladies’ Man and Murder at the Mousetrap were entertaining enough. (A Murderous Ride and A Taste of Murder proved something of a letdown.)
In this novella, the dreadful Sasha and Sebastian motor up from London to corner Alfie McAllister in his new cottage home in the Cotswolds. The shrill Sasha and the stupidly grinning Sebastian hope to persuade Alfie to invest in a risky deal, and he can’t seem to get rid of them. Meanwhile, Alfie encounters another blast from the past: Mario Bellini, maker of the finest gelato in London, comes to scout out a new location in London. It’s not a spoiler alert to reveal that the handsome, charismatic Bellini will end up dead. (It’s in the title, remember?)
Alfie and his two adopted aunts do a great job solving the crime. The one drawback is that Sergeant Harold Wilson remains as stupid and pigheaded as ever. I know enough to know that there’s plenty of stupidity in police departments the world over, but that blustering blockhead Wilson is too over the top even for fiction.
In this novella, the dreadful Sasha and Sebastian motor up from London to corner Alfie McAllister in his new cottage home in the Cotswolds. The shrill Sasha and the stupidly grinning Sebastian hope to persuade Alfie to invest in a risky deal, and he can’t seem to get rid of them. Meanwhile, Alfie encounters another blast from the past: Mario Bellini, maker of the finest gelato in London, comes to scout out a new location in London. It’s not a spoiler alert to reveal that the handsome, charismatic Bellini will end up dead. (It’s in the title, remember?)
Alfie and his two adopted aunts do a great job solving the crime. The one drawback is that Sergeant Harold Wilson remains as stupid and pigheaded as ever. I know enough to know that there’s plenty of stupidity in police departments the world over, but that blustering blockhead Wilson is too over the top even for fiction.
October 9, 2019
These mysteries are short and cozy. My 18-year-old daughter and I adore them. She was hearing me listen to this one from Audible and said it was the perfect day for a Bunburry mystery but she was hoping for the 6th to come out on Audible. I checked and voila! She’s reading it now. I love these sweet, short mystery stories and especially the location in the Cotswolds.
October 18, 2025
I can't say enough how much Nathaniel Parker's narration adds to this series! Every voice he portrays has a distinct difference so the characters seem to come to life. This is a murder mystery series but it also portrays a quaint village lifestyle that reminds me of the Agatha Raisin series. This is definitely a set that I will continue, hopefully by audio book.
June 28, 2021
3.5 stars. This story wasn’t as good as previous ones, and the narrator gave one character a voice that sounded like Stewie from Family Guy and it was all I could hear after that. Hopefully that character isn’t in future books in this series.
March 17, 2020
I am really enjoying these cozy mysteries!
June 1, 2022
Always a fun trip to Bunburry
March 30, 2021
⭐️ 3.5 stars ⭐️
September 27, 2020
Was mir an dem Buch gefallen hat?
Ich mag Bunburry, seine Atmosphäre und seine Charaktere. Das zieht mich durch die Bücher!
Was ich nicht mochte?
Ich fand diesen Fall sehr offensichtlich und daher ein wenig langweilig. Schade, ich hätte mehr erwartet.
Fazit: Auch diesen Band von Bunburry mochte ich wieder, obwohl es einer der schwächeren Teile ist.
Ich mag Bunburry, seine Atmosphäre und seine Charaktere. Das zieht mich durch die Bücher!
Was ich nicht mochte?
Ich fand diesen Fall sehr offensichtlich und daher ein wenig langweilig. Schade, ich hätte mehr erwartet.
Fazit: Auch diesen Band von Bunburry mochte ich wieder, obwohl es einer der schwächeren Teile ist.
June 27, 2019
Alfie’s life in London merges with his life in Bunburry in Death of a Ladies’ Man. This is the fourth in the series and can stand alone, but it would be much better to go back and read them all. They’re short and enjoyable, and like most series it’s better to read them in order.
Two of Alfie’s acquaintances from London show up. They are gaudy and snobbish and want Alfie to invest a bunch of money in some scheme or other. Also in town is Mario Bellini, who makes the best ice cream in London. Mario makes a bit of a stir in town. He’s handsome and an irrepressible flirt who makes at least one local husband quite angry.
Alfie loves the ice cream and gives Mario his card so he can have some shipped. Unfortunately, when Mario is found dead, Alfie’s card is still in his pocket, and the incompetent sheriff at first focusses on that. But the jealous husband makes an even better suspect, although most people in town think he’s innocent.
The recurring characters, Alfie and the two elderly women who help him solve the mysteries, Liz and Marge, are fun and make me laugh. Oscar, Alfie’s best friend in London, has some very helpful information this time around too. It’s one of those towns I’d like to visit and hang out with the locals.
This is a novella, so the mystery itself is rather condensed. We only have a couple of suspects and it’s pretty clear who the killer was. It’s a perfect summer afternoon read though.
Two of Alfie’s acquaintances from London show up. They are gaudy and snobbish and want Alfie to invest a bunch of money in some scheme or other. Also in town is Mario Bellini, who makes the best ice cream in London. Mario makes a bit of a stir in town. He’s handsome and an irrepressible flirt who makes at least one local husband quite angry.
Alfie loves the ice cream and gives Mario his card so he can have some shipped. Unfortunately, when Mario is found dead, Alfie’s card is still in his pocket, and the incompetent sheriff at first focusses on that. But the jealous husband makes an even better suspect, although most people in town think he’s innocent.
The recurring characters, Alfie and the two elderly women who help him solve the mysteries, Liz and Marge, are fun and make me laugh. Oscar, Alfie’s best friend in London, has some very helpful information this time around too. It’s one of those towns I’d like to visit and hang out with the locals.
This is a novella, so the mystery itself is rather condensed. We only have a couple of suspects and it’s pretty clear who the killer was. It’s a perfect summer afternoon read though.
June 2, 2020
I listened to the first of this mystery series within the past year, and when I found there were more "episodes" I thought I'd continue the series. Each is under a 3-hour audiobook listen. Because of the length, each feels like more of a short story than a novel/novelette, although, because core characters continue and relationships develop, listening to all six of them (so far) makes it more like one long story with several mysteries. Each could stand alone, but would be best read in order because of the development of character relationships. I generally do not do any plot synopsis in my reviews, so this review can apply to any of this series.
The mysteries themselves are not that great, so go into these without great expectations on anything mind-challenging. I thought it was very similar to the Cherringham mystery series, which I have also enjoyed. The narrator is fine, but I thought the volume and clarity of sound fluctuated so that it was better for me to listen to these with headphones than with a speaker. That might be because of my own hearing, but I noticed the same thing with the Lübbe Audio recordings of the Cherringham series.
The mysteries themselves are not that great, so go into these without great expectations on anything mind-challenging. I thought it was very similar to the Cherringham mystery series, which I have also enjoyed. The narrator is fine, but I thought the volume and clarity of sound fluctuated so that it was better for me to listen to these with headphones than with a speaker. That might be because of my own hearing, but I noticed the same thing with the Lübbe Audio recordings of the Cherringham series.
July 21, 2020
Five reasons I'm giving Five Stars to The Bunburry Mysteries by Helena Marchmont:
1. The series - Alfie McAlister inherits a cottage in the village of Bunburry. Someone has died recently, the locals think that it is an accident, but Alfie is not convinced.
2. The protagonist - Alfie is a Cary Grant kind of protagonist - intelligent and elegant with a keen appreciation of fun.
3. The literary connection - "anyone can be good in the country, there are no temptations there" - we are in Oscar Wilde country with a bit of Miss Marple thrown in.
4. The Atmosphere - these books are so light they may very well float away if you don't hold them tightly.
5. In short - if you are in the market for a short and gentle read, contemporary with a vintage feel, these may well be the mystery novellas for you.
1. The series - Alfie McAlister inherits a cottage in the village of Bunburry. Someone has died recently, the locals think that it is an accident, but Alfie is not convinced.
2. The protagonist - Alfie is a Cary Grant kind of protagonist - intelligent and elegant with a keen appreciation of fun.
3. The literary connection - "anyone can be good in the country, there are no temptations there" - we are in Oscar Wilde country with a bit of Miss Marple thrown in.
4. The Atmosphere - these books are so light they may very well float away if you don't hold them tightly.
5. In short - if you are in the market for a short and gentle read, contemporary with a vintage feel, these may well be the mystery novellas for you.
April 30, 2019
Each book in this series gets better and better. Sucks you in from the first page and doesn’t let up until the last.
In this book ice cream businessman Mario Bellini comes to Bunburry looking to expand his operation into the Cotswolds. Alfie has met him before in London and has spread wonderful reviews of his ice cream to the proprietor of The Horse. Mario is grateful and takes Alfie’s card so he can send him some ice cream as a thank-you. Unfortunately Sargent Wilson gets involved and gets it all wrong. Now it’s up to the Bunburry Triangle to get it right and clear an innocent man.
In this book ice cream businessman Mario Bellini comes to Bunburry looking to expand his operation into the Cotswolds. Alfie has met him before in London and has spread wonderful reviews of his ice cream to the proprietor of The Horse. Mario is grateful and takes Alfie’s card so he can send him some ice cream as a thank-you. Unfortunately Sargent Wilson gets involved and gets it all wrong. Now it’s up to the Bunburry Triangle to get it right and clear an innocent man.
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January 21, 2020Well, He was both gorgeous and dead!
Another very entertaining story from the "Bunburry Triangle". In real life I would certainly not live in tiny villages in the Cotswolds. The number murdered there is an awfully high statistic. The three main characters are again the mystery solvers. Their ways of doing so are always entertaining and sometimes a bit tongue in cheek. No maudlin murder investigation here. I do want to ring the neck of the top policeman in town. Quite a nasty one! Reminds me of someone.
Another very entertaining story from the "Bunburry Triangle". In real life I would certainly not live in tiny villages in the Cotswolds. The number murdered there is an awfully high statistic. The three main characters are again the mystery solvers. Their ways of doing so are always entertaining and sometimes a bit tongue in cheek. No maudlin murder investigation here. I do want to ring the neck of the top policeman in town. Quite a nasty one! Reminds me of someone.
April 13, 2021
Mouthwatering and addictive like Liz's fudge, this story melts in your mouth.
Having devoured the first four books I'm chomping at the bit to read more. Not so long that you feel buried in the story, but long enough to pull you in and paint a deliciously detailed picture.
Getting to know the characters better with each new adventure, one can't help wondering what will happen next.
My only frustration is the occasional typo, and I really do mean occasional. They are few and far between.
Having devoured the first four books I'm chomping at the bit to read more. Not so long that you feel buried in the story, but long enough to pull you in and paint a deliciously detailed picture.
Getting to know the characters better with each new adventure, one can't help wondering what will happen next.
My only frustration is the occasional typo, and I really do mean occasional. They are few and far between.
August 8, 2021
A really short and fast read. Alfie gets a visit from Sasha and Sebastian, a couple from London who want him to invest in a dodgy plan. They have dinner at the Horse pub, where they meet up with Mario, a gelato maker who's very successful in London and planning to open a store on Bunberry. When Mario is found dead at the bottom of a stairs in the Victoria Park, the bartender is suspected of pushing him to his death after Mario's flirting with his wife Carlotta. Alfie and his two "aunts" get together to discover the truth.
November 16, 2025
Acquaintances from London are here to spill the tea on Alfie's love live. Remember that girl you with with? The one who died? The one you haven't mentioned to anyone here? Alfie's concept of privacy is being seriously tested by living in a small country town. And being acquainted with ass hats.
When you have vast gobs of money, there are always going to be people who feel what would be even better than you having all that money, would be you investing that money in some ridiculous scheme they have set up.
But also, ice-cream. It's tangentially important in this one.
When you have vast gobs of money, there are always going to be people who feel what would be even better than you having all that money, would be you investing that money in some ridiculous scheme they have set up.
But also, ice-cream. It's tangentially important in this one.
September 9, 2019
Another charming Bunberry mystery
This book and series is worthwhile for anyone who enjoys well written cozy mysteries. The character are well drawn and engaging. The story is well written. While it’s a bit short, it is complete and serves well as a brief respite from every day stresses of life.
This book and series is worthwhile for anyone who enjoys well written cozy mysteries. The character are well drawn and engaging. The story is well written. While it’s a bit short, it is complete and serves well as a brief respite from every day stresses of life.
May 5, 2021
Cute story!
I loved the part of Liz playing a silly old woman to catch the murderer and having the ugly brooch at the site of the murder was perfect! I also enjoyed that the Italian man, Bellini couldn’t speak Italian and was only pretending as he flirted with Carlotta. This was a throughly charming cozy
I loved the part of Liz playing a silly old woman to catch the murderer and having the ugly brooch at the site of the murder was perfect! I also enjoyed that the Italian man, Bellini couldn’t speak Italian and was only pretending as he flirted with Carlotta. This was a throughly charming cozy
March 17, 2025
These are as addictive as Liz and Marge's fudge. Each novel runs at just over a hundred pages. The characters are a delight, the plot taught and engaging, the scenery lovely. Sometimes a death is not a result of murder most foul, which I appreciate. While I enjoy the mystery, I equally enjoy just hanging about in Bunburry. I can devour a volume in a day, they are that fun.
November 19, 2025
There are too many to review, thanks to Goodreads' not-working sidebar, so I'm copying and pasting a series review on each one:
Marchmont has created a delightful village, hilarious characters, and interesting mysteries that kept me buying the next to find out what's up in the Cotswolds. An absolute delight.
Marchmont has created a delightful village, hilarious characters, and interesting mysteries that kept me buying the next to find out what's up in the Cotswolds. An absolute delight.
April 30, 2019
Always Fun!
The Bunburry series is fun to read. Light mysteries, reoccurring, wonderfully quirky characters, and you learn a bit about the English countryside. Suitable for all ages. Highly enjoyable!
The Bunburry series is fun to read. Light mysteries, reoccurring, wonderfully quirky characters, and you learn a bit about the English countryside. Suitable for all ages. Highly enjoyable!
June 15, 2019
Fun read
This is a great book to read on a lazy day. It has a breezy pace and fun characters in Alfie, Marge and Liz and when is Oscar coming to town. Cute book, you will enjoy it.
This is a great book to read on a lazy day. It has a breezy pace and fun characters in Alfie, Marge and Liz and when is Oscar coming to town. Cute book, you will enjoy it.
July 15, 2019
A mystery that leaves you craving more
Short,sweet, and entertaining cosy mystery. The series is addictive. I just wish Nathaniel Parker had narrated more than the first three books. What a delight to listen to him bringing the characters to life.
Short,sweet, and entertaining cosy mystery. The series is addictive. I just wish Nathaniel Parker had narrated more than the first three books. What a delight to listen to him bringing the characters to life.
July 18, 2019
I love all these Bunburry mystery “episodes.” I can definitely see the novellas being made into shows. They are quick and simple and not exactly mind bending, but the picturesque location and fun characters make for the perfect “mini mystery” read.
September 20, 2019
Another good Whodunnit in Bunburry.
Another great little whodunit in Bunburry, Alfie, Liz and Madge discover the real murderer before the Police Sargeant sends William to the big house..
Another great little whodunit in Bunburry, Alfie, Liz and Madge discover the real murderer before the Police Sargeant sends William to the big house..
April 22, 2020
No thank you. Well a pleasant read. It was ended better than the previous books in this series.
I would recommend this lovely British mystery to my book club and my granddaughter and my daughter.
Not quite up to Agatha's stan
I would recommend this lovely British mystery to my book club and my granddaughter and my daughter.
Not quite up to Agatha's stan
April 26, 2020
Bunburry is a charming little English country village with an inordinate amount of crime. A London ice cream legend arrives in town at the same time as two of Alfie’s acquaintances from London. Someone ends up dead before Alfie gets to eat the peach ice cream!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews