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The Pie & Mash Detective Agency
Who is Nellie Thorne and why does she keep disappearing? Jane Pye and Simon Mash are on the case in this cosy crime mystery novel.
Dev Hooper arrives home from work to find his girlfriend, Nellie Thorne, has vanished.
But she's not the first Nellie Thorne to disappear. In fact, she's the fifth in fifty years.
Enter Jane Pye and Simon - a millennial couple who signed up for a private detective night class on a whim. When they're assigned Dev's case for their coursework, they quickly realise they've bitten off more than they can chew.
Armed with just six weeks of notes, matching trench coats, and a lot of enthusiasm, they set out to solve a case that has baffled Kent’s police for decades.
What connects the missing Nellies? Why do locals whisper about a ghostly presence? Only the Pie & Mash Detective Agency can uncover the truth behind this eerie urban legend.
Is it an open and shut case? Not on your Nellie…
Dev Hooper arrives home from work to find his girlfriend, Nellie Thorne, has vanished.
But she's not the first Nellie Thorne to disappear. In fact, she's the fifth in fifty years.
Enter Jane Pye and Simon - a millennial couple who signed up for a private detective night class on a whim. When they're assigned Dev's case for their coursework, they quickly realise they've bitten off more than they can chew.
Armed with just six weeks of notes, matching trench coats, and a lot of enthusiasm, they set out to solve a case that has baffled Kent’s police for decades.
What connects the missing Nellies? Why do locals whisper about a ghostly presence? Only the Pie & Mash Detective Agency can uncover the truth behind this eerie urban legend.
Is it an open and shut case? Not on your Nellie…
368 pages, Paperback
First published March 10, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 259 reviews
April 3, 2026
I quite like cosy crime but this didn’t do it for me . I found the plot dull and the attempts at humour felt forced and unfunny but my main gripe was the characters especially the main two All the lot were incredibly twee wet blankets imo. Not for me , sorry. Dont believe any reviews that compare this to the genius that is Richard Osman or you’ll be sorely disappointed.
April 3, 2026
The title of this book alone caught my eye, who doesn’t love a bit of Pie and Mash right. A fun cozy mystery featuring newly qualified private investigators Jane Pye and Simon Mash who have their first case. A mysterious case of Nellie Thorne, a woman who has gone missing. But it seems that Nellie Thornes have been going missing for decades now. It is case that nobody else wants but they are determined to use their new skills to solve it.
I love a crime book with some humour and I know that these authors are comedians, although I am not familiar with them. It was funny, quirky and very entertaining. Hopefully the start of a new series with these two characters. The story is clever and interesting, not one I have seen done before. A great debut novel.
Thanks to Berkeley for my copy of this book to read. My husband will be reading this one as well.
I love a crime book with some humour and I know that these authors are comedians, although I am not familiar with them. It was funny, quirky and very entertaining. Hopefully the start of a new series with these two characters. The story is clever and interesting, not one I have seen done before. A great debut novel.
Thanks to Berkeley for my copy of this book to read. My husband will be reading this one as well.
November 1, 2025
Jane Pye and Simon Mash enrolled in a private detective night class. As part of an assignment, they’re given the Nellie Thorne case. Nellie Thorne is a woman who has been disappearing over the past 50 years — and now another Nellie Thorne has just been reported missing.
I was in the mood for something a bit lighter, and this was such a wholesome, cosy mystery — exactly what I was looking for.
Sometimes I find cosy mysteries a bit dull, but that wasn’t the case with this book. It was really well written and such a page-turner. The main characters were also an absolute delight!
This was a great debut, and the ending has definitely been set up for a series. I’m really looking forward to continuing with it when the next books are released!
I was in the mood for something a bit lighter, and this was such a wholesome, cosy mystery — exactly what I was looking for.
Sometimes I find cosy mysteries a bit dull, but that wasn’t the case with this book. It was really well written and such a page-turner. The main characters were also an absolute delight!
This was a great debut, and the ending has definitely been set up for a series. I’m really looking forward to continuing with it when the next books are released!
April 25, 2026
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Jane Pye and Simon Mash’s lives are in flux. Jane has lost her job, and Simon’s job no longer holds his interest. To add a little excitement to their lives, they decide to take a private detective night class. They were clearly out of their depth. They have been assigned the case of Nellie Thorne to solve. In addition to the recent Nellie Thorne, who was reported missing, there have been five others who have gone missing in the last 50 years. Eager to use what they have learned, Jane and Simon, aka the Pie and Mash Detective Agency, set off to solve their first case. Soon, they are thinking they should have selected a different class.
The investigation takes them to a haunted woods, a library basement, and even to Simon’s mum’s house, which freaks Jane out the most. Is there really a Nellie Thorne? a ghost? a figment of someone’s imagination? Are all the Nellie’s connected? Did their instructor hide some of the details? Determined to solve their first case, they pull out all the stops to get to the truth, but they may not survive their quest.
In this character-driven story, the protagonists are pretty darn funny. The dialogues between these offbeat characters sets the tone of the book, funny and sometimes over the top. They are introduced in this story, but they were in need of much more character development. If this turns into a series, I hope they are given the depth needed to connect better with the reader.
The book is divided into four distinct parts, shifting between present-day events and the year 1997. These sections occasionally follow instructor Gavin Smith’s perspective, recalling his own investigation into a missing Nellie.
Jane and Simon’s investigation takes them to various locations, but they start with limited information. Some of the evidence they gather turns out to be a mere coincidence. Simon often proposes ambitious ideas that seldom yield results. Their initial case report in class is filled with stock images and eccentric theories, prompting their instructor to grant them another chance. A subsequent visit to the library introduces them to a creepy kindred spirit and yields valuable clues. As their amateur sleuthing intensifies, Gavin joins their efforts, leading to chaotic events. I had to suspend reality at times, but eventually, the dust settles, and some explanations emerge, providing an enjoyable continuation of the story.
Jane Pye and Simon Mash take readers on an adventure in The Pie & Mash Detective Agency. The pacing was scattered, the investigation was haphazard, and the characters needed more depth. Despite those flaws, the theme of blundering detectives is interesting, and there is a good foundation here if the idea proceeds into a series. If that happens, I would be interested in reading the next installment. Be aware that explicit language nudges the book outside of the cozy mystery genre. I am rounding up to 4 star (fish).
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.
Jane Pye and Simon Mash’s lives are in flux. Jane has lost her job, and Simon’s job no longer holds his interest. To add a little excitement to their lives, they decide to take a private detective night class. They were clearly out of their depth. They have been assigned the case of Nellie Thorne to solve. In addition to the recent Nellie Thorne, who was reported missing, there have been five others who have gone missing in the last 50 years. Eager to use what they have learned, Jane and Simon, aka the Pie and Mash Detective Agency, set off to solve their first case. Soon, they are thinking they should have selected a different class.
The investigation takes them to a haunted woods, a library basement, and even to Simon’s mum’s house, which freaks Jane out the most. Is there really a Nellie Thorne? a ghost? a figment of someone’s imagination? Are all the Nellie’s connected? Did their instructor hide some of the details? Determined to solve their first case, they pull out all the stops to get to the truth, but they may not survive their quest.
In this character-driven story, the protagonists are pretty darn funny. The dialogues between these offbeat characters sets the tone of the book, funny and sometimes over the top. They are introduced in this story, but they were in need of much more character development. If this turns into a series, I hope they are given the depth needed to connect better with the reader.
The book is divided into four distinct parts, shifting between present-day events and the year 1997. These sections occasionally follow instructor Gavin Smith’s perspective, recalling his own investigation into a missing Nellie.
Jane and Simon’s investigation takes them to various locations, but they start with limited information. Some of the evidence they gather turns out to be a mere coincidence. Simon often proposes ambitious ideas that seldom yield results. Their initial case report in class is filled with stock images and eccentric theories, prompting their instructor to grant them another chance. A subsequent visit to the library introduces them to a creepy kindred spirit and yields valuable clues. As their amateur sleuthing intensifies, Gavin joins their efforts, leading to chaotic events. I had to suspend reality at times, but eventually, the dust settles, and some explanations emerge, providing an enjoyable continuation of the story.
Jane Pye and Simon Mash take readers on an adventure in The Pie & Mash Detective Agency. The pacing was scattered, the investigation was haphazard, and the characters needed more depth. Despite those flaws, the theme of blundering detectives is interesting, and there is a good foundation here if the idea proceeds into a series. If that happens, I would be interested in reading the next installment. Be aware that explicit language nudges the book outside of the cozy mystery genre. I am rounding up to 4 star (fish).
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.
June 27, 2025
I acquired a copy of this novel proof at the Capital Crime 2025 festival.
I found this an enjoyable read. Light-hearted. Occasional silliness but then so is real life! The dialogue / repartee was excellent. The authors must have had so much fun role playing the conversations between Jane and Simon. The story and the characters kept me going.
There is often a comment that a lot more of an author’s real life goes into a first novel so I wondered how much of the detective course aspects including the mentor / teacher was based on experience. Or perhaps the online course the authors followed was just the start for the idea behind the plot device of going through the course and a ‘real life’ case. In any event it worked well.
I’ve only had one other experience of reading a proof copy but I didn’t find any more typos (think there were only 2-3) than I would find in a final copy.
Although I read crime fiction described as ‘cozy’ this as a first novel I thought was particularly well done. So generally I would recommend this book to others.
I found this an enjoyable read. Light-hearted. Occasional silliness but then so is real life! The dialogue / repartee was excellent. The authors must have had so much fun role playing the conversations between Jane and Simon. The story and the characters kept me going.
There is often a comment that a lot more of an author’s real life goes into a first novel so I wondered how much of the detective course aspects including the mentor / teacher was based on experience. Or perhaps the online course the authors followed was just the start for the idea behind the plot device of going through the course and a ‘real life’ case. In any event it worked well.
I’ve only had one other experience of reading a proof copy but I didn’t find any more typos (think there were only 2-3) than I would find in a final copy.
Although I read crime fiction described as ‘cozy’ this as a first novel I thought was particularly well done. So generally I would recommend this book to others.
March 11, 2026
Thoroughly delightful story about a couple, Jane and Simon, who are serially unemployed and always signing up for different training classes that will finally launch their amazingly successful careers. 😉 They fall under the tutelage of Gavin Smith, who assigned them a cold case to try and solve -- the mystery of the missing Nellie Thornes. Over three decades, women with the same name have gone missing, and the latest has just occurred as Simon and Jane have embarked on solving the mystery.
This book does not take itself too seriously, and while there is a real mystery to be solved, there is a lot of humor along the way. Loved it!
This book does not take itself too seriously, and while there is a real mystery to be solved, there is a lot of humor along the way. Loved it!
June 10, 2026
This story was bizarre and often tried too hard to be funny.
August 7, 2025
Jane Pye and Simon Mash have signed up for a detective course and are assigned their first case for some coursework. Dev arrived home to find his girlfriend Nellie Thorne had vanished. However she isn’t the first Nellie Thorne to have disappeared, she is the fifth spanning over fifty years. As the couple start investigating they realise they may have bitten off more than they can chew. Will they solve the case of what links the missing Nellies?
Even though cozy crime isn’t usually my go to in crime fiction, I really liked the premise of this one and the mystery behind the missing Nellies sounded original and fun. I have to say that the detective agency also has a great name! This started off well and I was intrigued with the detective course and the characters, who were all very quirky. I found the main protagonists chatter amongst themselves fun, with lots of quips and humour, at times quite silly. Saying that, I found that the focus was too much on this and their own personalities and backgrounds were not explored at a deeper level, meaning my connection with them was lacking. Hopefully in future stories this can be developed a bit further to make them feel more three dimensional.
I enjoyed being an amateur sleuth along with the characters and trying to work out the mystery, although I feel that at times the pace of the story slowed down and became convoluted. I found that I wasn’t on the edge of my seat, which didn’t help with the pacing or engagement in the overall story. The conclusion made everything come together well and certainly hints there will be more to come from this duo.
Even though this wasn’t fully for me, this was a promising debut and start to a new series. This would be a good read for those who enjoy light hearted, cozy crime with plenty of humour and an entertaining concept. I would be interested to see where the authors take this next. Thanks to the authors and publisher for this copy.
Even though cozy crime isn’t usually my go to in crime fiction, I really liked the premise of this one and the mystery behind the missing Nellies sounded original and fun. I have to say that the detective agency also has a great name! This started off well and I was intrigued with the detective course and the characters, who were all very quirky. I found the main protagonists chatter amongst themselves fun, with lots of quips and humour, at times quite silly. Saying that, I found that the focus was too much on this and their own personalities and backgrounds were not explored at a deeper level, meaning my connection with them was lacking. Hopefully in future stories this can be developed a bit further to make them feel more three dimensional.
I enjoyed being an amateur sleuth along with the characters and trying to work out the mystery, although I feel that at times the pace of the story slowed down and became convoluted. I found that I wasn’t on the edge of my seat, which didn’t help with the pacing or engagement in the overall story. The conclusion made everything come together well and certainly hints there will be more to come from this duo.
Even though this wasn’t fully for me, this was a promising debut and start to a new series. This would be a good read for those who enjoy light hearted, cozy crime with plenty of humour and an entertaining concept. I would be interested to see where the authors take this next. Thanks to the authors and publisher for this copy.
April 4, 2026
The book's title grabbed my attention, I love a fun cozy mystery, and the intriguing mystery plot.
Over the years, women called Nellie Thorne with similar circumstances would disappear and the police have not been able to solve any of the cases. It is the one thing that kept my attention and the conclusion was somewhat satisfying (if a little unbelievable) and not something I predicted which was a nice surprise.
Unfortunately the characters and humour didn't work for me.
All the character's interactions and dialogue felt juvenile and odd rather than humorous. Jane and Simon were bumbling and ineffective, which I'm sure some readers find charming but I just found irritating.
Not for me, but humour is very subjective and I can see it appealing to others.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher / author for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review.
Over the years, women called Nellie Thorne with similar circumstances would disappear and the police have not been able to solve any of the cases. It is the one thing that kept my attention and the conclusion was somewhat satisfying (if a little unbelievable) and not something I predicted which was a nice surprise.
Unfortunately the characters and humour didn't work for me.
All the character's interactions and dialogue felt juvenile and odd rather than humorous. Jane and Simon were bumbling and ineffective, which I'm sure some readers find charming but I just found irritating.
Not for me, but humour is very subjective and I can see it appealing to others.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher / author for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review.
May 12, 2026
It was fine, but a bit boring.
March 13, 2026
What fun! I knew almost right away that I was going to love this book - and I am so happy I was right. This is a mix of irreverence, danger, hilarity, real issues and some great characters. The set up is amazing; getting a now hot cold case in a learning to be a detective class? Perfection. I loved the dynamic between Simon and Jane so much; it was fun and had its up and downs in a very realistic way. SO many of the characters were over the top, in the best way to move the story along and keep it cozy even in the face of danger and confusion. I am so impressed they pieced this together with basically no leads and it shows that their people skills are wonderful and evolving. This was just such a fun time that I didn't want to put down!
Note: I listened to the audiobook and it was 10/10 no notes, fabulously done to keep the energy high and the mood light.
Thanks to the publisher for the eARC and ALC; my thoughts and review are my own.
Note: I listened to the audiobook and it was 10/10 no notes, fabulously done to keep the energy high and the mood light.
Thanks to the publisher for the eARC and ALC; my thoughts and review are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
✰✰✰⭑
This was a quirky inviting cosy crime, blended with mystery, sprinkled with a dash of humour topped with a light garnish of two millennial amateur detectives.
J Pye & S Mash sign up for a private detective night class.. Their assignment.. Find missing Nellie Thorne. Not all is as it seems... is she the only Nellie Thorne to go missing??
Overall, it is an enjoyable light-hearted cosy read with fun, unique characters. The mystery for sure piqued my curiosity. A delightful cosy crime novel ♡
Thank you to Netgally, Random House UK, and authors for an ARC in return for my honest thoughts!!
This was a quirky inviting cosy crime, blended with mystery, sprinkled with a dash of humour topped with a light garnish of two millennial amateur detectives.
J Pye & S Mash sign up for a private detective night class.. Their assignment.. Find missing Nellie Thorne. Not all is as it seems... is she the only Nellie Thorne to go missing??
Overall, it is an enjoyable light-hearted cosy read with fun, unique characters. The mystery for sure piqued my curiosity. A delightful cosy crime novel ♡
Thank you to Netgally, Random House UK, and authors for an ARC in return for my honest thoughts!!
April 1, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley, the author and Random House Cornerstone for my copy of The Pie & Mash Detective Agency in exchange for an honest review.
This is a really tough one for me to rate and review because it was such a mixed bag for me.
Jane Pye and Simon Mash are undertaking a short college course in detecting level 1. When their teacher gives them a live case as their coursework they meet Dev Hooper whose girlfriend Nellie Thorne has gone missing. Except she’s not the first Nellie Thorne to go missing, this is a case that spans back decades. Every now and again a new Nellie Thorne appears and then disappears leaving a confused and dejected boyfriend in her wake. Jane and Simon must solve the case that has baffled the police and the very town itself in time for their coursework deadline if they want to pass the course.
So the good stuff first. The mystery was really intriguing and to be honest it was the only thing that kept me reading and stopped me marking this as a DNF. The idea that every few decades a woman called Nellie Thorne who looked exactly the same in the 80s as she did in the 2000s, would appear, start dating and then disappear was very interesting and as I say the one thing that kept me reading. The conclusion was good too I didn’t guess it which is rare these days!
Now the not so good stuff. The characters were just caricatures, the humour forced and over the top. The blurb describes Jane and Simon as a ‘millennial couple’ and it’s like the author took anything ‘millennial’ and went over the top with it. I get that for some people this would be humorous but it just felt false and weird and too much at times. Jane who was actually interested in being a detective made no effort to actually do any detecting and the story dragged on and on and she and Simon bumbled their way through, not really doing anything or finding anything out. Simon was so gormless at times it was painful. I don’t think based on this that I would read any more in this series.
This is a really tough one for me to rate and review because it was such a mixed bag for me.
Jane Pye and Simon Mash are undertaking a short college course in detecting level 1. When their teacher gives them a live case as their coursework they meet Dev Hooper whose girlfriend Nellie Thorne has gone missing. Except she’s not the first Nellie Thorne to go missing, this is a case that spans back decades. Every now and again a new Nellie Thorne appears and then disappears leaving a confused and dejected boyfriend in her wake. Jane and Simon must solve the case that has baffled the police and the very town itself in time for their coursework deadline if they want to pass the course.
So the good stuff first. The mystery was really intriguing and to be honest it was the only thing that kept me reading and stopped me marking this as a DNF. The idea that every few decades a woman called Nellie Thorne who looked exactly the same in the 80s as she did in the 2000s, would appear, start dating and then disappear was very interesting and as I say the one thing that kept me reading. The conclusion was good too I didn’t guess it which is rare these days!
Now the not so good stuff. The characters were just caricatures, the humour forced and over the top. The blurb describes Jane and Simon as a ‘millennial couple’ and it’s like the author took anything ‘millennial’ and went over the top with it. I get that for some people this would be humorous but it just felt false and weird and too much at times. Jane who was actually interested in being a detective made no effort to actually do any detecting and the story dragged on and on and she and Simon bumbled their way through, not really doing anything or finding anything out. Simon was so gormless at times it was painful. I don’t think based on this that I would read any more in this series.
December 26, 2025
Dev gets home from work one day and his girlfriend Nellie has disappeared. No note. No explanation. Jane Pye and boyfriend Simon Mash, in the process of attending a detective course, are given this ‘case’ to investigate as “homework”. It transpires that several “Nellies” have disappeared over several years. So are they the same person? Are they different people? Or are they victims of a serial killer? To be honest I really couldn’t get into this story enough to care.
For starters the names of the protagonists were too silly, especially as they call their fledgling detective agency, the Pye and Mash detective agency. Then there is Simon’s irritating habit of calling Jane “babe”. The characters themselves were pretty boring although Jane had a bit of grit about her but Simon’s character was written rather as an afterthought I felt.
The novel was a bit of fun I suppose as there was no sense of peril or danger. The dialogue was trying very hard to be amusing but I felt the author didn’t quite pull that off. Fans of Richard Osman will probably enjoy this book.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC for my kindle. This is my honest review after a full read of the book.
For starters the names of the protagonists were too silly, especially as they call their fledgling detective agency, the Pye and Mash detective agency. Then there is Simon’s irritating habit of calling Jane “babe”. The characters themselves were pretty boring although Jane had a bit of grit about her but Simon’s character was written rather as an afterthought I felt.
The novel was a bit of fun I suppose as there was no sense of peril or danger. The dialogue was trying very hard to be amusing but I felt the author didn’t quite pull that off. Fans of Richard Osman will probably enjoy this book.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC for my kindle. This is my honest review after a full read of the book.
June 20, 2026
Was fine. Would read the author again
July 3, 2026
Enjoyed the idea, felt the pace of the narrative could have unfolded quicker to make it into a page turner.
Not a bad read, but not a favourite for me.
Not a bad read, but not a favourite for me.
June 18, 2026
Very cute. Very witty. Very British. It was exactly what I was looking for. I laughed out loud often while reading this book. The only reason it gets a four is because it was slow at times. The action definitely picks up at the end.
July 15, 2026
I feel I have a character flaw that I never want to give up on a book even if I am not enjoying it. I put a lot of effort into the first 3 of 4 sections of this book. The humor escaped me and I found the characters irritating. Finally, I allowed myself to speedread the last section and discovered I really wasted my time on this one.
June 7, 2026
A silly nonsensical book that is very annoying and therefore difficult to read. An author I shall avoid in future.
April 3, 2026
This was a strange one for me. Jane and Simon are taking a private detective class and their teacher Gavin assigns them a case to investigate that he has been trying to solve for 30 years. Dev reported his girlfriend Nellie Thorne missing just days ago but she is not the first Nellie Thorne to go missing. In fact, there have been several Nellie Thornes who have disappeared over the previous several decades. Gavin worked the case as a young private detective in the 90's and while he and his police friend were able to rule out the local serial killer as having any part in the disappearances, they were never able to crack the case. Jane and Simon have no real skills and act more like immature teenagers than millennial adults. They have little money and Jane is suspicious of large amounts of cash going in and out of Simon's bank account and thinks that he might be having an affair but it is just his mother's money that he is laundering for some reason. Their relationship is truly odd. They traipse around and find "clues" which all amount to next to nothing. Their biggest find are red candles that seem to be at various spots were Nellies have gone missing that they miraculously track down to a general store in Kent. They also find a real life Nellie who finally tells them about the cult of women living together in a commune behind the general store. They live off of the store's proceeds along with monies made from yoga classes and massages. Each woman is allowed to leave once she is a young adult to see if she wants to live in the outside world. They use an alias and many women in the same family use the same name for generations, hence all of the Nellie Thornes. Many of them go out, get a boyfriend, become pregnant and then ghost the real world and return to the commune where they have their baby, which is always a girl apparently. The Nellie Thorne that they speak with is one of the few who chose not to return to the cult. With the case solved, Jane and Simon pass the class and Gavin is finally able to put the old case to bed. I'm not sure that I will continue on with the series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 28, 2026
This was a really funny book and an easy read. It never takes itself too seriously, and in the small moments it does get serious, it steers back to silly really quick. I was nervous it would feel like a “sitcom with an episode about drugs” after the first time it got serious felt awkward, but it works. The mystery had a pretty good payoff, and I loved all the characters. The writing style was great, always adding little quips for quick bits of humor. Sometimes they almost felt like Family Guy cutaways, but for the purpose of adding some background and depth to the characters.
Parts of the book had a weird sexual undertone to them, like the whole first theory, which I wasn’t a fan of. There’s also lots of sexual jokes, which are funny at times, awkward at others.
Overall, it was a really fun read. Also, slight spoilers: I’m glad there was a bit of an “after credits scene”. I’m very excited to read more Pie and Mash!
Parts of the book had a weird sexual undertone to them, like the whole first theory, which I wasn’t a fan of. There’s also lots of sexual jokes, which are funny at times, awkward at others.
Overall, it was a really fun read. Also, slight spoilers: I’m glad there was a bit of an “after credits scene”. I’m very excited to read more Pie and Mash!
March 23, 2026
DNF - 70%
I was excited to read this debut novel from J.D. Brinkworth because I love mysteries, but unfortunately, I don’t think I’m the right audience for The Pie & Mash Detective Agency. It’s a cozy mystery where the two main characters are on a case to find a woman named Nellie Thorne who has disappeared. The twist is that women with the same name have disappeared several times in recent years, and it’s up to Jane and Simon to find out what happened to the present-day Nellie Thorne while also uncovering the other disappearances.
This book had an interesting premise that kept me intrigued until about 70%, when I lost interest. The main issue was that I didn’t connect with either character, Jane Pye or Simon Mash. Simon, in particular, didn’t seem to want to help Jane with the case, and Jane had some trust issues with Simon and his actions. Another issue was that the story shifted back and forth between the present day with Jane and Simon on the case, and 1997 with Gavin investigating another Nellie Thorne. Gavin is Jane and Simon’s teacher, a former PI who gave them the present-day case.
I’m sure if I read past 70%, the story would pick up and I would find out what happened to the present-day and past Nellies, but I wasn’t interested enough to finish.
I wish I had enjoyed this book more, but it just didn’t keep my attention. Just because I didn’t enjoy it doesn’t mean I won’t recommend it. It may appeal to readers who enjoy cozy mysteries. I need more action-packed, dangerous scenarios in my mysteries and thrillers.
I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher via NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I was excited to read this debut novel from J.D. Brinkworth because I love mysteries, but unfortunately, I don’t think I’m the right audience for The Pie & Mash Detective Agency. It’s a cozy mystery where the two main characters are on a case to find a woman named Nellie Thorne who has disappeared. The twist is that women with the same name have disappeared several times in recent years, and it’s up to Jane and Simon to find out what happened to the present-day Nellie Thorne while also uncovering the other disappearances.
This book had an interesting premise that kept me intrigued until about 70%, when I lost interest. The main issue was that I didn’t connect with either character, Jane Pye or Simon Mash. Simon, in particular, didn’t seem to want to help Jane with the case, and Jane had some trust issues with Simon and his actions. Another issue was that the story shifted back and forth between the present day with Jane and Simon on the case, and 1997 with Gavin investigating another Nellie Thorne. Gavin is Jane and Simon’s teacher, a former PI who gave them the present-day case.
I’m sure if I read past 70%, the story would pick up and I would find out what happened to the present-day and past Nellies, but I wasn’t interested enough to finish.
I wish I had enjoyed this book more, but it just didn’t keep my attention. Just because I didn’t enjoy it doesn’t mean I won’t recommend it. It may appeal to readers who enjoy cozy mysteries. I need more action-packed, dangerous scenarios in my mysteries and thrillers.
I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher via NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
September 23, 2025
***Advance review copy received from NetGalley in return for an honest review***
Jane Pye and Simon Mash sign up for a private detective night class on a whim, never expecting to find themselves pulled into a real case. Their assignment: investigate the disappearance of Nellie Thorne, a woman whose boyfriend insists something is wrong. But Nellie isn’t the first—four other women with the same name have vanished over the last fifty years. Following a trail that leads them through haunted woods, dusty archives, and some very odd encounters closer to home, Jane and Simon soon realise amateur sleuthing is a lot stranger (and funnier) than they imagined.
I really enjoyed this. It gave me Rivers of London vibes with its blend of wit, eccentric characters, and a streak of the surreal. The humour and turn of phrase are spot on, and Jane and Simon make for an entertaining detective duo.
If you enjoy cosy mysteries with a playful, slightly offbeat twist, this will suit you well. Fans of Jodi Taylor and Robert Rankin in particular will appreciate the sharp humour and energetic style. This is the first in a new series, and I’ll be keen to see where Jane and Simon go from here.
Jane Pye and Simon Mash sign up for a private detective night class on a whim, never expecting to find themselves pulled into a real case. Their assignment: investigate the disappearance of Nellie Thorne, a woman whose boyfriend insists something is wrong. But Nellie isn’t the first—four other women with the same name have vanished over the last fifty years. Following a trail that leads them through haunted woods, dusty archives, and some very odd encounters closer to home, Jane and Simon soon realise amateur sleuthing is a lot stranger (and funnier) than they imagined.
I really enjoyed this. It gave me Rivers of London vibes with its blend of wit, eccentric characters, and a streak of the surreal. The humour and turn of phrase are spot on, and Jane and Simon make for an entertaining detective duo.
If you enjoy cosy mysteries with a playful, slightly offbeat twist, this will suit you well. Fans of Jodi Taylor and Robert Rankin in particular will appreciate the sharp humour and energetic style. This is the first in a new series, and I’ll be keen to see where Jane and Simon go from here.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This book may leave readers a strong feelgood factor.
Jane and Simon are a millenial couple who have enrolled on a private detectives course. As part of this course they are given an assignment to find a missing women called Nellie Thorne. During their enquiries they find that a number of women with this name have disappeared over the past fifty years. Their investigation takes them into a number of funny, risky and downright dangerous situations.
This cozy mystery is a romp that contains a great deal of humour. in some parts I found it a bit far fetched, but it does all come together in a tense and hectic conclusion. With a light hearted style of writing the author has produced a book that is an easy to read and enjoyable book.
Jane and Simon are a millenial couple who have enrolled on a private detectives course. As part of this course they are given an assignment to find a missing women called Nellie Thorne. During their enquiries they find that a number of women with this name have disappeared over the past fifty years. Their investigation takes them into a number of funny, risky and downright dangerous situations.
This cozy mystery is a romp that contains a great deal of humour. in some parts I found it a bit far fetched, but it does all come together in a tense and hectic conclusion. With a light hearted style of writing the author has produced a book that is an easy to read and enjoyable book.
April 11, 2026
Tedious. Ridiculous. Chaos. I have nothing positive to say about "The Pie & Mash Detective Agency."
I blame myself. I went into this story about a couple who decide to take a class aimed at becoming detectives expecting it to be similar to Hallmark Mysteries' "The Cases of Mystery Lane." Nope. While the Hallmark series is about a sweet couple bumbling their way through an investigation, "The Pie & Mash Detective Agency" is just a silly mess. Everything is ridiculous.
I even tried to convince myself that this novel was akin in temperament to Tim Dorsey's Serge Storms book series. Nope. Jane Pye and Simon Mash lack the charm of Serge, our favorite serial killer and Florida history buff.
I had such high hopes for this book. It was such a disappointment.
I blame myself. I went into this story about a couple who decide to take a class aimed at becoming detectives expecting it to be similar to Hallmark Mysteries' "The Cases of Mystery Lane." Nope. While the Hallmark series is about a sweet couple bumbling their way through an investigation, "The Pie & Mash Detective Agency" is just a silly mess. Everything is ridiculous.
I even tried to convince myself that this novel was akin in temperament to Tim Dorsey's Serge Storms book series. Nope. Jane Pye and Simon Mash lack the charm of Serge, our favorite serial killer and Florida history buff.
I had such high hopes for this book. It was such a disappointment.
March 10, 2026
In "The Pie & Mash Detective Agency" by J.D. Brinkworth, readers are invited into the whimsical world of a millennial couple who embark on a journey of amateur sleuthing. This charming tale intricately blends the classic elements of cozy mysteries with the relatable uncertainties and pressures faced by today's younger generations.
As they navigate a series of intriguing mysteries, the couple grapples not only with quirky suspects and puzzling clues but also with the modern anxieties of adulthood in a fast-paced world.
Characters...
Highlights...
The Unlikely Duo:
Jane Pye, a recently unemployed programmer, and her neurodivergent partner, Simon Mash, an unfulfilled corporate consultant, enroll in a "Level 1 Detecting" night class on a whim.
The Assignment:
Their instructor, Gavin—a semi-retired detective—assigns them the case of Nellie Thorne for their final project. Gavin believes the case is unsolvable, having failed to crack it himself decades earlier.
The Urban Legend:
Jane and Simon discover that the current missing woman, the girlfriend of schoolteacher Dev Hooper, is actually the fifth Nellie Thorne to vanish in Kent over the last fifty years.
The Connection:
As they dig deeper, they realize that all the missing Nellies were roughly the same age, with similar appearances and tastes, leading them to investigate whether the disappearances are a hoax, a romance scam, or something supernatural.
The Resolution:
The amateur sleuths eventually join forces with Gavin to uncover a secret he had been keeping, leading to a "satisfying twist" that ties the multiple disappearances together.
My thoughts...
THE PIE AND MASH DETECTIVE AGENCY centers on an "oddball" fun millennial couple full of humor, who enroll in a private detective night class on a whim. Both protagonists are at professional and personal crossroads; Jane is navigating unemployment while Simon feels unfulfilled in his corporate career, making their detective pursuit a search for purpose.
Through dual timelines (present-day and 1997), the book examines how unsolved cold cases and past failures haunt the people who left them behind, particularly their instructor, Gavin. The central mystery of the "recurring Nellie Thorne" plays with the line between local ghost stories and a more sinister, tangible truth.
The story emphasizes how "quirky" or neurodivergent traits—like Simon's specific fixations—can be assets in non-traditional environments like private investigation. A humorous recurring theme is how bumbling efforts and accidental discoveries can sometimes yield results where systematic police work failed.
Themes...
~Amateur Sleuthing & Curiosity
~Millennial Uncertainty
~Urban Legend vs. Reality
~The Weight of the Past
~Eccentricity & Modern Connection
~Incompetence Leading to Discovery
Literary Motifs...
~Matching Attire:
Their velour tracksuits and trench coats symbolize their status as a "team" despite their lack of experience.
~Food as Comfort:
References to charcuterie boards and "Pie and Mash" (both the dish and the character names) anchor the "cozy" tone of the narrative.
~The Red Candle:
A mysterious recurring object found at burial sites serves as a physical link between the missing women across decades.
Blog Tour...
Check out my blog tour stop on my website, pub date, March 10!
Recs...
If you enjoy cozy and quirky mysteries like Pie and Mash, check out The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman and Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano.
Special thanks to Berkey and NetGalley for sharing an advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Mar 10, 2026
My Rating: 4 Stars
March Newsletter
Blog Tour Stop
As they navigate a series of intriguing mysteries, the couple grapples not only with quirky suspects and puzzling clues but also with the modern anxieties of adulthood in a fast-paced world.
Characters...
Jane Pye:
A recently unemployed back-end computer programmer. She is the driving force behind their new hobby, often characterized as a "serious go-getter" with a passion for true-crime documentaries.
Simon Mash:
Jane’s partner is a "lackadaisical" corporate collaboration consultant. He primarily joins the class for moral support and is known for his eccentricities, such as his love for matching velour tracksuits, yellow raincoats, and well-balanced charcuterie boards.
Gavin Smith:
A grizzled, semi-retired private investigator who teaches the night class. He assigns Jane and Simon the "unsolvable" cold case of Nellie Thorne—a case he personally failed to solve decades earlier in 1997.
Nellie Thorne:
The central mystery figure. Five different women with this exact name have vanished in Kent over the last 50 years, roughly one every decade since 1971.
Dev Hooper:
A local schoolteacher and the boyfriend of the most recent Nellie Thorne. His desperation to find her leads him to accept help from the bumbling amateur duo.
Highlights...
The Unlikely Duo:
Jane Pye, a recently unemployed programmer, and her neurodivergent partner, Simon Mash, an unfulfilled corporate consultant, enroll in a "Level 1 Detecting" night class on a whim.
The Assignment:
Their instructor, Gavin—a semi-retired detective—assigns them the case of Nellie Thorne for their final project. Gavin believes the case is unsolvable, having failed to crack it himself decades earlier.
The Urban Legend:
Jane and Simon discover that the current missing woman, the girlfriend of schoolteacher Dev Hooper, is actually the fifth Nellie Thorne to vanish in Kent over the last fifty years.
The Connection:
As they dig deeper, they realize that all the missing Nellies were roughly the same age, with similar appearances and tastes, leading them to investigate whether the disappearances are a hoax, a romance scam, or something supernatural.
The Resolution:
The amateur sleuths eventually join forces with Gavin to uncover a secret he had been keeping, leading to a "satisfying twist" that ties the multiple disappearances together.
My thoughts...
THE PIE AND MASH DETECTIVE AGENCY centers on an "oddball" fun millennial couple full of humor, who enroll in a private detective night class on a whim. Both protagonists are at professional and personal crossroads; Jane is navigating unemployment while Simon feels unfulfilled in his corporate career, making their detective pursuit a search for purpose.
Through dual timelines (present-day and 1997), the book examines how unsolved cold cases and past failures haunt the people who left them behind, particularly their instructor, Gavin. The central mystery of the "recurring Nellie Thorne" plays with the line between local ghost stories and a more sinister, tangible truth.
The story emphasizes how "quirky" or neurodivergent traits—like Simon's specific fixations—can be assets in non-traditional environments like private investigation. A humorous recurring theme is how bumbling efforts and accidental discoveries can sometimes yield results where systematic police work failed.
Themes...
~Amateur Sleuthing & Curiosity
~Millennial Uncertainty
~Urban Legend vs. Reality
~The Weight of the Past
~Eccentricity & Modern Connection
~Incompetence Leading to Discovery
Literary Motifs...
~Matching Attire:
Their velour tracksuits and trench coats symbolize their status as a "team" despite their lack of experience.
~Food as Comfort:
References to charcuterie boards and "Pie and Mash" (both the dish and the character names) anchor the "cozy" tone of the narrative.
~The Red Candle:
A mysterious recurring object found at burial sites serves as a physical link between the missing women across decades.
Blog Tour...
Check out my blog tour stop on my website, pub date, March 10!
Recs...
If you enjoy cozy and quirky mysteries like Pie and Mash, check out The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman and Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano.
Special thanks to Berkey and NetGalley for sharing an advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
blog review posted @
JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: Mar 10, 2026
My Rating: 4 Stars
March Newsletter
Blog Tour Stop
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Everything was going perfectly normal… until a missing woman with the same name started vanishing across decades and suddenly my cozy little reading night turned into a full-blown conspiracy board moment.
The Pie & Mash Detective Agency by J. D. Brinkworth completely pulled me into its wonderfully chaotic little mystery.
Published by Berkley Publishing Group, and many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the gifted ARC.
I went into this expecting a light, slightly silly cozy mystery. What I didn’t expect was to spend the entire book feeling like I was sitting at a cluttered café table with two chaotic amateur detectives while they excitedly pinned red string between clues. And honestly? That messy, slightly ridiculous energy is exactly what made this book so much fun.
The story follows Jane Pye and Simon Mash, a millennial couple who decide that becoming private detectives seems like a perfectly reasonable hobby after Jane loses her programming job and Simon’s corporate consulting career mostly involves scrolling the internet. They sign up for a private investigator class, probably thinking it’ll be a quirky side adventure. Instead, their instructor hands them a case involving a woman named Nellie Thorne who has mysteriously disappeared.
Except… she’s not the only one.
Apparently women named Nellie Thorne have been vanishing for decades.
And suddenly Jane and Simon, armed with enthusiasm, trench coats, and wildly questionable investigative skills, are chasing leads through haunted woods, dusty archives, and a parade of wonderfully odd locals. The mystery itself is twisty in that cozy-chaotic way where you keep thinking you’ve figured it out, only for another weird clue to pop up.
What really sold this book for me, though, was the tone. It’s witty, a little sarcastic, and packed with the kind of dry humor that sneaks up on you. Jane’s practical determination mixed with Simon’s slightly ridiculous charm makes them a duo you can’t help but root for, even when you’re thinking, “Oh no… this is going to go terribly wrong.”
At one point the book perfectly captures their whole vibe:
“Confidence is an important investigative skill,” Simon said. “Even if it’s entirely unfounded.”
Honestly? That line alone sums up the entire Pie & Mash Detective Agency.
Reading this felt like watching two lovable disasters accidentally stumble toward solving a genuinely intriguing mystery. It’s cozy, clever, and just a little bit chaotic in the best possible way.
If you love quirky British mysteries, eccentric characters, amateur sleuths who are absolutely making it up as they go, and stories that don’t take themselves too seriously, this will probably be your kind of read.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Would you trust Jane and Simon to investigate a mystery in your town… or would you quietly pack up and move while they’re still figuring it out?
#ThePieMashDetectiveAgency #JDBrinkworth #CozyMystery #MysteryBookReview #BookReview #NetGalley #ARCReader #MysteryReaders #CozyMysteryBooks #BookstagramReads #AmateurSleuth #MysteryLovers #BookRecommendations #ReadersOfInstagram
The Pie & Mash Detective Agency by J. D. Brinkworth completely pulled me into its wonderfully chaotic little mystery.
Published by Berkley Publishing Group, and many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the gifted ARC.
I went into this expecting a light, slightly silly cozy mystery. What I didn’t expect was to spend the entire book feeling like I was sitting at a cluttered café table with two chaotic amateur detectives while they excitedly pinned red string between clues. And honestly? That messy, slightly ridiculous energy is exactly what made this book so much fun.
The story follows Jane Pye and Simon Mash, a millennial couple who decide that becoming private detectives seems like a perfectly reasonable hobby after Jane loses her programming job and Simon’s corporate consulting career mostly involves scrolling the internet. They sign up for a private investigator class, probably thinking it’ll be a quirky side adventure. Instead, their instructor hands them a case involving a woman named Nellie Thorne who has mysteriously disappeared.
Except… she’s not the only one.
Apparently women named Nellie Thorne have been vanishing for decades.
And suddenly Jane and Simon, armed with enthusiasm, trench coats, and wildly questionable investigative skills, are chasing leads through haunted woods, dusty archives, and a parade of wonderfully odd locals. The mystery itself is twisty in that cozy-chaotic way where you keep thinking you’ve figured it out, only for another weird clue to pop up.
What really sold this book for me, though, was the tone. It’s witty, a little sarcastic, and packed with the kind of dry humor that sneaks up on you. Jane’s practical determination mixed with Simon’s slightly ridiculous charm makes them a duo you can’t help but root for, even when you’re thinking, “Oh no… this is going to go terribly wrong.”
At one point the book perfectly captures their whole vibe:
“Confidence is an important investigative skill,” Simon said. “Even if it’s entirely unfounded.”
Honestly? That line alone sums up the entire Pie & Mash Detective Agency.
Reading this felt like watching two lovable disasters accidentally stumble toward solving a genuinely intriguing mystery. It’s cozy, clever, and just a little bit chaotic in the best possible way.
If you love quirky British mysteries, eccentric characters, amateur sleuths who are absolutely making it up as they go, and stories that don’t take themselves too seriously, this will probably be your kind of read.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Would you trust Jane and Simon to investigate a mystery in your town… or would you quietly pack up and move while they’re still figuring it out?
#ThePieMashDetectiveAgency #JDBrinkworth #CozyMystery #MysteryBookReview #BookReview #NetGalley #ARCReader #MysteryReaders #CozyMysteryBooks #BookstagramReads #AmateurSleuth #MysteryLovers #BookRecommendations #ReadersOfInstagram
March 11, 2026
Jane Pye is currently between jobs, but she is focusing on a new hobby. She and her partner, Simon Mash, are taking a class in private detection, and Jane is so ready to take on a case. She and Simon sit in the back of the room as their teacher Gavin presents information every week. But to finish the class, everyone in the class has to take on a case. When it’s time to pass out the cases, Gavin gives everyone in the class an old case of his, one that he solved already, but he’s one short. So he gives Jane and Simon an entirely different type of case.
Dev had come to the police station to report his girlfriend missing. Her purse and phone were left in the kitchen, but some of her clothes were gone and the front door had been left open. The police were not all that helpful, thinking that she had just decided she didn’t want to be in the relationship anymore. And then he told them his girlfriend’s name.
Nellie Thorne is well known as a missing person. She had been reported missing back in the 1990s and back in the 1970s. Both times before, Nellie Thorne, a pretty young woman with long hair, just disappeared one day and never showed up again. And now, apparently, it’s happening again. The police have been dealing with this case for decades, but they’re not sure if Dev’s case is real or a practical joke of some kind.
Jane and Simon start with Dev and find out his side of the story. From there, they try to find information anywhere they can, finally hitting the jackpot at the local library. But they also find that everyone has a different theory of what’s going on with Nellie Thorne. Some think that she is a ghost, just showing up briefly every twenty years. Others think she is a demon or a succubus. But Jane keeps following her detective lessons and investigates everything she can think of. She is the one who finds the clues that lead them in the right direction.
But will leading them towards the truth end up putting them all in danger?
The Pie and Mash Detective Agency is a clever reboot of the amateur detective series. These young detectives are smart and creative, taking an unusual run at finding the truth while they also try to sort out their lives. Jane is balancing solving the case with finding a new job, and Simon is taking conference calls while he and Jane are out looking for clues.
I especially love how Jane could solve other mysteries while looking for Nellie Thorne, like why Simon’s mother and her friends have been having trouble with people stealing their bank card information. She has a knack for solving crimes, while Simon is charming and good at getting people to talk. They make a really good team, and I cannot wait until it’s time for their next case. Their chemistry is addictive, and reading this book just left me wanting more. It’s pure fun.
Egalleys for The Pie and Mash Detective Agency were provided by Berkley through NetGalley, with many thanks, but the opinions are mine.
Dev had come to the police station to report his girlfriend missing. Her purse and phone were left in the kitchen, but some of her clothes were gone and the front door had been left open. The police were not all that helpful, thinking that she had just decided she didn’t want to be in the relationship anymore. And then he told them his girlfriend’s name.
Nellie Thorne is well known as a missing person. She had been reported missing back in the 1990s and back in the 1970s. Both times before, Nellie Thorne, a pretty young woman with long hair, just disappeared one day and never showed up again. And now, apparently, it’s happening again. The police have been dealing with this case for decades, but they’re not sure if Dev’s case is real or a practical joke of some kind.
Jane and Simon start with Dev and find out his side of the story. From there, they try to find information anywhere they can, finally hitting the jackpot at the local library. But they also find that everyone has a different theory of what’s going on with Nellie Thorne. Some think that she is a ghost, just showing up briefly every twenty years. Others think she is a demon or a succubus. But Jane keeps following her detective lessons and investigates everything she can think of. She is the one who finds the clues that lead them in the right direction.
But will leading them towards the truth end up putting them all in danger?
The Pie and Mash Detective Agency is a clever reboot of the amateur detective series. These young detectives are smart and creative, taking an unusual run at finding the truth while they also try to sort out their lives. Jane is balancing solving the case with finding a new job, and Simon is taking conference calls while he and Jane are out looking for clues.
I especially love how Jane could solve other mysteries while looking for Nellie Thorne, like why Simon’s mother and her friends have been having trouble with people stealing their bank card information. She has a knack for solving crimes, while Simon is charming and good at getting people to talk. They make a really good team, and I cannot wait until it’s time for their next case. Their chemistry is addictive, and reading this book just left me wanting more. It’s pure fun.
Egalleys for The Pie and Mash Detective Agency were provided by Berkley through NetGalley, with many thanks, but the opinions are mine.
March 17, 2026
This charming, funny book is set in present day London and follows the adventures of Jane Pye and Simon Mash, who are taking a detective class at their local learning center. (To a US reader, this will seem like a community college class.) Jane is between jobs, aka unemployed, and Simon is employed but willing to go along with Jane on her lark. She’s started with a book on detection and gone from there.
As a final assignment, the teacher (and working private eye) Gavin, assigns each team in the class a case to be solved. He gives the only unsolved case to Jane and Simon, and as it later becomes clear, it’s a case he himself has been frustrated by for decades. Jane and Simon plunge in, going to interview Dev, whose girlfriend has vanished. The thing is, the police don’t believe she exists as not only does Dev not possess a photo of her, she doesn’t seem to be a voter or be on National Health or have a passport or a driver’s license.
Jane and Simon do the best they can though, but as they are learning on the job, they really aren’t very good at detecting. However, Jane is finding it preferable to a series of job interviews she has with a gambling app company. Their interview with Dev and later stakeout in the woods yield little result, as does a meeting with a local ghosthunter. It turns out that Dev’s missing girlfriend has the same name (and appearance) of several women with the same name through the decades. The missing women would form an attachment, vanish, and would never be seen again.
Jane is more than determined, and she and Simon begin to edge closer to a solution, to the astonishment of Gavin. He’s working a parallel path but never seriously expected Jane and Simon to find the answer to the mystery.
The solution, when it comes, is achieved through genuine detective work and deduction on Jane’s part, and the story adds on some delightful sidebar characters – a retired policeman, a goth librarian, Simon’s mum and her cougar pals, and Dev himself, who seems to ultimately be moving past his now assumed breakup with the missing woman.
This is more of a detecting adventure story than a murder mystery (there’s no murder) and a humorous take on the private eye novel, millennial style. I came to be fond of Jane and Simon, worried about their relationship, and hopeful for them that they would find a solution before Gavin does. All ends well in Adventureland, with a nice set up for the next case. I can only imagine that Jane and Simon will get better at detecting – but I hope not too much better. Watching them try to figure things out is way more fun.
As a final assignment, the teacher (and working private eye) Gavin, assigns each team in the class a case to be solved. He gives the only unsolved case to Jane and Simon, and as it later becomes clear, it’s a case he himself has been frustrated by for decades. Jane and Simon plunge in, going to interview Dev, whose girlfriend has vanished. The thing is, the police don’t believe she exists as not only does Dev not possess a photo of her, she doesn’t seem to be a voter or be on National Health or have a passport or a driver’s license.
Jane and Simon do the best they can though, but as they are learning on the job, they really aren’t very good at detecting. However, Jane is finding it preferable to a series of job interviews she has with a gambling app company. Their interview with Dev and later stakeout in the woods yield little result, as does a meeting with a local ghosthunter. It turns out that Dev’s missing girlfriend has the same name (and appearance) of several women with the same name through the decades. The missing women would form an attachment, vanish, and would never be seen again.
Jane is more than determined, and she and Simon begin to edge closer to a solution, to the astonishment of Gavin. He’s working a parallel path but never seriously expected Jane and Simon to find the answer to the mystery.
The solution, when it comes, is achieved through genuine detective work and deduction on Jane’s part, and the story adds on some delightful sidebar characters – a retired policeman, a goth librarian, Simon’s mum and her cougar pals, and Dev himself, who seems to ultimately be moving past his now assumed breakup with the missing woman.
This is more of a detecting adventure story than a murder mystery (there’s no murder) and a humorous take on the private eye novel, millennial style. I came to be fond of Jane and Simon, worried about their relationship, and hopeful for them that they would find a solution before Gavin does. All ends well in Adventureland, with a nice set up for the next case. I can only imagine that Jane and Simon will get better at detecting – but I hope not too much better. Watching them try to figure things out is way more fun.
April 6, 2026
Thanks to Berkely & NetGalley for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
British semi-cozy about a mystery woman and two Millennial idiots taking a private detective course? Yes, I want to read that.
The problem: they really are idiots. Sigh.
Simon Mash and Jane Pye, evidently so named so that they could set up a detective agency called Pie & Mash (a British dish?), are a young couple, but honestly it took me several chapters to get that they were a romantic pair, such is the dedication to COZINESS and lack of physical expressions of love (seriously, not even a peck on the cheek for many pages; eventually one refers to the other as their boy/girlfriend). Jane is perennially unemployed, Simon seems to behave almost akin to one of the contestants in the Monty Python Upper Class Twit of the Year sketch.
They do not inspire confidence as detectives.
The others in their class are given previously-solved cases by the instructor, Gavin (this feels like something that would never happen IRL), but these two fools are given a cold case that Gavin never got figured out. There is a more recent chapter to it, though. Women named Nellie Thorne have gone missing at least 4 times over the past several decades, never to be seen again. They always have zero family members and little is known about them personally, they are reported missing by their boyfriends but there are usually no photos of them, and they seem to have disappeared under their own power and on purpose, so the cops wouldn't take it seriously anyway, but since there have been so many (Is 3-4 a lot? Hmmm), they REALLY won't do anything, hence the need to hire a P.I. The latest wrinkle in the case is a newly-disappeared girlfriend, Nellie, involved with Dev, who hires them to find out what happened.
The "detecting" consists mainly of going to various places and flailing around, and it's entertaining enough. Jane & Simon are cute in a "are they brother and sister" kind of way, and there are some good bits featuring Simon's take-no-prisoners mum and her Cougar friend group (but a silly B-plot about Simon potentially having a mistress is a colossal waste of time that is explained and conceived poorly). At the end, the solution is about a "cult," which is a pretty serious term for people living off the grid willingly and practicing alternative medicine on themselves. I fail to see the illegality, but I guess in the UK this is now criminal shit. To me, it's just silly, and frankly, ruins the plot.
A weak 3 stars that could've been 4 - not going to be going further in this series.
British semi-cozy about a mystery woman and two Millennial idiots taking a private detective course? Yes, I want to read that.
The problem: they really are idiots. Sigh.
Simon Mash and Jane Pye, evidently so named so that they could set up a detective agency called Pie & Mash (a British dish?), are a young couple, but honestly it took me several chapters to get that they were a romantic pair, such is the dedication to COZINESS and lack of physical expressions of love (seriously, not even a peck on the cheek for many pages; eventually one refers to the other as their boy/girlfriend). Jane is perennially unemployed, Simon seems to behave almost akin to one of the contestants in the Monty Python Upper Class Twit of the Year sketch.
They do not inspire confidence as detectives.
The others in their class are given previously-solved cases by the instructor, Gavin (this feels like something that would never happen IRL), but these two fools are given a cold case that Gavin never got figured out. There is a more recent chapter to it, though. Women named Nellie Thorne have gone missing at least 4 times over the past several decades, never to be seen again. They always have zero family members and little is known about them personally, they are reported missing by their boyfriends but there are usually no photos of them, and they seem to have disappeared under their own power and on purpose, so the cops wouldn't take it seriously anyway, but since there have been so many (Is 3-4 a lot? Hmmm), they REALLY won't do anything, hence the need to hire a P.I. The latest wrinkle in the case is a newly-disappeared girlfriend, Nellie, involved with Dev, who hires them to find out what happened.
The "detecting" consists mainly of going to various places and flailing around, and it's entertaining enough. Jane & Simon are cute in a "are they brother and sister" kind of way, and there are some good bits featuring Simon's take-no-prisoners mum and her Cougar friend group (but a silly B-plot about Simon potentially having a mistress is a colossal waste of time that is explained and conceived poorly). At the end, the solution is about a "cult," which is a pretty serious term for people living off the grid willingly and practicing alternative medicine on themselves. I fail to see the illegality, but I guess in the UK this is now criminal shit. To me, it's just silly, and frankly, ruins the plot.
A weak 3 stars that could've been 4 - not going to be going further in this series.
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