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No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency #26
In the Time of Five Pumpkins
In this latest installment of Alexander McCall Smith’s beloved No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, Mma Ramotswe and her loyal associates take on a sensitive new case and learn valuable lessons
Life is never dull for Botswana’s premier lady detective, Precious Ramotswe. As a particularly delicate situation is brought to her attention, she must, with the help of her loyal associate Grace Matsuki, set out to investigate the peculiar circumstances surrounding the case. Over the course of their inquiries, unexpected information continues coming to light, leaving the pair puzzled—eventually, Mma Ramotswe will realize that the truth, as ever, is more complicated than it first seems.
With the generosity and good humor that guide all her endeavors, Mma Ramotswe will untangle these questions for herself and her loved ones, and prove that with a healthy dose of wisdom and a steaming cup of red bush tea, compassion will always win the day.
Life is never dull for Botswana’s premier lady detective, Precious Ramotswe. As a particularly delicate situation is brought to her attention, she must, with the help of her loyal associate Grace Matsuki, set out to investigate the peculiar circumstances surrounding the case. Over the course of their inquiries, unexpected information continues coming to light, leaving the pair puzzled—eventually, Mma Ramotswe will realize that the truth, as ever, is more complicated than it first seems.
With the generosity and good humor that guide all her endeavors, Mma Ramotswe will untangle these questions for herself and her loved ones, and prove that with a healthy dose of wisdom and a steaming cup of red bush tea, compassion will always win the day.
224 pages, Hardcover
Published September 4, 2025
About the author
Alexander McCall Smith
668 books12.9k followersAlexander McCall Smith is the author of the international phenomenon The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, the Isabel Dalhousie Series, the Portuguese Irregular Verbs series, and the 44 Scotland Street series. He is professor emeritus of medical law at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and has served on many national and international bodies concerned with bioethics. He was born in what is now known as Zimbabwe and he was a law professor at the University of Botswana. He lives in Scotland. Visit him online at www.alexandermccallsmith.com, on Facebook, and on Twitter.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 478 reviews
September 29, 2025
#26 in the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series. I love the imaginative titles for each book in this series.
In this episode Charlie, Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi are all involved in working on one very confusing case. Meanwhile Mr J.L.B. Makatoni makes a new friend but is he to be trusted? We get to spend plenty of time with Mma Pokotoni eating her marvellous fruit cake and drinking rooibos tea. And we discover that not all of Botswana's wildlife is safe to be around.
As usual a book to read when you feel like time out from the busy world we live in. McCall Smith's Botswana is calmer and more relaxed place, although there was plenty of action in that puff adder chapter! Definitely a feel good book and fully worth five stars.
In this episode Charlie, Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi are all involved in working on one very confusing case. Meanwhile Mr J.L.B. Makatoni makes a new friend but is he to be trusted? We get to spend plenty of time with Mma Pokotoni eating her marvellous fruit cake and drinking rooibos tea. And we discover that not all of Botswana's wildlife is safe to be around.
As usual a book to read when you feel like time out from the busy world we live in. McCall Smith's Botswana is calmer and more relaxed place, although there was plenty of action in that puff adder chapter! Definitely a feel good book and fully worth five stars.
October 19, 2025
Another delightful read from Alexander McCall Smith's Botswana. This whole series is like coming home after a long day, kicking off your shoes, and collapsing on the couch. I never tire of it.
November 2, 2025
3.5 Stars. I love the many stories written by Alexander McCall Smith. He has written over 100 adult and children's books and has several ongoing series. (My favourite is 44 Scotland Street, set in Edinburgh, because of the adorable young boy, Bertie.) The popular No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency is always high on my 'must-read' list, and I have been reading the series since its beginning. The author infuses each story with a vivid sense of place and with memorable characters. In the Time of Five Pumpkins is the 26th in this series, and set in Botswana. I love the wit, wisdom, and gentle philosophy of life included in his writing. Kindness, tolerance, patience, and forgiveness are virtues displayed by Precious Ramotswe, the head of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.
This is a cozy and comforting series that immerses one in the beauty and culture of Botswana and brings back the significant characters. It is like revisiting old friends. The main detectives are functioning in a more tolerant and cooperative manner. Grace Matsuki inserted herself as secretary when the agency first opened. She soon promoted herself to detective and continues to add many new titles to her position. She now calls herself 'executive president of development'.She comes across as entitled, critical, and belligerent, but Mma P. Ramotswe recognizes Grace's insecurity and chooses to ignore her annoying personality, praising her for her fine work ethic. Grace was intolerant of young Charlie when he was sent to help out around the office. Charlie assumed the title of assistant detective, and Grace is presently acting as his advisor. Precious is helping by bringing him on investigations. They are functioning better as a team.
A husband and wife become the first cases. They come in separately, both asking to have their partner followed. They each feel a coldness in their marriage, believe they are no longer loved, and want to confirm if their partner is faithful or is having an affair.
Precious is concerned about her husband, J.L.B. Makatoni, who runs a small car repair business in an adjacent building. He has been befriended by the prosperous owner of a large auto business.
Precious and Grace suspect something suspicious is behind their friendship, but can't figure out the motive. After the two men encounter dangerous situations, Charlie fears a murder is planned. Is J.L.B. or his small business in danger?
Precious R. manages to sort out the problems over cups of bush tea, fruitcake, and kind, comforting conversations.
This seemed a bit slow, predictable, and repetitive, but probably because I'd read the previous books in the series.
This is a cozy and comforting series that immerses one in the beauty and culture of Botswana and brings back the significant characters. It is like revisiting old friends. The main detectives are functioning in a more tolerant and cooperative manner. Grace Matsuki inserted herself as secretary when the agency first opened. She soon promoted herself to detective and continues to add many new titles to her position. She now calls herself 'executive president of development'.She comes across as entitled, critical, and belligerent, but Mma P. Ramotswe recognizes Grace's insecurity and chooses to ignore her annoying personality, praising her for her fine work ethic. Grace was intolerant of young Charlie when he was sent to help out around the office. Charlie assumed the title of assistant detective, and Grace is presently acting as his advisor. Precious is helping by bringing him on investigations. They are functioning better as a team.
A husband and wife become the first cases. They come in separately, both asking to have their partner followed. They each feel a coldness in their marriage, believe they are no longer loved, and want to confirm if their partner is faithful or is having an affair.
Precious is concerned about her husband, J.L.B. Makatoni, who runs a small car repair business in an adjacent building. He has been befriended by the prosperous owner of a large auto business.
Precious and Grace suspect something suspicious is behind their friendship, but can't figure out the motive. After the two men encounter dangerous situations, Charlie fears a murder is planned. Is J.L.B. or his small business in danger?
Precious R. manages to sort out the problems over cups of bush tea, fruitcake, and kind, comforting conversations.
This seemed a bit slow, predictable, and repetitive, but probably because I'd read the previous books in the series.
November 16, 2025
I just finished reading the twenty-sixth installment in one of my favorite series, The Number One Ladies' Detective Agency. This book, “In the Time of Five Pumpkins”, continues Alexander McCall Smith’s signature style of gentle storytelling and moral reflection. I have thoroughly enjoyed this long-running series over the years. From what I’ve seen, readers tend to either love his work or find it not to their taste.
As always, the story unfolds at a leisurely pace, inviting readers to ponder ethical dilemmas and everyday kindness—often over a cup of bush tea. McCall Smith has a gift for weaving small but powerful insights into his narratives. In this book, one such idea is the importance of employers recognizing and valuing long-serving employees. It is a simple suggestion, yet one that could make a meaningful difference in the world.
I listened to the audiobook version, which runs seven hours and twenty-three minutes and is available on Audible. Bianca Amato delivers a solid narration, and one of the pleasures of the audio format is hearing the Botswana accent brought to life. It adds a layer of authenticity and warmth that enhances the experience.
As always, the story unfolds at a leisurely pace, inviting readers to ponder ethical dilemmas and everyday kindness—often over a cup of bush tea. McCall Smith has a gift for weaving small but powerful insights into his narratives. In this book, one such idea is the importance of employers recognizing and valuing long-serving employees. It is a simple suggestion, yet one that could make a meaningful difference in the world.
I listened to the audiobook version, which runs seven hours and twenty-three minutes and is available on Audible. Bianca Amato delivers a solid narration, and one of the pleasures of the audio format is hearing the Botswana accent brought to life. It adds a layer of authenticity and warmth that enhances the experience.
July 27, 2025
I’ve read every book in The #1 Ladies Detective series.
In any long-standing series, some books stand out more than others. This one was a bit slow-going for me in terms of plot and the “sameness” of the characters. There are suspicious/cheating couples, big slices of fruitcake, mechanics needing interventions, orphans with sad beginnings.
Nonetheless, even when the story is a bit the same, Alexander McCall Smith is gifted in his inimitable ability to create pleasant, hopeful books that affirm the importance of goodness and kindness and tolerance.
What touched me deeply in this book, was a short paragraph where Precious takes a moment to acknowledge and appreciate her employee and friend Grace, with simple but powerful words.
Workplaces, bosses, colleagues can be so toxic, and what a beautiful reminder to appreciate those who we spend our days with - those people we toil with day in and day out often for decades. Sometimes we may even find these people annoying and probably they find us the same at times! Grace surely can be. But, her history is a sad one, yet she is so resilient. Sometimes her resilience presents as pedantic, ambitious, insecure. She wants so much to succeed and to be recognized for all her efforts. I love that AMS reminds us of the power of kind and supportive words to heal those around us. I’m inspired to be a more appreciative human to those in my daily life. Recently, I’ve had a number of colleagues who have been especially kind to me - so perhaps that’s why this was so poignant for me. Thank you, Sandy!
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
In any long-standing series, some books stand out more than others. This one was a bit slow-going for me in terms of plot and the “sameness” of the characters. There are suspicious/cheating couples, big slices of fruitcake, mechanics needing interventions, orphans with sad beginnings.
Nonetheless, even when the story is a bit the same, Alexander McCall Smith is gifted in his inimitable ability to create pleasant, hopeful books that affirm the importance of goodness and kindness and tolerance.
What touched me deeply in this book, was a short paragraph where Precious takes a moment to acknowledge and appreciate her employee and friend Grace, with simple but powerful words.
Workplaces, bosses, colleagues can be so toxic, and what a beautiful reminder to appreciate those who we spend our days with - those people we toil with day in and day out often for decades. Sometimes we may even find these people annoying and probably they find us the same at times! Grace surely can be. But, her history is a sad one, yet she is so resilient. Sometimes her resilience presents as pedantic, ambitious, insecure. She wants so much to succeed and to be recognized for all her efforts. I love that AMS reminds us of the power of kind and supportive words to heal those around us. I’m inspired to be a more appreciative human to those in my daily life. Recently, I’ve had a number of colleagues who have been especially kind to me - so perhaps that’s why this was so poignant for me. Thank you, Sandy!
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
November 28, 2025
Installment #26 of this series, and I still look forward to each one. The ladies find out all they need to know about a case where both the husband and the wife retain their services, so it gets a little tricky. Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni makes a new friend who is disliked by everyone else, especially Charlie, who has deep suspicions. Mma Potokwane dispenses fruitcake and advice....in other words, business as usual in Botswana. There was a lot of gentle philosophy in this one about aging, charity toward others and human decency in a changing world. Always a pleasure and a nice break to read these gentle books.
December 13, 2025
“She had felt doubtful earlier on, but now she felt more confident about the likely outcome. Lunch could do that sort of thing: you might sit down in a state of indecision, and get up from it with a renewed sense of certainty, particularly if you took your lunch at the President Hotel, and if the chicken and rice that you ordered was perfectly cooked and quite delicious – particularly then.”
In The Time Of Five Pumpkins is the twenty-sixth book in the popular Ladies Number One Detective Agency series by award-winning, bestselling British author, Sir Alexander McCall Smith. In it, readers are once again privy to the lives of Botawana’s finest private detectives and vehicle mechanics as they ply their trade on the Tlokweng Road in Gabarone. The audio version is narrated by Adjoa Andoh.
When Precious Ramotse notices Grace Makursi’s latest promotion of herself, to executive president for development, she muses that “People paid very little attention to the titles that people gave themselves in the working world. What mattered was whether the work of the business was done to the satisfaction of the client, and there was no doubt but that Mma Makutsi was efficient and, what was more, effective.”
Although the first impression that their new client, Mr Excellence Modise conveys is none too favourable, he is a client, and he believes his wife is having an affair. In the process of teaching apprentice detective Charlie, their surveillance is less covert than it could be, and Mma Alesang Modise challenges Precious to support the sisterhood and, instead, investigate her husband. It presents her with a conflict of interest: what will she decide?
At Mma Sylvia Potokwani’s Orphan Farm, Precious observes a boy whose history proves he is brave, and in his interaction with her, unfailingly polite. He might have lost the running race, but Precious presents him with a prize anyway. Fruitcake is enjoyed, and Precious is shown the titular pumpkins that are being grown by Mma Potokwani for the Tlokweng Agricultural Show: will any of them win a prize?
When Mr JLB Matekoni suddenly acquires a new friend, Mma Makutsi is not the only one who questions the genuineness of Freddie Mogorosi’s intentions and, after a potentially fatal incident, Charlie shares his theory about what is really going on. Is Mr J.L.B. Matekoni’s life in danger?
Afterwards, “he wanted nothing more than to be back home, sitting on the veranda of the house on Zebra Drive, drinking tea with Mma Ramotswe and reflecting on the fact that between an exciting life and a dull but safe existence, he would, on balance, choose the latter.”
In this instalment, Precious opines that both Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors and the Number One Ladies Detective Agency are in the business of caring; Grace and Phuti discuss the alarming trend towards uncomfortable furniture; A fable about a coop of hens and a jackal is used to illustrate a point; Precious reconnects with a friend from her youth.
Also, the energy of small children is marvelled at; Precious remembers the wise words about the country’s creatures that her beloved Daddy, Obed Ramotswe bestowed upon her; observing Mma Ramotswe, Charlie learns the value of the right questions and the occasional compliment in garnering useful information; and Mr J.L.B. Matekoni improvises to facilitate an act of bravery, later demonstrating his goodness by being generously forgiving.
As always, McCall Smith gives the reader some minor mysteries that don’t tax the brain too much, laced with plenty of gentle philosophy, humour, and wise and insightful observations. Guaranteed feel-good.
In The Time Of Five Pumpkins is the twenty-sixth book in the popular Ladies Number One Detective Agency series by award-winning, bestselling British author, Sir Alexander McCall Smith. In it, readers are once again privy to the lives of Botawana’s finest private detectives and vehicle mechanics as they ply their trade on the Tlokweng Road in Gabarone. The audio version is narrated by Adjoa Andoh.
When Precious Ramotse notices Grace Makursi’s latest promotion of herself, to executive president for development, she muses that “People paid very little attention to the titles that people gave themselves in the working world. What mattered was whether the work of the business was done to the satisfaction of the client, and there was no doubt but that Mma Makutsi was efficient and, what was more, effective.”
Although the first impression that their new client, Mr Excellence Modise conveys is none too favourable, he is a client, and he believes his wife is having an affair. In the process of teaching apprentice detective Charlie, their surveillance is less covert than it could be, and Mma Alesang Modise challenges Precious to support the sisterhood and, instead, investigate her husband. It presents her with a conflict of interest: what will she decide?
At Mma Sylvia Potokwani’s Orphan Farm, Precious observes a boy whose history proves he is brave, and in his interaction with her, unfailingly polite. He might have lost the running race, but Precious presents him with a prize anyway. Fruitcake is enjoyed, and Precious is shown the titular pumpkins that are being grown by Mma Potokwani for the Tlokweng Agricultural Show: will any of them win a prize?
When Mr JLB Matekoni suddenly acquires a new friend, Mma Makutsi is not the only one who questions the genuineness of Freddie Mogorosi’s intentions and, after a potentially fatal incident, Charlie shares his theory about what is really going on. Is Mr J.L.B. Matekoni’s life in danger?
Afterwards, “he wanted nothing more than to be back home, sitting on the veranda of the house on Zebra Drive, drinking tea with Mma Ramotswe and reflecting on the fact that between an exciting life and a dull but safe existence, he would, on balance, choose the latter.”
In this instalment, Precious opines that both Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors and the Number One Ladies Detective Agency are in the business of caring; Grace and Phuti discuss the alarming trend towards uncomfortable furniture; A fable about a coop of hens and a jackal is used to illustrate a point; Precious reconnects with a friend from her youth.
Also, the energy of small children is marvelled at; Precious remembers the wise words about the country’s creatures that her beloved Daddy, Obed Ramotswe bestowed upon her; observing Mma Ramotswe, Charlie learns the value of the right questions and the occasional compliment in garnering useful information; and Mr J.L.B. Matekoni improvises to facilitate an act of bravery, later demonstrating his goodness by being generously forgiving.
As always, McCall Smith gives the reader some minor mysteries that don’t tax the brain too much, laced with plenty of gentle philosophy, humour, and wise and insightful observations. Guaranteed feel-good.
October 24, 2025
Alexander McCall Smith continues to surprise and delight us through this wonderful series. I found this volume to be particularly filled to the brim with tea and comfort. Indeed, I guffawed out loud when I read, "Nobody ever looks back over her life and says, 'I wish I had drunk less tea,' Mma Ramotswe observed. Nor did one ever hear, at a funeral service, the words, 'She drank far too much tea.'"
I enjoyed the passage that talks about business owners of businesses such as dry cleaners and hardware stores knowing the basic needs of their customers before they come through the door. However, "nobody went into a dry-cleaner's or a hardware store to unburden themselves of some long-concealed secret or a nagging fear." For those needs, they might visit a detective agency and hope to "find the listening ear, and the solace, that troubled people so sorely need."
One of my favorite characters is Mma Potokwani who manages the Orphan Farm. I love how she expands her initial banner that answers the question what do children need? She begins with:
"They need one thing: unconditional love. If they have that, they have everything," and adds a second thing: "healthy food, with not too many fried dishes," next she adds a third thing: "a lot of outdoor exercise," and finally, a fourth thing: "a regular routine."
When we are young, well-meaning people tell us our lives will pass by very quickly and "we think that this is just one of those things that adults say and that as children we know to be false." Then, before we know it we have lived a lifetime and are telling young people about the "old days" that they have no memory of and we realize that it is true that life passes quickly by and we "feel a bit sad, really, because none of us wants to say goodbye to the place we love, and the people too..."
I felt sadness creep over me again as I read that "words were dying, quietly and unlamented, through lack of use on the lips of younger people; it seemed, at times, that only the old remembered, and as they in due course became silent, whole lexicons of vocabulary were heard no more."
However, I found comfort in: "Their world - their country, with all its stories - was still there, not just in memory, but, in sometimes quite subtle ways, all around them, a reassuring presence that gave the same comfort as a parent might give, just by being present, when darkness falls."
Then, I found it endearing when Mma Ramotswe notices that her husband "had eaten his last sausage and had almost finished his helping of pumpkin, and with that instinct that so many women have, that wonderful caring feeling for those whom they loved, she speared a sausage on her fork and passed it to him."
Wise words from Mma Ramotswe: "We are a detective agency - we are not menders of souls. All we can say is that it is best not to be unkind in this life."
Further tea quotes:
"Perhaps we should think about it over a cup of tea. Tea, of course, was always the solution to a difficult issue."
"she added, 'Would you like another cup of tea, Mma Makutsi?' Tea was always safe - always."
I enjoyed the passage that talks about business owners of businesses such as dry cleaners and hardware stores knowing the basic needs of their customers before they come through the door. However, "nobody went into a dry-cleaner's or a hardware store to unburden themselves of some long-concealed secret or a nagging fear." For those needs, they might visit a detective agency and hope to "find the listening ear, and the solace, that troubled people so sorely need."
One of my favorite characters is Mma Potokwani who manages the Orphan Farm. I love how she expands her initial banner that answers the question what do children need? She begins with:
"They need one thing: unconditional love. If they have that, they have everything," and adds a second thing: "healthy food, with not too many fried dishes," next she adds a third thing: "a lot of outdoor exercise," and finally, a fourth thing: "a regular routine."
When we are young, well-meaning people tell us our lives will pass by very quickly and "we think that this is just one of those things that adults say and that as children we know to be false." Then, before we know it we have lived a lifetime and are telling young people about the "old days" that they have no memory of and we realize that it is true that life passes quickly by and we "feel a bit sad, really, because none of us wants to say goodbye to the place we love, and the people too..."
I felt sadness creep over me again as I read that "words were dying, quietly and unlamented, through lack of use on the lips of younger people; it seemed, at times, that only the old remembered, and as they in due course became silent, whole lexicons of vocabulary were heard no more."
However, I found comfort in: "Their world - their country, with all its stories - was still there, not just in memory, but, in sometimes quite subtle ways, all around them, a reassuring presence that gave the same comfort as a parent might give, just by being present, when darkness falls."
Then, I found it endearing when Mma Ramotswe notices that her husband "had eaten his last sausage and had almost finished his helping of pumpkin, and with that instinct that so many women have, that wonderful caring feeling for those whom they loved, she speared a sausage on her fork and passed it to him."
Wise words from Mma Ramotswe: "We are a detective agency - we are not menders of souls. All we can say is that it is best not to be unkind in this life."
Further tea quotes:
"Perhaps we should think about it over a cup of tea. Tea, of course, was always the solution to a difficult issue."
"she added, 'Would you like another cup of tea, Mma Makutsi?' Tea was always safe - always."
November 8, 2025
Precious and Grace receive a visit from a new client neither of them particularly likes, but they still have to work the case, which turns out to be wrought with confusion. Precious' husband has a new friend who is spending a lot of time with him, but even Precious struggles to like him--yes, two unlikable men in the same book. Pumpkins are growing, and Precious' good friend at the orphanage hopes to enter her biggest one in a contest once the rainy season gets going.
Better to read the blurb; even better yet, read the book. It never ceases to amaze me that McCall Smith manages to keep this series singing after so many installments.
Better to read the blurb; even better yet, read the book. It never ceases to amaze me that McCall Smith manages to keep this series singing after so many installments.
October 18, 2025
I’ve read every book in this series and unfortunately I feel the characters are getting a bit stale. There was almost no mention of Mma Romatswe’s children in this book. As a long time reader, I would have liked to see the children’s characters developed a bit more as they grow older, perhaps working with Precious or JLB in their respective businesses. No mention at all of Mma Makutski’s child at all. I was disappointed in the same old rehashed plots of the past. I agree with many of the other reviewers that in this chaotic world it is a comforting book to read when all the characters are good and honest people, but the story needs some refreshment.
July 25, 2025
This latest installment of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency is exactly what fans of the series love: a cozy, slightly meandering trip through the pages, with plenty of tea-drinking moments and reflective conversations, alongside a couple of lightly plotted cases for the ladies to exercise their insight on. There is definitely a need for quiet and gentle fiction like this in today's world, and I'm happy that Alexander McCall Smith is around to provide it.
Thanks to Pantheon through Netgalley for this digital review copy!
Thanks to Pantheon through Netgalley for this digital review copy!
July 18, 2025
This is the twenty sixth in the captivating No.1 Ladies Detective series. The beloved characters, including the talking shoes, are all back.
Precious Ramotse and her associate, who has yet again given herself a new title, are approached by a man who seeks their help in investigating his wife. As they delve into the case, there are some unexpected twists. Meanwhile, her husband, Mr J. L. B. Matekoni, has a new friend, a prosperous man in the auto business. The women and Charlie harbor suspicions about this new friend’s ulterior motives.
Mma Ramotswe, as always, demonstrates her remarkable ability to devise clever and successful solutions to problems. Her gentle demeanor and unwavering optimism in finding the positive in even the most challenging situations offer a sense of comfort and solace. Her wisdom is profound in its simplicity.
With its intriguing plotlines and colorful characters, this is another delightful addition to the series. It’s an ideal choice for a cozy afternoon or evening read, accompanied by a warm pot of tea. Fans of McCall Smith’s gentle prose and insightful musings will undoubtedly find this latest endeavor to be a welcome addition to their reading list.
Thanks to @NetGalley and @aaknopf for the DRC.
Precious Ramotse and her associate, who has yet again given herself a new title, are approached by a man who seeks their help in investigating his wife. As they delve into the case, there are some unexpected twists. Meanwhile, her husband, Mr J. L. B. Matekoni, has a new friend, a prosperous man in the auto business. The women and Charlie harbor suspicions about this new friend’s ulterior motives.
Mma Ramotswe, as always, demonstrates her remarkable ability to devise clever and successful solutions to problems. Her gentle demeanor and unwavering optimism in finding the positive in even the most challenging situations offer a sense of comfort and solace. Her wisdom is profound in its simplicity.
With its intriguing plotlines and colorful characters, this is another delightful addition to the series. It’s an ideal choice for a cozy afternoon or evening read, accompanied by a warm pot of tea. Fans of McCall Smith’s gentle prose and insightful musings will undoubtedly find this latest endeavor to be a welcome addition to their reading list.
Thanks to @NetGalley and @aaknopf for the DRC.
October 19, 2025
Mma Makutsi take a dislike to the new prospective client, who wants surveillance on his wife, who he thinks is having an affair. Then, the wife comes to the agency requesting surveillance on her husband, convinced that he's cheating on her. Meanwhile, Charlie is suspicious of Mr. JLB Matakoni's new friend, who takes him on a dangerous fishing trip. There is also contributed wisdom from Mma. Potokwane and of course Precious Ramotswe is able to solve her cases, as usual, in a kind and diplomatic way.
September 24, 2025
In the Time of Five Pumpkins is another delightful and heartwarming addition to the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series! Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi have a new client, Mr. Modise, who feels his wife no longer loves him, and may be having an affair. As they begin their investigation, they are approached by his wife, who feels her husband may be having an affair! Meanwhile, Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni, Mma Ramotswe's husband, has developed a friendship with another garage owner, Mr. Mogorosi, who may not have honorable intentions. Mma Makutsi and Charlie both aid in this case, with a little advice from the shoes. (The shoes are a favorite character in the series!) Both cases are puzzling mysteries, and there is a bit of danger, but the heart of the book lies in the wit and gentle wisdom of the characters, and their interaction with each other. There are visits with Mma Potokwane, who runs the orphanage, and interactions with one of the orphans. She is growing pumpkins for the fair, and she frequently shares with Mma Ramotswe several slices of her famous fruitcake. I have never been to Botswana, but these books have transported me to that country and all its beauty. Alexander McCall Smith has written another beautiful addition to this series, with two intricate plots, that is full of his wit, wisdom and the love, caring and friendship as seen through the eyes of his characters. I love this book and the series. Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for my advance copy. The opinions of this review are my own.
September 18, 2025
This 26th book of the series is another leisurely visit with the ladies of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. It is always a joy to drink Red Bush tea and eat a slice (or two) of fruitcake with Mma Ramotswe, Mma Potokwani, and Mma Makutsi.
In this one, they are asked by a man to find out why his wife doesn’t love him anymore and to see if she is having an affair with another man. A few days later, the man’s wife comes in and hires them to find out if he is having an affair on her! Well, Precious and Grace must put their heads together to figure this one out. And with a little help from Charlie they get to the bottom of the mystery.
At the same time, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni makes a new friend -- or is he a friend? There are many questions about this new man, and there might even be a little danger involved!
What fun and excitement rolls through the lives of these unlikely characters who would rather sit, drink tea, and talk about the philosophy of life. But they still do their best to try to make the world a better place.
I really enjoyed this one and highly recommend it!
I’d like to thank NetGalley, Alexander McCall Smith, and Pantheon for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my unbiased review.
In this one, they are asked by a man to find out why his wife doesn’t love him anymore and to see if she is having an affair with another man. A few days later, the man’s wife comes in and hires them to find out if he is having an affair on her! Well, Precious and Grace must put their heads together to figure this one out. And with a little help from Charlie they get to the bottom of the mystery.
At the same time, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni makes a new friend -- or is he a friend? There are many questions about this new man, and there might even be a little danger involved!
What fun and excitement rolls through the lives of these unlikely characters who would rather sit, drink tea, and talk about the philosophy of life. But they still do their best to try to make the world a better place.
I really enjoyed this one and highly recommend it!
I’d like to thank NetGalley, Alexander McCall Smith, and Pantheon for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my unbiased review.
October 2, 2025
It's always fun to return to these Botswana characters. This one was a light-hearted cozy read like they all are and there were some funny moments along with some poignant ones but overall it's not going to be the most memorable book of the series for me. Good on audio and just a light, easy read.
April 18, 2026
In the Time of Five Pumpkins - McCall-Smith
Audio performance by Bianca Amato
3 stars
Another pleasant visit with Mma Ramorswe. It surprises me that I continue to enjoy these books. I don’t usually like books that preach. This book might even have more than the usual amount of ‘love for fellow man’ message than other books in this long series. In another book I would be annoyed with characters who are contrived only to preach a sermon. The characters in this series are likable, flawed people who strive to live the message. That makes all the difference.
In this book the agency becomes concerned that Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni may be in danger from a conniving new friend. Not to worry, his bravery and unfailing decency cause the manipulative friend to confess and repent. Life goes on with tea, fruit cake, and pumpkins.
This is book therapy. A peaceful retreat from the news of the day.
Audio performance by Bianca Amato
3 stars
Another pleasant visit with Mma Ramorswe. It surprises me that I continue to enjoy these books. I don’t usually like books that preach. This book might even have more than the usual amount of ‘love for fellow man’ message than other books in this long series. In another book I would be annoyed with characters who are contrived only to preach a sermon. The characters in this series are likable, flawed people who strive to live the message. That makes all the difference.
In this book the agency becomes concerned that Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni may be in danger from a conniving new friend. Not to worry, his bravery and unfailing decency cause the manipulative friend to confess and repent. Life goes on with tea, fruit cake, and pumpkins.
This is book therapy. A peaceful retreat from the news of the day.
October 30, 2025
Time spent reading a No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency novel is always well-spent.
Precious has a new case involving a husband who suspects his wife is having an affair. Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni has a new friend, but that friendship involves a brush with a crocodile and other dangers. As always, there is fruitcake and the chance to sit and talk over cups of tea.
Precious has a new case involving a husband who suspects his wife is having an affair. Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni has a new friend, but that friendship involves a brush with a crocodile and other dangers. As always, there is fruitcake and the chance to sit and talk over cups of tea.
February 8, 2026
Another beautifully written book with many observations relevant to the times we’re living in. I’ve enjoyed every single book in this series!!
December 1, 2025
Aivan ihana hyvän mielen kirja, niin kuin nämä kaikki.
October 29, 2025
Mme. Ramotswe latest client is, everyone agrees, very annoying. And while discovering whether a spouse has been unfaithful is usually a simple matter, the case becomes rather more complicated when his wife comes to the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency and hires them to follow her husband who she claims is the unfaithful one. Meanwhile, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni has made a new friend but everyone else is convinced that the man's motivation for seeking friendship is not what it seems.
As usual, reading these stories is always a lovely and relaxing journey to a place that it is impossible to believe exists, especially now. Where people are greeted in a respectful manner, orphaned children are cared for, rain always comes eventually to a parched and grateful land, and goodness and kindness win in the end. I've read all 26 and look forward to the next.
As usual, reading these stories is always a lovely and relaxing journey to a place that it is impossible to believe exists, especially now. Where people are greeted in a respectful manner, orphaned children are cared for, rain always comes eventually to a parched and grateful land, and goodness and kindness win in the end. I've read all 26 and look forward to the next.
October 13, 2025
I adore Precious Ramotswe, Mr. J.L.B Matekone, Mma. Potekwane, Mma. Makutsi and all the other lovely characters in these books. I would like to say that I hope the series never ends, but it is most definitely beginning to drag.
Each novel generally has two plot lines. The first was the usual case for the detective agency with a husband coming in because he feared his wife was cheating on him. The second involved Mr. J.L.B Matekone’s new friend who everyone suspected was up to something nefarious.
Once this was established everything slowed to a crawl with stories and sidetracks and dialogue that just never went anywhere. Eventually, a couple of unusually exciting events did take place and the ending was surprisingly interesting, but there was a lot of nothing in between.
Will I continue reading? Absolutely. These novels are sweet and gentle and comforting with familiar friends and patterns, but they are getting a little tedious.
Each novel generally has two plot lines. The first was the usual case for the detective agency with a husband coming in because he feared his wife was cheating on him. The second involved Mr. J.L.B Matekone’s new friend who everyone suspected was up to something nefarious.
Once this was established everything slowed to a crawl with stories and sidetracks and dialogue that just never went anywhere. Eventually, a couple of unusually exciting events did take place and the ending was surprisingly interesting, but there was a lot of nothing in between.
Will I continue reading? Absolutely. These novels are sweet and gentle and comforting with familiar friends and patterns, but they are getting a little tedious.
September 8, 2025
An easy listen but a little predictable. I have read the whole series and love the characters and atmosphere but I found this episode less engaging than most.
March 9, 2026
The first storm that breaks a long, thirsty season does more than soak the dust; it changes how a place listens to itself. In In the Time of Five Pumpkins, rain arrives in Gaborone as both weather and promise, nudging the world of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency into motion: pumpkins swell in a garden, old worries find new shape, and ordinary people come forward with the kind of dilemmas that can’t be solved by laws alone. They require listening, patience, and a stubborn faith that kindness is still the most practical tool in the box.
This twenty-sixth visit with Mma Precious Ramotswe is, like the others, less about catching wrongdoers than about tending to human knots. The book’s title points to its quiet thesis. We measure time not only in hours but in seasons of ripening: in the span between planting and harvest; between hurt and healing. When storms finally cross the sky and red bush tea steams again on familiar tables, the reader is reminded that growth is a process you can encourage, not rush.
The first strand centers on a man who fights termites for a living and feels powerless at home. Mr. Excellence Modise—an entrepreneur with loud shoes and louder pride—arrives at the little office on the Tlokweng Road convinced that his wife’s warmth has moved elsewhere. He has no proof, just a fear he carries like a pebble in his shoe. Mma Ramotswe and her colleague Grace Makutsi agree to look into it, though both recognize the risk: people ask detectives to find facts, but what they often want is reassurance that their story about themselves is true. The case quietly becomes a study in how insecurity distorts perception and how dignity, once dented, can make even loving people sound sharper than they mean to be. The pleasure here is not in stakeouts or reveals but in the unhurried way conversations soften, humor returns, and pride makes a small place for the truth.
Woven alongside is an anxiety of a different kind. Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni—the good man who can repair a gearbox and a heart with the same sincerity—has fallen in with Mr. Mogorosi, a genial figure in the motor trade whose invitations sound harmless until they do not. A fishing trip on waters known to have teeth becomes emblem and foreshadowing: some friendships are rivers that carry you; others are pools that look shallow until you step in. Mma Ramotswe’s concern for her husband is practical rather than dramatic—phone calls, second thoughts, a familiar ache in the stomach—and the narrative treats this care as both love and wisdom. You do not protect someone by caging them; you protect them by naming the risks and trusting their character to meet them.
There is also the Orphan Farm, a place in these books that has never been sentimentalized, because it does not need to be. Its reality is better than sentiment: food cooked, beds made, knees washed, and laughter that survives everything that tried to silence it. At a sports day where the cheering is a kind of civic weather, Mma Ramotswe notices a boy who falls just short of the finish and, for a moment, looks smaller than his age. His name is Thabiso. The scene is brief, but it refuses to be minor. One gentle exchange, a small act that calls bravery by its right name, and the reader feels the book’s thesis again: prizes can be given for speed; they should also be given for grace under unfair weight. This is how the series finds its power—by treating goodness as something practiced, not proclaimed.
The interplay between Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi continues to supply both humor and ballast. Grace is self-assured—sometimes extravagantly so—and her devotion to her famous exam result is half joke, half armoring. Yet again the book allows her brisk judgments to meet their counterweight in Precious’s steadier patience. Neither woman is flattened into a lesson. They are friends who irritate and admire each other in equal measure, and the office works because the friendship works. The agency’s “cases” are really occasions for this chemistry, for the dance of briskness and benevolence to face new music.
If the novel advances any argument, it is that a society’s character is revealed in how it handles small injustices. A husband believes himself unloved and becomes casually cruel; a respectable businessman imagines his intentions need no scrutiny; a child’s life is pinched by circumstances that were never his choice. None of these occasions call for car chases. They call for listening that is stubborn, courtesy that is earned, and an appetite for red bush tea that doubles as philosophy: slow down, sip, and think again.
Readers who have traveled this road before will recognize the book’s patient gait. The narration makes room for digression—about language, about titles, about who gets to claim expertise and why—and these side paths become the real route. A churchman’s unkind remark about a “silly woman” is gently corrected, and the correction arrives not with a lecture but with a reminder that respect is part of civilization’s daily maintenance. A conversation about metabolism wanders into a confession about cake, and what might have been a joke ends up as an exchange of gratitude between spouses. The book’s moral vision rests less on events than on sentences that choose generosity over speed.
This approach will likewise create the book’s natural limits. The stakes are small by design; the conflicts seldom boom louder than a raised eyebrow. Those who prefer a lock-tight plot or who count pages between revelations may wish for more pressure in the line. Even among devoted readers, there will be moments where repetition feels like the price of constancy: another conversation about titles, another teasing reference to the famous 97 percent, another polite standoff with someone who thinks loudness equals authority. But what looks repetitive from a distance reads, close up, like ritual—the way families repeat a grace before meals or fix the same stew that never disappoints. In that repetition the book attempts something countercultural: it insists that warmth can be interesting, that courtesy can change outcomes, and that moral clarity belongs to ordinary days.
The Botswana on these pages feels lived-in rather than staged. It is a country with skies that mean something and roads that remember where you were headed even when you pause to speak with a neighbor. The economy is visible in the work people do; the social safety net is visible in the work friends do for each other. If there is nostalgia here, it is not for a vanished past but for manners that still function: you knock before entering; you apologize when you have been too sharp; you accept cake when offered, because refusing it would be to refuse fellowship. The effect is a realism tuned to decency.
Mr. Excellence Modise’s predicament is instructive. When he first appears, he is all color and volume, a man who plans to conquer heartbreak with slogans. The book lets him talk that way long enough for us to tire of it; then it lets him admit what he is really scared of. The detective agency does not catch him in a lie so much as coax him into a truer story about himself. There is a line the narrative does not cross. It does not mediate the marriage; it does not prescribe a cure. It suggests, quite simply, that regard is a two-handed object. You can’t hold it without letting go of something else—mainly, your need to be right.
As for Mr. Mogorosi, his function is less villainy than temptation. He belongs to that class of men whose friendliness is tactical. The question the book asks is not “Will he be unmasked?” but “Will good sense hold?” Watching Mr. J.L.B. weigh a pleasant invitation against a wife’s intuitions dramatizes the most reliable tension in the series: not men versus women, but caution versus carelessness. If the scene on the water feels briefly perilous, it is not solely because reptiles live there; it is because trust does, too, and trust is more easily bruised than skin.
Mma Potokwane, as ever, serves as a kind of conscience with a recipe box. She is practical where others are worried, and worried where others are blind. Her office noticeboard, with its ever-expanding list of what children need, is one of the book’s wittiest moral devices. Love is the headline; everything else—healthy food, exercise, routine—forces love to become logistics. The book honors that work. It is good to say children need unconditional love; it is better to laminate the statement and pin it where you will see it every morning before the first kettle boils.
The language of the novel remains a calibrated blend of plain statement and amused wonder. Observations begin in the small and end up wide enough to include a country. People are rarely mocked; they are, when necessary, corrected. The humor arises from mismatches in confidence: those who speak loudest often know least, and the punchline is delivered by politeness that refuses to budge. Dialogue is allowed to be elliptical; conclusions are allowed to be earned rather than announced. In this, the book asks the reader to become a kind of detective as well—looking for motive in tone, truth in the pauses, and character in how people return a cup to its saucer.
Longtime fans will find the comforts they came for: the reliable furniture of the office; the marital warmth that never curdles into piety; the social landscape where elders and “aunties” retain the dignity of expertise, and where modernity is welcomed so long as it behaves itself. New readers will discover that the series can be entered here, though they may enjoy the cadences more fully if they have already walked the length of the street and recognize who lives behind which door. Either way, the book’s invitation is the same: sit, have tea, tell the truth you can manage, and see what kindness makes possible.
If the novel’s virtues can be summarized, they are these: patience without passivity, humor without cruelty, and hope without naivety. If its faults can be summarized, they amount to familiar trade-offs: a preference for character over velocity, and an occasional willingness to let a motif do work that a scene might have done. But even these become part of the book’s charm. The story moves like a well-kept bicycle—quietly, decisively, with a bell that rings when needed, not for show.
And the pumpkins? They are not a metaphor to be explained so much as a presence to be noticed. They grow when rain and attention meet. They feed people when cut open. They sit in the corner of a chapter the way a piece of good advice sits in the corner of a day—bright, sturdy, inevitable. In their time, five pumpkins become enough to nourish a household, a case or two, a marriage under mild strain, and a boy who needed to hear that falling down is not the same as failing.
By the closing pages, what is mended has been mended not by force but by decency that proved itself, one conversation at a time. The detective agency has, as usual, done something slightly different from what its clients imagined: it has made room for them to be better than their fears. In a publishing world that often confuses volume with value, this is a quietly radical claim. The novel suggests that a society can be held together by people who remember to knock, who forgive, who notice a scuffed knee and call it courage, and who keep a tin of fruit cake where it can do the most good.
My rating: 79/100.
This twenty-sixth visit with Mma Precious Ramotswe is, like the others, less about catching wrongdoers than about tending to human knots. The book’s title points to its quiet thesis. We measure time not only in hours but in seasons of ripening: in the span between planting and harvest; between hurt and healing. When storms finally cross the sky and red bush tea steams again on familiar tables, the reader is reminded that growth is a process you can encourage, not rush.
The first strand centers on a man who fights termites for a living and feels powerless at home. Mr. Excellence Modise—an entrepreneur with loud shoes and louder pride—arrives at the little office on the Tlokweng Road convinced that his wife’s warmth has moved elsewhere. He has no proof, just a fear he carries like a pebble in his shoe. Mma Ramotswe and her colleague Grace Makutsi agree to look into it, though both recognize the risk: people ask detectives to find facts, but what they often want is reassurance that their story about themselves is true. The case quietly becomes a study in how insecurity distorts perception and how dignity, once dented, can make even loving people sound sharper than they mean to be. The pleasure here is not in stakeouts or reveals but in the unhurried way conversations soften, humor returns, and pride makes a small place for the truth.
Woven alongside is an anxiety of a different kind. Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni—the good man who can repair a gearbox and a heart with the same sincerity—has fallen in with Mr. Mogorosi, a genial figure in the motor trade whose invitations sound harmless until they do not. A fishing trip on waters known to have teeth becomes emblem and foreshadowing: some friendships are rivers that carry you; others are pools that look shallow until you step in. Mma Ramotswe’s concern for her husband is practical rather than dramatic—phone calls, second thoughts, a familiar ache in the stomach—and the narrative treats this care as both love and wisdom. You do not protect someone by caging them; you protect them by naming the risks and trusting their character to meet them.
There is also the Orphan Farm, a place in these books that has never been sentimentalized, because it does not need to be. Its reality is better than sentiment: food cooked, beds made, knees washed, and laughter that survives everything that tried to silence it. At a sports day where the cheering is a kind of civic weather, Mma Ramotswe notices a boy who falls just short of the finish and, for a moment, looks smaller than his age. His name is Thabiso. The scene is brief, but it refuses to be minor. One gentle exchange, a small act that calls bravery by its right name, and the reader feels the book’s thesis again: prizes can be given for speed; they should also be given for grace under unfair weight. This is how the series finds its power—by treating goodness as something practiced, not proclaimed.
The interplay between Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi continues to supply both humor and ballast. Grace is self-assured—sometimes extravagantly so—and her devotion to her famous exam result is half joke, half armoring. Yet again the book allows her brisk judgments to meet their counterweight in Precious’s steadier patience. Neither woman is flattened into a lesson. They are friends who irritate and admire each other in equal measure, and the office works because the friendship works. The agency’s “cases” are really occasions for this chemistry, for the dance of briskness and benevolence to face new music.
If the novel advances any argument, it is that a society’s character is revealed in how it handles small injustices. A husband believes himself unloved and becomes casually cruel; a respectable businessman imagines his intentions need no scrutiny; a child’s life is pinched by circumstances that were never his choice. None of these occasions call for car chases. They call for listening that is stubborn, courtesy that is earned, and an appetite for red bush tea that doubles as philosophy: slow down, sip, and think again.
Readers who have traveled this road before will recognize the book’s patient gait. The narration makes room for digression—about language, about titles, about who gets to claim expertise and why—and these side paths become the real route. A churchman’s unkind remark about a “silly woman” is gently corrected, and the correction arrives not with a lecture but with a reminder that respect is part of civilization’s daily maintenance. A conversation about metabolism wanders into a confession about cake, and what might have been a joke ends up as an exchange of gratitude between spouses. The book’s moral vision rests less on events than on sentences that choose generosity over speed.
This approach will likewise create the book’s natural limits. The stakes are small by design; the conflicts seldom boom louder than a raised eyebrow. Those who prefer a lock-tight plot or who count pages between revelations may wish for more pressure in the line. Even among devoted readers, there will be moments where repetition feels like the price of constancy: another conversation about titles, another teasing reference to the famous 97 percent, another polite standoff with someone who thinks loudness equals authority. But what looks repetitive from a distance reads, close up, like ritual—the way families repeat a grace before meals or fix the same stew that never disappoints. In that repetition the book attempts something countercultural: it insists that warmth can be interesting, that courtesy can change outcomes, and that moral clarity belongs to ordinary days.
The Botswana on these pages feels lived-in rather than staged. It is a country with skies that mean something and roads that remember where you were headed even when you pause to speak with a neighbor. The economy is visible in the work people do; the social safety net is visible in the work friends do for each other. If there is nostalgia here, it is not for a vanished past but for manners that still function: you knock before entering; you apologize when you have been too sharp; you accept cake when offered, because refusing it would be to refuse fellowship. The effect is a realism tuned to decency.
Mr. Excellence Modise’s predicament is instructive. When he first appears, he is all color and volume, a man who plans to conquer heartbreak with slogans. The book lets him talk that way long enough for us to tire of it; then it lets him admit what he is really scared of. The detective agency does not catch him in a lie so much as coax him into a truer story about himself. There is a line the narrative does not cross. It does not mediate the marriage; it does not prescribe a cure. It suggests, quite simply, that regard is a two-handed object. You can’t hold it without letting go of something else—mainly, your need to be right.
As for Mr. Mogorosi, his function is less villainy than temptation. He belongs to that class of men whose friendliness is tactical. The question the book asks is not “Will he be unmasked?” but “Will good sense hold?” Watching Mr. J.L.B. weigh a pleasant invitation against a wife’s intuitions dramatizes the most reliable tension in the series: not men versus women, but caution versus carelessness. If the scene on the water feels briefly perilous, it is not solely because reptiles live there; it is because trust does, too, and trust is more easily bruised than skin.
Mma Potokwane, as ever, serves as a kind of conscience with a recipe box. She is practical where others are worried, and worried where others are blind. Her office noticeboard, with its ever-expanding list of what children need, is one of the book’s wittiest moral devices. Love is the headline; everything else—healthy food, exercise, routine—forces love to become logistics. The book honors that work. It is good to say children need unconditional love; it is better to laminate the statement and pin it where you will see it every morning before the first kettle boils.
The language of the novel remains a calibrated blend of plain statement and amused wonder. Observations begin in the small and end up wide enough to include a country. People are rarely mocked; they are, when necessary, corrected. The humor arises from mismatches in confidence: those who speak loudest often know least, and the punchline is delivered by politeness that refuses to budge. Dialogue is allowed to be elliptical; conclusions are allowed to be earned rather than announced. In this, the book asks the reader to become a kind of detective as well—looking for motive in tone, truth in the pauses, and character in how people return a cup to its saucer.
Longtime fans will find the comforts they came for: the reliable furniture of the office; the marital warmth that never curdles into piety; the social landscape where elders and “aunties” retain the dignity of expertise, and where modernity is welcomed so long as it behaves itself. New readers will discover that the series can be entered here, though they may enjoy the cadences more fully if they have already walked the length of the street and recognize who lives behind which door. Either way, the book’s invitation is the same: sit, have tea, tell the truth you can manage, and see what kindness makes possible.
If the novel’s virtues can be summarized, they are these: patience without passivity, humor without cruelty, and hope without naivety. If its faults can be summarized, they amount to familiar trade-offs: a preference for character over velocity, and an occasional willingness to let a motif do work that a scene might have done. But even these become part of the book’s charm. The story moves like a well-kept bicycle—quietly, decisively, with a bell that rings when needed, not for show.
And the pumpkins? They are not a metaphor to be explained so much as a presence to be noticed. They grow when rain and attention meet. They feed people when cut open. They sit in the corner of a chapter the way a piece of good advice sits in the corner of a day—bright, sturdy, inevitable. In their time, five pumpkins become enough to nourish a household, a case or two, a marriage under mild strain, and a boy who needed to hear that falling down is not the same as failing.
By the closing pages, what is mended has been mended not by force but by decency that proved itself, one conversation at a time. The detective agency has, as usual, done something slightly different from what its clients imagined: it has made room for them to be better than their fears. In a publishing world that often confuses volume with value, this is a quietly radical claim. The novel suggests that a society can be held together by people who remember to knock, who forgive, who notice a scuffed knee and call it courage, and who keep a tin of fruit cake where it can do the most good.
My rating: 79/100.
December 13, 2025
“She had felt doubtful earlier on, but now she felt more confident about the likely outcome. Lunch could do that sort of thing: you might sit down in a state of indecision, and get up from it with a renewed sense of certainty, particularly if you took your lunch at the President Hotel, and if the chicken and rice that you ordered was perfectly cooked and quite delicious – particularly then.”
In The Time Of Five Pumpkins is the twenty-sixth book in the popular Ladies Number One Detective Agency series by award-winning, bestselling British author, Sir Alexander McCall Smith. In it, readers are once again privy to the lives of Botawana’s finest private detectives and vehicle mechanics as they ply their trade on the Tlokweng Road in Gabarone.
When Precious Ramotse notices Grace Makursi’s latest promotion of herself, to executive president for development, she muses that “People paid very little attention to the titles that people gave themselves in the working world. What mattered was whether the work of the business was done to the satisfaction of the client, and there was no doubt but that Mma Makutsi was efficient and, what was more, effective.”
Although the first impression that their new client, Mr Excellence Modise conveys is none too favourable, he is a client, and he believes his wife is having an affair. In the process of teaching apprentice detective Charlie, their surveillance is less covert than it could be, and Mma Alesang Modise challenges Precious to support the sisterhood and, instead, investigate her husband. It presents her with a conflict of interest: what will she decide?
At Mma Sylvia Potokwani’s Orphan Farm, Precious observes a boy whose history proves he is brave, and in his interaction with her, unfailingly polite. He might have lost the running race, but Precious presents him with a prize anyway. Fruitcake is enjoyed, and Precious is shown the titular pumpkins that are being grown by Mma Potokwani for the Tlokweng Agricultural Show: will any of them win a prize?
When Mr JLB Matekoni suddenly acquires a new friend, Mma Makutsi is not the only one who questions the genuineness of Freddie Mogorosi’s intentions and, after a potentially fatal incident, Charlie shares his theory about what is really going on. Is Mr J.L.B. Matekoni’s life in danger?
Afterwards, “he wanted nothing more than to be back home, sitting on the veranda of the house on Zebra Drive, drinking tea with Mma Ramotswe and reflecting on the fact that between an exciting life and a dull but safe existence, he would, on balance, choose the latter.”
In this instalment, Precious opines that both Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors and the Number One Ladies Detective Agency are in the business of caring; Grace and Phuti discuss the alarming trend towards uncomfortable furniture; A fable about a coop of hens and a jackal is used to illustrate a point; Precious reconnects with a friend from her youth.
Also, the energy of small children is marvelled at; Precious remembers the wise words about the country’s creatures that her beloved Daddy, Obed Ramotswe bestowed upon her; observing Mma Ramotswe, Charlie learns the value of the right questions and the occasional compliment in garnering useful information; and Mr J.L.B. Matekoni improvises to facilitate an act of bravery, later demonstrating his goodness by being generously forgiving.
As always, McCall Smith gives the reader some minor mysteries that don’t tax the brain too much, laced with plenty of gentle philosophy, humour, and wise and insightful observations. Guaranteed feel-good.
In The Time Of Five Pumpkins is the twenty-sixth book in the popular Ladies Number One Detective Agency series by award-winning, bestselling British author, Sir Alexander McCall Smith. In it, readers are once again privy to the lives of Botawana’s finest private detectives and vehicle mechanics as they ply their trade on the Tlokweng Road in Gabarone.
When Precious Ramotse notices Grace Makursi’s latest promotion of herself, to executive president for development, she muses that “People paid very little attention to the titles that people gave themselves in the working world. What mattered was whether the work of the business was done to the satisfaction of the client, and there was no doubt but that Mma Makutsi was efficient and, what was more, effective.”
Although the first impression that their new client, Mr Excellence Modise conveys is none too favourable, he is a client, and he believes his wife is having an affair. In the process of teaching apprentice detective Charlie, their surveillance is less covert than it could be, and Mma Alesang Modise challenges Precious to support the sisterhood and, instead, investigate her husband. It presents her with a conflict of interest: what will she decide?
At Mma Sylvia Potokwani’s Orphan Farm, Precious observes a boy whose history proves he is brave, and in his interaction with her, unfailingly polite. He might have lost the running race, but Precious presents him with a prize anyway. Fruitcake is enjoyed, and Precious is shown the titular pumpkins that are being grown by Mma Potokwani for the Tlokweng Agricultural Show: will any of them win a prize?
When Mr JLB Matekoni suddenly acquires a new friend, Mma Makutsi is not the only one who questions the genuineness of Freddie Mogorosi’s intentions and, after a potentially fatal incident, Charlie shares his theory about what is really going on. Is Mr J.L.B. Matekoni’s life in danger?
Afterwards, “he wanted nothing more than to be back home, sitting on the veranda of the house on Zebra Drive, drinking tea with Mma Ramotswe and reflecting on the fact that between an exciting life and a dull but safe existence, he would, on balance, choose the latter.”
In this instalment, Precious opines that both Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors and the Number One Ladies Detective Agency are in the business of caring; Grace and Phuti discuss the alarming trend towards uncomfortable furniture; A fable about a coop of hens and a jackal is used to illustrate a point; Precious reconnects with a friend from her youth.
Also, the energy of small children is marvelled at; Precious remembers the wise words about the country’s creatures that her beloved Daddy, Obed Ramotswe bestowed upon her; observing Mma Ramotswe, Charlie learns the value of the right questions and the occasional compliment in garnering useful information; and Mr J.L.B. Matekoni improvises to facilitate an act of bravery, later demonstrating his goodness by being generously forgiving.
As always, McCall Smith gives the reader some minor mysteries that don’t tax the brain too much, laced with plenty of gentle philosophy, humour, and wise and insightful observations. Guaranteed feel-good.
October 17, 2025
I think this one is my favourite to date. A cheating couple, a shady new friend, a potential murder plot, an informer called Big Nose? What's not to love. There's even a few action scenes and a few chapters end on a cliff hanger, rare in these books.
In a world that seems mad, like its literally on fire and chaos reigns these books are a comfortable happy place to escape. A place where everyone shows kindness and even the biggest problems can be solved and the smallest worries fade away with a cup of red bush tea and a conversation.
The book begins with a new client Excellence Modise who's wife is ignoring him and he suspects an affair, only for the wife to catch Mma Ramotswe and Charlie and flip the tables on them and her husband.
Mr. JLB Matekoni has a new friend who wants to help him advance onto a motor trades government body, but does he have another motive?
Always a light, cozy, quick and fun read. Like visiting old friends. There's always a touch of humour and lots of kind wise words and I quite enjoyed this installment. There's not as much rambling or tangents these books tend to go off on and the story moves along nicely making it difficult to put down once you get going. I look forward to seeing what the next story brings.
In a world that seems mad, like its literally on fire and chaos reigns these books are a comfortable happy place to escape. A place where everyone shows kindness and even the biggest problems can be solved and the smallest worries fade away with a cup of red bush tea and a conversation.
The book begins with a new client Excellence Modise who's wife is ignoring him and he suspects an affair, only for the wife to catch Mma Ramotswe and Charlie and flip the tables on them and her husband.
Mr. JLB Matekoni has a new friend who wants to help him advance onto a motor trades government body, but does he have another motive?
Always a light, cozy, quick and fun read. Like visiting old friends. There's always a touch of humour and lots of kind wise words and I quite enjoyed this installment. There's not as much rambling or tangents these books tend to go off on and the story moves along nicely making it difficult to put down once you get going. I look forward to seeing what the next story brings.
December 13, 2025
Just what I needed. I needed a quick trip to Botswana to find out the latest in the life of Precious and friends to see what the current problems were they'd have to solve. Of course with every mystery there is a dose or two of philosophy offered. This time the message was to be more charitable in dealing with others and to consider your own personal failings before heaping too much criticism on others. I thought it was interesting that the topic of friendship between women was explored in contrast to friendship between men. There is a difference in depth and numbers. Charlie continues to mature, shoes continue to talk, and lots of tea is consumed. You get to catch up with all the characters once again, and Violet even gets a mention. The two people you never hear much about anymore are the children Precious and her husband adopted. Perhaps once they are older there will be an issue that Precious will have to deal with on their behalf or maybe eventually one or both of them might become detectives. Always ready for the next book in this series!
November 18, 2025
It is always a pleasure to read about the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. The pace of the book is what I hope is the pace of life in Botswana is like—slow and gentle. As Mma Ramotswe says: “We are reminded of how fortunate we are to live in this country.” She loves her life and her friends and family. She takes the time to appreciate everything around her, which explains why she is respected and beloved…and certainly why her little detective agency is successful.
Thank you, Alexander McCall Smith.
Thank you, Alexander McCall Smith.
November 23, 2025
As always, this latest installment in the series does not disappoint. It was lovely and sweet and fun, but this time there was a bit of excitement and danger! Such a gentle reminder of the good things of life.
“One’s friends might be here one moment, and then the next in the jaws of some crocodile somewhere.”
“Do not wait until it is your last day or two on this earth to stop and gaze at the sky, to breathe in the morning air, to be grateful for the simple fact of being alive.”
“One’s friends might be here one moment, and then the next in the jaws of some crocodile somewhere.”
“Do not wait until it is your last day or two on this earth to stop and gaze at the sky, to breathe in the morning air, to be grateful for the simple fact of being alive.”
April 12, 2026
It has been years since I have read a No 1 Ladies Detective Agency book. These books were always enjoyable with a wonderful character in Precious Ramotswe. I cannot explain why it has taken me so long to return to this series. But I'm glad to be back. Smith's books are filled with both a love for the legacy of Botswana and the citizens. The "traditionally built" Mma Ramotswe is clever, careful, and always trying to find the best in her clients and friends. While investigating and resolving many mysteries, she never forgets that we are all human with frailties. So glad to be back in this long series
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