Miss Hortense and the Last Rites

Miss Hortense #2

by Mel Pennant

Nine nights to solve a murder...or she'll be next.

When Bigglesweigh's notorious gangster, Cuttah, uses up the last of his nine lives, and is found dead at his flat, there is only one person who can solve the mystery of who killed indomitable retired NHS nurse Miss Hortense.

Cuttah left a letter with a list of suspects. There's just one Miss Hortense's name is on the list and she only has nine days before his cronies seek retribution...

PRAISE FOR A MURDER FOR MISS HORTENSE:

'Fresh, original and intriguing from start to finish!' Janice Hallett, bestselling author of The Examiner

'What a joy - a brilliant new amateur sleuth to rival Miss Marple!' Good Housekeeping

'More than a cosy crime mystery . . . it's the story of a community' Jennie Godfrey, author of The List of Suspicious Things

292 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication July 2, 2026

About the author

Mel Pennant is an award-winning playwright whose work has appeared in the National Archives, as well as on stage. Born in London, she was raised by an extraordinary village, which included her Jamaican grandparents who moved to England in the 1950s as part of the Windrush generation. Mel is drawn to stories that explore what’s hidden below the surface and celebrate the richness and strength of tight-knit communities. She lives in London with her family and their dog, Bleu. A Murder for Miss Hortense is Mel’s first novel and she is currently writing another mystery novel starring Miss Hortense.

source: Amazon

Reviews

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second in the Miss Hortense Series but my first read and read well as a standalone. Miss Hortense is a retired NHS nurse, originally from Jamaica but now living in Bigglesweigh, Birmingham. In her retirement she is an amateur detective aided and abetted by a group of friends. There is a lot of Jamaican patois and in all honesty, more than once, I had to stop to work out the meaning and occasionally I just never got it! That said it’s worth sticking with it if you find the same.

Briefly, Hortense is at home with her friends when local gangster Cuttah’s bodyguard comes to her door demanding she comes to Cuttah’s flat immediately. She agrees and all her friends insist on following along with them. Arriving she finds Cuttah has been shot leaving a list of suspects which includes Hortense and she only has nine days to find the killer before all from the list are killed. However, before long another body is found and in quick succession bodies are falling like ninepins!

This is very character driven although there is a good and quite complex plot. I loved Hortense and her no nonsense attitude to everything, her sharp mind and her care for her family and friends albeit with a short temper at times. But the star for me is Blossom, her over dramatic nature, her word confusion and inventiveness are pure magic. An entertaining and enjoyable read.

[Mrs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was really pleased to get another Miss Hortense story from Mel Pennant via Netgalley. I think Miss Hortense is great and I love Blossom and her made up words and using them in the wrong context. This story begins with a drug lord being killed. His bodyguard/ goffer comes to bring Miss Hortense to the crime scene, Cuttah’s flat. Miss Hortense had a house full of friends at the time and they all go with her - always there for her cooking. They all have their various ideas on what happened. Miss Hortense is passed a note with a list of names including hers. These are people who will be found dead in a period of nine days. Miss Hortense is on the list and knows she must sort out this. Why is she on the list? With the help of her friends who she gives certain tasks she slowly unravels the truth. As she goes along she discovers things from her past. One thing which is lovely is the connection between herself and her nephew who is a Police Officer. I can imagine him being so frustrated with his auntie meddling in police business but proud when she is the one who solves it along the way. This is a delightful book and was pleased to see that Miss Hortense is still going in book form

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miss Hortense and the last rites is the second book in the series by Mel Pennant. Following from the first book, we are back in the town of Bigglesweigh in Birmingham.
Cuttah is the notorious drug lord has been found dead in this flat. His bodyguard visits retired Jamaican nurse Miss Hortense whilst she has a load of guests from the local pardner network. The bodyguard gives her a list of names that Cuttah has written. A list of suspects that may have killed him and surprisingly her name is also on there too. As before. Miss Hortense uses her detective skills to find the killer but as she does so the people on the list start ending up dead. She needs to find the killer before she loses her own life in the process.
I really enjoyed this second out of Miss Hortense, But I did feel that the plot was more complicated then the first and a lot of threads to remember. I liked the characters they interesting and well developed and I enjoyed the added recipes all though the book. if you are looking for a different style ‘Miss Marple ish storyline. This is a book for you. 4 stars from me,

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably a 3.5 star for me, as I did find it an engaging read. As in the first book, there are a lot of characters to try to get a hold on - some I remembered from last time, but others were new this time. There is a lot of plotting, and as with the first book, the grand reveal left me wondering whether I should have been able to keep track of everything that had been going on. (I did feel a happy feeling at one or two things Miss Hortense noted that I had also spotted!) I liked the set-up for this book, with the increasing body count and the countdown to, well, I won't specify what but it added a sense of peril as I read. There were a few recipes too, once of which I bookmarked!
Overall, this was another fun read about Miss Hortense and her investigating friends.
With thanks to Net Galley for my copy.

[Christine Lucia Asha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not going to enter into this huge mess, sorry. See my review of A Murder for Miss Hortense.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like this series. Miss Hortense might not be your typical amateur Detective - a retired nurse living as a Jamaican ex-pat in a sleepy Birmingham suburb - but, by heck, she delivers. MIss Marple with an attitude and far greater street smarts. She is more than a match for those around her, which ever side of the law they operate on. But whilst she thought she had the measure of (allegedly) retired gangster, Cuttah, it seems that he was never entirely honest with her, and the secrets he had been nursing may cost not only his life, but Miss Hortense's too.

This is, on the surface, your classic whodunnit. A murder victim - Cuttah - a list of suspects, and also a list of potential next victims, which may or may not be interchangeable. Cuttah, it seems, predicted his own death, and Miss Hortense was the one person he felt could solve his murder, whilst also managing the fact that her own name is on the hit list. Where this differs from your traditional Christie, which arguably serves as a foundation for the styling, is that the book carries a delightful mix of humour, as well as a very Jamaican flair, both in language and, in the case of the books eponymous protagonist, a steely determination and no nonsense, matter of fact way with both words and investigations.

I think that the characters are what really make this series for me. Hortense is a brilliant character. I love her intelligence, her short temper and her natural leadership. In spite of themselves, wherever she leads the others will follow, some more reluctantly than others, admittedly, and some with limited success. She has a intellectual match in Fitz, and a fun and, for readers, humorous challenge in managing close friend, fantasist, and regularly melodramatic Blossom, but together, along with the wider members of the Pardner, leads an investigation that may see a few more casualties along the way, but is rich in mystery, wit and a surprising amount of tension.

I like how Mel Pennant has stayed true to her characters and to their heritage, bringing to life the wonderful language of her Jamaican collective, portraying not only their brilliant and vibrant personalities, but also aspects of the culture that those of us from very different backgrounds may not understand. There is a true sense of community, but also an honest look at some of the darker sides of life on downtrodden estates in the city suburbs. I like that I am challenged in understanding some of the patois, but also that after a short time the ebb and flow of the patter feels so natural that translating Blossom's many fantasies is a delight, all the more witty for the authenticity of the whole narration. And from the very beginning of the story I was invested, both in terms of wondering who killed Cuttah, but also in the strange blundering nature of his right hand man, Delroy. I was intrigued, delighted and amused in equal measure and that never changed right to the very last page.

If you love a slightly cosier mystery, with brilliant characterisations and a wonderful vein of humour that still taps into some very relevant observations of communities and urban life, or if you just like a dang good read, this is most heartily recommended. I hope there is more to come. Miss Hortense is a modern day classic and I'm loving spending time with her.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Follows on from the first book. Featuring the pardner network of characters. Follows the death of a drug dealer and incorporated issues from the here and now.
Really enjoyed and will be looking out for more book's in the series

[Nailya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Those of you who have been following this page for a while know just how much I loved Murder for Miss Hortense by Mel Pennant last year. Following Miss Hortense, a retired Windrush generation nurse in a fictional Afro-Caribbean neighbourhood of Birmingham in the early 2000s, the stories revolve around the community financial support network, the Pardner network, the roots of which go back to the 1960s. The second novel deals with a new case, but the overarching plot picks up exactly where the first novel left off, making it sometimes difficult to follow who the side characters are if you haven't recently re-read the first book. In The Last Rites, Miss Hortense is tasked with solving the murder of a local drug lord who set up his own revenge scheme in anticipation of his murder. Hortense has nine nights to solve the crime, otherwise she herself will end up on the chopping block ...

The second novel reads more urgent than the first. Although the first book also dealt with issues affecting Birmingham's Black communities, the second one feels more immediate, somewhat more bitter and more uncomprising, especially since it deals with the impact of drugs on the community. The plot is a bit messy, but I am not reading these things for the plot. Miss Hortense is a great detective to follow, the other members of the Pardner Networks are charming, endearing and hilarious (I mean Blossom, okay, I mean Blossom), and the books have a strong sense of time, place and community. I liked the second one as much as I had liked the first, and I can't wait for more (next time Miss Hortense and Blossom are going on a cruise! Oh wonder!).

Thank you #NetGalley for the review copy. #misshortenseandthelastrites #melpennant #bookreview #detectivefiction