Massacre at Market Middling

Anty Boisjoly Mysteries #11

by P.J. Fitzsimmons

Genres: Mystery

162 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 12, 2026

About the author

I’m a freelance ghost for mainstream genres but when I’m my own man I write strictly for the laughs. I dream of an alternative reality in which PG Wodehouse wrote locked room mysteries, and in which I’m PG Wodehouse.

Reviews

[Kathy]

My Alzheimer's brain just cannot digest this latest Anty Boisjoly "mystery" though I have faithfully read this series. It's always been ridiculous, but now I can't handle it the nonsense rather than being amused.

Kindle Unlimited I think?

[Mary Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual, this is a funny story with a murder in a locked room and lots of dodgy characters. It's hard to know what end is up with the way the story is written and Anty's dialogue, but it makes it all the more amusing. I quite enjoyed getting confused many times along the way and continued reading knowing full well that Anty would figure things out in the end.

I can't believe we're so far along in the series. It's been great and long may it continue.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Lisa Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Huzzah! A new Anty Boisjoly mystery! Always a cause for celebration and bubbles for those of us who have fallen for this Golden Age gadabout-town man.

Anty has found himself, despite his better judgement, as the judge of the Flower Show at Market Middling and isn't going to let his inability to tell the difference between a dahlia and a daisy stop him from casting his views about the blooms of the village's residents.

And what a motley crew the Market Middling mob are - a vicar and his wife who are keeping secrets, a widow who is keen on the local constable, and a gossiping busybody who, very early on, is found dead - in a locked room.

Anty stumbles upon the doughty Inspector Wittersham, and assumes that he is on the scene to solve the locked room murder, however it soon transpires that the Inspector has a locked compartment mystery on a nearby train to solve.

The two combine to pick apart the stories of those involved and soon reach a very satisfying conclusion.

Fitzsimmons is a worthy successor to PG Wodehouse - his stories are full of frivolous fun and excellent mysteries.

Highly recommended - if you're into these sorts of books.

[Daryl P Goodwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anty mashes up the mysteries.

This is the most recent outing of the clubbable chap Anthony Boisjoly (friends call him Anty) teaming up with a police inspector detective to solve crimes. Two locked-room mysteries need solving to bring the endeavour to a satisfactory conclusion, and that part of the plotting is ingenious. An animal recurring character is part of the mix in the formula and plays an instrumental part in saving the good people from mortal peril. Despite the obligatory reverend character rendering (in the butcher's sense of the word) Anty's surname (properly pronounced to rhyme with the wine from the Beaujolais region) this rendition felt to be lacking in the clever word-play, punning and alliteration which dazzles in prior outings. Suspects abound, and Anty stages a re-enactment to expose the culprit in two murders (with some other nefarious schemes along the way, too). Worth a read, but not the best example of our waggish wunderkind.

I received a free advance review copy, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Athena · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have never giggled as much as I have while reading the Any Boisjoly books. I can't believe we're on number 11! It seems like only yesterday that I read The Case of the Canterfell Codicil and fell in love.

This entry into the series left me completely lost as to the murderer/s identity, per usual. I can never figure it out. This time we've got two "locked rooms"; one is a house and one is a moving train! Fitzsimmons' continued creativity when finding locations for new impossible murders is impressive.

There's come to be a pattern to these stories beyond the locked room aspect and I'm always entertained by it. We can count on an adorable animal guest star and an unattainable object of affection for Anty. He's either mooning about after a beautiful, uninterested, girl while trying to solve the murder, or in the case of this story, waiting patiently for the girl in question to show up, even thought he can't remember her last name.

I received my review copy from BookSirens.

[Teresa Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I continue to be amazed by Mr. Fitzsimmons' writing skills. How he manages to write such compelling mysteries with such wit and style is beyond me. He has an amazing grasp of the British upper class of the late 1920s and makes such fun of them with so much style and grace. It is hilarious. I have yet to read one of his books without giggling or laughing out loud at several points. And in the midst of all the sarcasm and dry wit, he still manages to create a mystery that fully engages the reader. I always finish one of his books with a little regret because that means I have to wait for another one to be released, but it is always worth the wait. If you haven't read any of Mr. Fitzsimmons' work, I highly recommend it. I received a review copy from the author via BookSirens, and this review reflects my honest and voluntary opinion.

[Merry Chapman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 11th book in the Anty Boisjoly Mystery series and what fun. With a lot of humor and laugh out loud moments, we have Anty once again involved in solving a locked door mystery. Anty was conned into judging a flower show having no real idea what he's judging when he discovers there is a murder in the house nearby locked from inside. But Inspector Wittersham is trying to solve a locked train compartment murder so Anty is on to both. With Wittersham, they work to solve them both. This is a fun series that not only gives you a really good mystery, but there is humor that makes you laugh along the way. This book is a great addition to a highly recommended series! I received an ARC of this book but the opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

[Shrikanth Venne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another classic from Fitzsimmons. This time it's a dual murder one in a train compartment which is again locked from inside and another in market middling in a locked house. And Anty is coincidentally in market middling judging a flower show on behalf of Adlene. While anty discovers the house murder and starts investigating while Ivor is on the way to investigate the other murder in the train. This time anty is also part of the investigation as well as our own vickers. The investigation part where vickers is sent as an investigator is hilarious. Overall it's really awesome Goodreads....😘

[Milena · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful mystery novel! If you like the golden age style mysteries, this is perfect for you.

Anty is hilarious in his inner monologue and his commentary. The vicar getting his name wrong throughout the book made me laugh out loud every time.

The mystery was really good - I deduced a small part of it but not all.

The writing style is reminiscent of the golden age mysteries with the wordy prose.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was just what I needed. Twisty and funny. While I'm not sure I always followed the logic, I always enjoyed the ride. The humor and wit had me mindful of the Wooster and Jeeves series that I used to faithfully watch on PBS many years ago except in this case the valet is the befuddled one. Loved the mysteries, the characters and the humor of this book. More please!

[So Not Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

A golden age style mistery, a locked room murder , and Bertram Wooster in disguise helping the investigations. It's my first dip in this series, but seriously, what more can you ask for? Anty Boisjoly is a lovely character splashing around in nonsense and ferns. Simply delightful, I'm so binging on the whole series now!

[Betsy · Rating 5 out of 5]

an anty boisjoly book is always a cause for celebration. another brilliant entry into the incredibly bizarre world of chaos. happy reading and lots of luck keeping all the zany characters sorted. an adventure of the best kind. please keep these marvelous books coming. we need this.

[Teddi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars a bit better than average. I got a but lost along the way but that's easy to do with the way this series is written. I just keep coming back for more though! I do like this series better than the one hus coupon features in.

[Janet Jonjack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic Fun

I like nothing better than spending time with Anty and his antics. Solving a locked room mystery with him is my kind of fun.

[Tania · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each Anty book is a treat of wit, word play and absolutely amusing hijink. I like nothing better than spending time with Anty and his antics. Solving a locked room mystery with him is my kind of fun.

[Lawrence FitzGerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another great entry in the series.

[Diana Holdridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was delightful! Not too convoluted and a great cast of characters!