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Digging Up Death
h2>When DCI Henry Peckover agrees to attend a Burns Night dinner in the tiny Highlands town of Inverballoch he has no idea what he’s getting himself into.
Sir Gilbert Potter, KCB, CBE, FBA, Britain’s most eminent archaeologist, has invited Miriam Peckover to be guest chef and Henry, Bard of the Yard, predicts a night of wine, women and song.
At first, all goes smoothly. Miriam’s haggis is delicious, the Scotch flows freely and Peckover even manages to understand some of Rabbie Burns’ poetry before going to bed a contented man.
But at 7.15 a.m. his slumbers are interrupted by the ringing of the telephone. Sir Gilbert Potter has been murdered.
Granted, Sir Gilbert Potter was a pompous bore, but who could have wanted him dead?
Might the killing be connected with the archaeological dig Sir Gilbert was leading up at Dundrummy Castle?
But surely the excavations could achieve nothing but good, especially for the poverty-stricken laird, who is hoping for a lucrative discovery on his land.
Sir Gilbert’s ambitious young assistant Posy Cork decides to continue with the dig regardless. And it’s not long before she and her colleague uncover something very interesting indeed.
But have they, as Posy hopes, discovered the body of an ancient bog man, or could this be Sir Wilfred Cuff-Bingley, another eminent archaeologist who disappeared mysteriously from the very same site some fifty years ago?
Somewhat chaotically assisted by Detective Constable Jason Twitty, Peckover decides to do some digging of his own …
'Digging Up Death' is a classic mystery from a master story-teller.
‘Seek out the Bard of the Yard … line for line, Michael Kenyon’s is the wittiest and freshest of all crime fiction … The writing never flags. It’s sharp, sparky, intelligent and warm.’ PETER LOVESEY
‘Hilarious humour adorns a plot that grips like a clothes-peg.’ TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT
‘Eventful, clue-strewn, grimly farcical fare.’ SUNDAY TIMES
‘The comic pace never slackens.’ OXFORD TIMES
‘Kenyon’s idiosyncratic characters would do P G Wodehouse proud.’ PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This book was previously published as Peckover and the Bog Man.
Michael Kenyon was born in Huddersfield in 1931. He was a reporter for the Bristol Evening Post, News Chronicle, and the Guardian, and has taught English and journalism at universities in the USA. For seven years he lived in France, and recently worked as cook to an American family in their beach palace on Long Island. He is married with three daughters.
Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on Twitter: @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via http://on.fb.me/1HweQV7. We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now.
Sir Gilbert Potter, KCB, CBE, FBA, Britain’s most eminent archaeologist, has invited Miriam Peckover to be guest chef and Henry, Bard of the Yard, predicts a night of wine, women and song.
At first, all goes smoothly. Miriam’s haggis is delicious, the Scotch flows freely and Peckover even manages to understand some of Rabbie Burns’ poetry before going to bed a contented man.
But at 7.15 a.m. his slumbers are interrupted by the ringing of the telephone. Sir Gilbert Potter has been murdered.
Granted, Sir Gilbert Potter was a pompous bore, but who could have wanted him dead?
Might the killing be connected with the archaeological dig Sir Gilbert was leading up at Dundrummy Castle?
But surely the excavations could achieve nothing but good, especially for the poverty-stricken laird, who is hoping for a lucrative discovery on his land.
Sir Gilbert’s ambitious young assistant Posy Cork decides to continue with the dig regardless. And it’s not long before she and her colleague uncover something very interesting indeed.
But have they, as Posy hopes, discovered the body of an ancient bog man, or could this be Sir Wilfred Cuff-Bingley, another eminent archaeologist who disappeared mysteriously from the very same site some fifty years ago?
Somewhat chaotically assisted by Detective Constable Jason Twitty, Peckover decides to do some digging of his own …
'Digging Up Death' is a classic mystery from a master story-teller.
‘Seek out the Bard of the Yard … line for line, Michael Kenyon’s is the wittiest and freshest of all crime fiction … The writing never flags. It’s sharp, sparky, intelligent and warm.’ PETER LOVESEY
‘Hilarious humour adorns a plot that grips like a clothes-peg.’ TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT
‘Eventful, clue-strewn, grimly farcical fare.’ SUNDAY TIMES
‘The comic pace never slackens.’ OXFORD TIMES
‘Kenyon’s idiosyncratic characters would do P G Wodehouse proud.’ PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This book was previously published as Peckover and the Bog Man.
Michael Kenyon was born in Huddersfield in 1931. He was a reporter for the Bristol Evening Post, News Chronicle, and the Guardian, and has taught English and journalism at universities in the USA. For seven years he lived in France, and recently worked as cook to an American family in their beach palace on Long Island. He is married with three daughters.
Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on Twitter: @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via http://on.fb.me/1HweQV7. We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now.
252 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 1, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 3, 2016
"'Your 'ead can be I the left-luggage at Paddington and your severed limbs floating off Yarmouth pier, it doesn't mean you're dead........to be dead you 'ave to 'ave the right forms.'"
Michael Kenyon is a new author to me - and a delightful one that I will be reading more of.
He writes with a dry sense of humour, a wry sense of the ridiculous and with random flights of fancy. None of which detract from a good solid plot. I learnt a lot of new language - not that I will remember most of it, but it brought a smile to my lips as I imagined throwing these phrases at someone irritating. I have written a few down to use - unsure if I can carry off the accent though, despite my Scottish ancestry.
Following a Burns Night dinner in the tiny Highlands town of Inverballoch Sir Gilbert Potter, a pompous bore and eminent archeologist, is found murdered by the knife that sliced the haggis.
DCI Henry Peckover, who attended the dinner and whose wife was chef, is reluctantly drawn into the investigation aided by the local constabulary and Detective Constable Jason Twitty, a Londoner with a style all his own and inclined to fall in love (or is it lust) at the drop of a hat, and the first negro ever in Inverballoch.
When Sir Gilbert's assistant Posy Cork decides to continue with the local dig, she doesn't' bargain on uncovering another body. Excited, she believes it to be a 3000 year old bog-man, a significant discovery, and tries to conceal it from the constabulary and the press. But what if it's not a bog man? What if it is a far more recent corpse?
Digging Up Death is an amusing almost but not quite cosy. It is a delightful read, a la Beaton meets Wodehouse.
Thank you to NetGally and Endeavour Press for providing me with a digital ARC of Digging Up Death in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
Michael Kenyon is a new author to me - and a delightful one that I will be reading more of.
He writes with a dry sense of humour, a wry sense of the ridiculous and with random flights of fancy. None of which detract from a good solid plot. I learnt a lot of new language - not that I will remember most of it, but it brought a smile to my lips as I imagined throwing these phrases at someone irritating. I have written a few down to use - unsure if I can carry off the accent though, despite my Scottish ancestry.
Following a Burns Night dinner in the tiny Highlands town of Inverballoch Sir Gilbert Potter, a pompous bore and eminent archeologist, is found murdered by the knife that sliced the haggis.
DCI Henry Peckover, who attended the dinner and whose wife was chef, is reluctantly drawn into the investigation aided by the local constabulary and Detective Constable Jason Twitty, a Londoner with a style all his own and inclined to fall in love (or is it lust) at the drop of a hat, and the first negro ever in Inverballoch.
When Sir Gilbert's assistant Posy Cork decides to continue with the local dig, she doesn't' bargain on uncovering another body. Excited, she believes it to be a 3000 year old bog-man, a significant discovery, and tries to conceal it from the constabulary and the press. But what if it's not a bog man? What if it is a far more recent corpse?
Digging Up Death is an amusing almost but not quite cosy. It is a delightful read, a la Beaton meets Wodehouse.
Thank you to NetGally and Endeavour Press for providing me with a digital ARC of Digging Up Death in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
June 10, 2016
I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, Endeavour Press!
A throwback to the classical whodunits of Ms. Christie (who is name-checked here), Digging Up Death offers a limited list of suspects, a quirky policeman and picturesque but mysterious locations. DCI Peckover, known as "the Bard of the Yard" is himself a guest to a dinner that ends in murder. He was right there and yet, he saw nothing. We then meet more characters: cops, witnesses, journalists... all weird and funny in different ways. From the beginning it's clear that one of the guests is the culprit, but they all seem to have motive and opportunity. There are some red herrings. The ending didn't surprise me too much, but it was the plot itself what kept me entertained. The offbeat sense of humor and the bizarre traits of the characters. A little like Northern Exposure, but in Scotland.
A throwback to the classical whodunits of Ms. Christie (who is name-checked here), Digging Up Death offers a limited list of suspects, a quirky policeman and picturesque but mysterious locations. DCI Peckover, known as "the Bard of the Yard" is himself a guest to a dinner that ends in murder. He was right there and yet, he saw nothing. We then meet more characters: cops, witnesses, journalists... all weird and funny in different ways. From the beginning it's clear that one of the guests is the culprit, but they all seem to have motive and opportunity. There are some red herrings. The ending didn't surprise me too much, but it was the plot itself what kept me entertained. The offbeat sense of humor and the bizarre traits of the characters. A little like Northern Exposure, but in Scotland.
June 14, 2016
I found this book rather hard to get into, and the main character was a little hard to gauge. The storyline was excellent and very intriguing and I found the telling style very different from anything I have come across before. I did enjoy it, but I think I need to read some more by this author.
This book was provided to me in return for an honest and unbiased review
This book was provided to me in return for an honest and unbiased review
June 9, 2016
It sounded fascinating--Scotland, archaeologists, and murder. Unfortunately, I found it somewhat dull, with neither the characters nor the plot particularly engaging.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews