What do you think?
Rate this book
Libby Sarjeant #19
Murder and the Glovemaker’s Son
Lesley Cookman's bestselling series featuring amateur sleuth Libby Sarjeant is back for its nineteenth instalment.
The Oast Theatre in Steeple Martin is hosting an incredibly popular touring production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Very soon, the production begins to attract far less positive attention as a document goes missing along with its owner.
When a body turns up, Libby Sarjeant and Fran Wolfe become involved with the investigation with the help, naturally, of their friends and relatives.
Can they save the reputation of the show or is it tarred with the stain of murder?
The Oast Theatre in Steeple Martin is hosting an incredibly popular touring production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. Very soon, the production begins to attract far less positive attention as a document goes missing along with its owner.
When a body turns up, Libby Sarjeant and Fran Wolfe become involved with the investigation with the help, naturally, of their friends and relatives.
Can they save the reputation of the show or is it tarred with the stain of murder?
239 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 16, 2018
36 people are currently reading
53 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
August 6, 2018
Libby Sargeant and Fran Wolfe, members of the Oast Theatre, start their own investigation when an important document goes missing ... along with its owner. When a body turns up, they ... and their band of family and friends ... search for what happened.
The mystery is solidly written with twists and turns along the way. The characters are wonderful. I love how all the residents of this village watch out for each other. As usual in such a place, you have a few that appear perfectly normal.. and some that don't. Some are comical, and will have you chuckling out loud. And then there are those who may not be who you think they are. Some have deep secrets and will do anything to keep them that way.
Although this is 19th in this creative series, this one does well as a stand alone.
Many thanks to the author / Accent Press / Books n All Promotions / Jill Burkinshaw for the advanced copy of this mystery. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
The mystery is solidly written with twists and turns along the way. The characters are wonderful. I love how all the residents of this village watch out for each other. As usual in such a place, you have a few that appear perfectly normal.. and some that don't. Some are comical, and will have you chuckling out loud. And then there are those who may not be who you think they are. Some have deep secrets and will do anything to keep them that way.
Although this is 19th in this creative series, this one does well as a stand alone.
Many thanks to the author / Accent Press / Books n All Promotions / Jill Burkinshaw for the advanced copy of this mystery. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
August 14, 2018
This is the 19th book in the series about Libby Sarjeant but it is perfectly possible to read it as a stand alone.
Libby and Ben live in Steeple Martin, a quaint English village, where Ben has set up a microbrewery and Libby is a painter. They have a wide group of friends who have helped them solve mysteries in the past and this is another of their cases.
A touring theatre company are coming to the village to perform Shakespeare's Twelfth Night after a letter was found with the information that Shakespeare had done a tour in the village. The letter proves to be fake but the tour is booked and the villagers are wanting to know if Shakespeare did perform there and was it true he was one of Elizabeth 1's spies?
This grabbed my interest immediately as I enjoy history and I couldn't wait to begin reading. A body is found and the letter is proved to be a fake but the play still goes on. The police arrive to investigate and then another body is found and various 'experts' are introduced to give their opinion on the letter and the mystery.
I have to be honest and say that I found it difficult to keep track of all the characters, bobbing back and forth to a list of them is a pain on a kindle so the temptation is to read on and hope things become clearer.
It is a gentle mystery book rather than a hard-hitting police procedural and would probably attract those of us who read and loved Agatha Christie's Miss Marple.
Libby and Ben live in Steeple Martin, a quaint English village, where Ben has set up a microbrewery and Libby is a painter. They have a wide group of friends who have helped them solve mysteries in the past and this is another of their cases.
A touring theatre company are coming to the village to perform Shakespeare's Twelfth Night after a letter was found with the information that Shakespeare had done a tour in the village. The letter proves to be fake but the tour is booked and the villagers are wanting to know if Shakespeare did perform there and was it true he was one of Elizabeth 1's spies?
This grabbed my interest immediately as I enjoy history and I couldn't wait to begin reading. A body is found and the letter is proved to be a fake but the play still goes on. The police arrive to investigate and then another body is found and various 'experts' are introduced to give their opinion on the letter and the mystery.
I have to be honest and say that I found it difficult to keep track of all the characters, bobbing back and forth to a list of them is a pain on a kindle so the temptation is to read on and hope things become clearer.
It is a gentle mystery book rather than a hard-hitting police procedural and would probably attract those of us who read and loved Agatha Christie's Miss Marple.
February 22, 2019
Took a while to get into and quite confusing at times . Apart from that a good read .
August 19, 2025
It's amazing what family's end up in.
Another good novel
Another good novel
March 17, 2019
Stop already
I gave up halfway through the book and should have stopped earlier. The series has gone stale for me. This was a tedious read. Continually calling Libby "an old trout" in every book is not an endearment by the other characters. The characters claim to be progressive. If so, be honest about why the author keeps including such a negative narrative.
I gave up halfway through the book and should have stopped earlier. The series has gone stale for me. This was a tedious read. Continually calling Libby "an old trout" in every book is not an endearment by the other characters. The characters claim to be progressive. If so, be honest about why the author keeps including such a negative narrative.
August 20, 2018
I have enjoyed this series and have become very fond of the characters but I was quite disappointed in this book. It was a lot of "talking heads", very confusing story line and actually did not understand the resolution. I hope the next one will be more like the rest in this series.
August 10, 2018
A tour of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night has arrived in the village of Steeple Martin after a letter was uncovered claiming that Shakespeare had toured with his company there. The letter is soon debunked as a fake and the letter and the owner disappear. The owner is soon found dead but the letter is missing. Another body is found with links to the touring Shakespeare company can Libby Sarjeant and her friends get to the bottom of this mystery before anyone else turns up dead?
So this is the 19th book in the series, yes you read that right 19th, this has to be one of the longest running book series I’ve come across in years. I actually haven’t read any of the other books myself and I found there was a handy little glossary of regular characters in the front, which helped me to make sense of who was who etc.
This is a proper cosy mystery, you don’t see the body or have it described in detail, instead it really focuses on the puzzle of the case.
The characters really make this book. Libby is quite fierce and a little bossy but I feel like the characters around her bring out her nicer side.
The book contains a lot of historical facts which I found immensely interesting like Shakespeare being a spy for Queen Elizabeth which I didn’t know and now I want to find out more about!
I have to be honest, there is quite a large cast of characters which I felt slightly over shadowed the mystery and trying to keep them straight in my head was quite hard.
Overall I would recommend Murder And The Glovemaker’s Son to anyone who enjoys a good puzzling mystery.
So this is the 19th book in the series, yes you read that right 19th, this has to be one of the longest running book series I’ve come across in years. I actually haven’t read any of the other books myself and I found there was a handy little glossary of regular characters in the front, which helped me to make sense of who was who etc.
This is a proper cosy mystery, you don’t see the body or have it described in detail, instead it really focuses on the puzzle of the case.
The characters really make this book. Libby is quite fierce and a little bossy but I feel like the characters around her bring out her nicer side.
The book contains a lot of historical facts which I found immensely interesting like Shakespeare being a spy for Queen Elizabeth which I didn’t know and now I want to find out more about!
I have to be honest, there is quite a large cast of characters which I felt slightly over shadowed the mystery and trying to keep them straight in my head was quite hard.
Overall I would recommend Murder And The Glovemaker’s Son to anyone who enjoys a good puzzling mystery.
August 19, 2018
The latest book in the series from Lesley Cookman, murder mysteries set in Steeple Martin, Kent.
Libby and Ben have let the Oast Theatre to group of actors to put on Twelfth Night, Shakespeare. However, as is usual a murder occurs and Libby feels she has to investigate, along with Fran, and the band of friends amassed over many murder mysteries. This plot centres on a 'fake' letter from centuries ago and the fact that the Manor, Ben's home and where Hetty still lives, could once have been visited by Shakespeare himself!!!
This plot was quite involved and I found myself having to go back in the book to confirm the sequence of events and who's who. I really enjoyed it, read in 2 very long sessions as I couldn't put it down! The research which must have gone into this book must have been long and involved, but Lesley makes her books as accurate as possible. An excellent choice of book and well worth the read.
Libby and Ben have let the Oast Theatre to group of actors to put on Twelfth Night, Shakespeare. However, as is usual a murder occurs and Libby feels she has to investigate, along with Fran, and the band of friends amassed over many murder mysteries. This plot centres on a 'fake' letter from centuries ago and the fact that the Manor, Ben's home and where Hetty still lives, could once have been visited by Shakespeare himself!!!
This plot was quite involved and I found myself having to go back in the book to confirm the sequence of events and who's who. I really enjoyed it, read in 2 very long sessions as I couldn't put it down! The research which must have gone into this book must have been long and involved, but Lesley makes her books as accurate as possible. An excellent choice of book and well worth the read.
September 24, 2018
Another enjoyable read!
This latest of the Libby Sarjeant books has all our favourite characters, this time investigating murders that seem to have their origins in the mists of time. Did Shakespeare visit The Manor? Does a theatre company performing at The Oast House have a document that proves it? And is there a connection with John Dee, the mysterious Elizabethan spy and alchemist? As always, I was fascinated by the twists and turns in this book, as the redoubtable Libby tries to get the bottom of things, and her psychic friend, Fran, knows that something isn't right, but can't put her finger on what it is. As always, Libby is inclined to go where angels fear to tread, and gets told off by her partner, Ben, for the way that she speaks to a young police officer. (Just for the record, I'm on Libby's side - the officer ought to have known what was going on!)
This latest of the Libby Sarjeant books has all our favourite characters, this time investigating murders that seem to have their origins in the mists of time. Did Shakespeare visit The Manor? Does a theatre company performing at The Oast House have a document that proves it? And is there a connection with John Dee, the mysterious Elizabethan spy and alchemist? As always, I was fascinated by the twists and turns in this book, as the redoubtable Libby tries to get the bottom of things, and her psychic friend, Fran, knows that something isn't right, but can't put her finger on what it is. As always, Libby is inclined to go where angels fear to tread, and gets told off by her partner, Ben, for the way that she speaks to a young police officer. (Just for the record, I'm on Libby's side - the officer ought to have known what was going on!)
August 16, 2018
https://donnasbookblog.wordpress.com/...
This is the 19th book in the Libby Sarjeant series but I will openly admit that this is the first book that I have read by this author and this one is absolutely fine to be read as a stand alone.
I enjoyed the plot line for this one and it had a few good twists and turns built in to the plot which kept me engaged to the end. The book had a good pace and the characters were well developed and I will definitely be looking to read some of the author’s previous books.
3.5 stars from me for this one rounded up to 4 stars for Goodreads and Amazon!
This is the 19th book in the Libby Sarjeant series but I will openly admit that this is the first book that I have read by this author and this one is absolutely fine to be read as a stand alone.
I enjoyed the plot line for this one and it had a few good twists and turns built in to the plot which kept me engaged to the end. The book had a good pace and the characters were well developed and I will definitely be looking to read some of the author’s previous books.
3.5 stars from me for this one rounded up to 4 stars for Goodreads and Amazon!
July 18, 2019
Maybe if you have read all the other 18 books in the series you might enjoy this. But as my first, I found the endless rounds of lunch, dinner, trips to the pub and interminable gossip over very trivial scraps of information extremely tedious. And apparently the main character is nosey and rude. Clearly the main character in a cozy will be nosey, but I hadn't noticed her being particularly constantly rude so her existential crisis came as a bit of a surprise to me.
The ending didn't make it all worthwhile either, so if you are bored and wondering whether to finish it, don't bother.
The ending didn't make it all worthwhile either, so if you are bored and wondering whether to finish it, don't bother.
August 23, 2018
Dissapointed
I have read all the books in this series and really enjoyed them. This one however was really disappointing. It was too long winded, the story could have been told in half the time. It keeps repeating the same points over and over again, which became very boring so much so that I I struggled to finish reading it. Let's hope the next book returns to the normal high standard set by the previous books and this was just a hiccup.
I have read all the books in this series and really enjoyed them. This one however was really disappointing. It was too long winded, the story could have been told in half the time. It keeps repeating the same points over and over again, which became very boring so much so that I I struggled to finish reading it. Let's hope the next book returns to the normal high standard set by the previous books and this was just a hiccup.
August 27, 2018
Read all of these books and really enjoy them. This one was really good and inventive and I got lost early on with all the different characters so it was good to have the story regularly retold to new people! I still didn’t guess whodunnit. They are so interlinked now it could be difficult for someone coming to them out of sequence as you have to get to know all the ‘actors’ and their histories to get all the comments and back references. But well worth investing the time in the whole series.
November 23, 2022
Love the Libby Sarjeant books as quick light reads. This one however, I felt was not one of Lesley Cookmans best. It left me quite confused at the end and I ended up reading the somewhat tenuous conclusion several times to try and get things straight in my mind. Some if the questions raised throughout the ‘investigation’ were glossed over with a quick one line resolution that didn’t totally make sense.
Have read all the previous ones and will move on to the next one in hope she returns to her best.
Have read all the previous ones and will move on to the next one in hope she returns to her best.
August 23, 2018
Another winner
This is the 19th book and again features Libby, Fran and the gang getting involved in murder and mayhem but in a very entertaining manner. The amount of research undertaken in the course of writing the story must be immense and makes for an entertaining read. Can’t wait to meet my friends again in the next book.
This is the 19th book and again features Libby, Fran and the gang getting involved in murder and mayhem but in a very entertaining manner. The amount of research undertaken in the course of writing the story must be immense and makes for an entertaining read. Can’t wait to meet my friends again in the next book.
August 23, 2018
Cracking read.
I have read all the books in this series and love them all. The main characters are interesting, and you gradually feel as if you know them. The main character, Libby likes her tea like me properly made! She can occasionally get herself into trouble, but you just like her all the more for it I always enjoy the plots, and can't wait for the next one in the series.
I have read all the books in this series and love them all. The main characters are interesting, and you gradually feel as if you know them. The main character, Libby likes her tea like me properly made! She can occasionally get herself into trouble, but you just like her all the more for it I always enjoy the plots, and can't wait for the next one in the series.
October 28, 2018
This was the 19th book in the series and I believe it is running out of steam. The characters and their interactions are too one dimensional. This story has too many people to keep track of and not enough character development to explain their role in the plot. This was a big disappointment for me.
December 7, 2022
I really enjoyed the book, but I'm getting more and more frustrated with the attitudes of Libby's supposed 'nearest and dearest', who apparently love her, but only if she changes her entire personality. I really wish that the author hadn't gone down this route, as it's almost making me look forward to the end of the book series instead of wanting more.
November 28, 2018
3.5 stars. The Libby Sarjeant series is entertaining, I like the characters and settings, but she literally does lose the plot quite often, as is the case with this one. The motive and ending really didn't make much sense.
August 20, 2018
Enjoyable
Another enjoyable book by Lesley Cookman, I have read the series and always look forward to reading the latest one.
Another enjoyable book by Lesley Cookman, I have read the series and always look forward to reading the latest one.
August 27, 2018
another book in the libby sarjeant series its a read that will pull you in as you turn the pages. really enjoyed the story was just brilliant
December 1, 2018
Ok
Ok, a few to many people and an abrupt end. But still an enjoyable series. Not the best but certainly not the worst.
Ok, a few to many people and an abrupt end. But still an enjoyable series. Not the best but certainly not the worst.
February 21, 2020
An overly fussy mystery with far too many minor characters.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews