What do you think?
Rate this book
Hate Bale
Grumbling guests and escaping piglets are precisely what Martha doesn’t need. She’s already struggling to run a holiday cottage and a rather large smallholding single-handedly. Since her husband Mark died, three years ago, her rural property in France, beautiful as it is, has become an increasingly heavy millstone around her neck.
So whilst she’s horrified to stumble across a corpse at the local farm supplies shop, it does at least distract her from her own woes. Best friend Lottie swoops in to offer moral support, and encourages Martha to join her in some unofficial sleuthing. Meanwhile, police officer Philippe Prudhomme, a former fellow chess-player of Mark’s, undertakes a rather more professional investigation.
However, the killer remains at large. And when more bodies (one and a bit, to be precise) come Martha’s way, it definitely feels like he’s closing in on her…
There’s humour, suspense and excitement in this entertaining cosy mystery set in the French countryside.
So whilst she’s horrified to stumble across a corpse at the local farm supplies shop, it does at least distract her from her own woes. Best friend Lottie swoops in to offer moral support, and encourages Martha to join her in some unofficial sleuthing. Meanwhile, police officer Philippe Prudhomme, a former fellow chess-player of Mark’s, undertakes a rather more professional investigation.
However, the killer remains at large. And when more bodies (one and a bit, to be precise) come Martha’s way, it definitely feels like he’s closing in on her…
There’s humour, suspense and excitement in this entertaining cosy mystery set in the French countryside.
- GenresMysteryCozy Mystery
300 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 16, 2019
2 people are currently reading
8 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 - 16 of 16 reviews
April 5, 2019
I'm rather partial to a cozy mystery, although I find I don't up reading them as often as I would like, so this made a pleasant change to my reading. Having enjoyed Stephanie Dagg's Christmas rom-coms featuring llamas - I wasn't too surprised to discover this book was set on a farm,
Not just a farm, but one with a real menagerie of animals, both furry and feathered. Not to mention Martha's faithful companion Flossie who seemed adorable.
Martha really did have a knack of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, as she stumbles across two dead bodies, and has a bit of one delivered to her farm, in not the most usual way of transporting body parts (not that I'm sure what the norm is, as after all cutting a body up into pieces is rather sadistic).
I loved the authors humour, as Martha and best friend Lottie decide to do some amateur sleuthing, they even comment that they are just like characters in cozy mysteries. The exact line really did make me giggle out loud.
I really enjoyed this piece of rural France, with its small cottage let to holiday makers, one of which who was an utter nightmare, Martha starting to get back int to the swing of life after her husband's sudden death a few years previous, the new interest in cycling, and even the mystery surrounding the dead bodies.
This has all the trademarks of a good cozy mystery and I really hope this isn't the last we see of these characters. After a bit of a slow start, just as it took me a while to get into the swing of the story, I found myself really looking forward to each time I could steal some time to find out what was happening next.
Thank you to Stephanie Dagg for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
Not just a farm, but one with a real menagerie of animals, both furry and feathered. Not to mention Martha's faithful companion Flossie who seemed adorable.
Martha really did have a knack of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, as she stumbles across two dead bodies, and has a bit of one delivered to her farm, in not the most usual way of transporting body parts (not that I'm sure what the norm is, as after all cutting a body up into pieces is rather sadistic).
I loved the authors humour, as Martha and best friend Lottie decide to do some amateur sleuthing, they even comment that they are just like characters in cozy mysteries. The exact line really did make me giggle out loud.
I really enjoyed this piece of rural France, with its small cottage let to holiday makers, one of which who was an utter nightmare, Martha starting to get back int to the swing of life after her husband's sudden death a few years previous, the new interest in cycling, and even the mystery surrounding the dead bodies.
This has all the trademarks of a good cozy mystery and I really hope this isn't the last we see of these characters. After a bit of a slow start, just as it took me a while to get into the swing of the story, I found myself really looking forward to each time I could steal some time to find out what was happening next.
Thank you to Stephanie Dagg for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
April 18, 2019
Favorite Quotes:
French people spoke fast generally, but the added excitement of imparting misfortune that had occurred to someone else made them talk at breakneck speed.
‘Angxious’ messages, as Mark would have described them, being a mixture of concern-induced anger and anxiety.
“I sometimes wonder if she’s after my husband,” murmured Lottie, only half-joking, as Roger and Madame laughed heartily over a lame joke he’d cracked. “I think you’re safe. She’s got more facial hair than he has.” Martha couldn’t stop the uncharitable but true remark slipping out.
My Review:
This was my fourth exposure to Stephanie Dagg’s amusing prose. I always enjoy her wry humor and comfortable storytelling, regardless of the unusual conditions of the murder victims her main character of Martha seems destined to encounter in this pleasantly entertaining cozy mystery. Martha was a highly relatable and realistically drawn character whom I enjoyed getting to know. Adding to my reading pleasure, I also picked up a few new additions to my Brit word list with two having the same meaning - todger and John-Thomas are both slang for penis; and rosbif - which the Urban Dictionary defined as a derogatory term for a Brit by the French, “probably because of the enjoyment and pride the English take in their roast beef.”
French people spoke fast generally, but the added excitement of imparting misfortune that had occurred to someone else made them talk at breakneck speed.
‘Angxious’ messages, as Mark would have described them, being a mixture of concern-induced anger and anxiety.
“I sometimes wonder if she’s after my husband,” murmured Lottie, only half-joking, as Roger and Madame laughed heartily over a lame joke he’d cracked. “I think you’re safe. She’s got more facial hair than he has.” Martha couldn’t stop the uncharitable but true remark slipping out.
My Review:
This was my fourth exposure to Stephanie Dagg’s amusing prose. I always enjoy her wry humor and comfortable storytelling, regardless of the unusual conditions of the murder victims her main character of Martha seems destined to encounter in this pleasantly entertaining cozy mystery. Martha was a highly relatable and realistically drawn character whom I enjoyed getting to know. Adding to my reading pleasure, I also picked up a few new additions to my Brit word list with two having the same meaning - todger and John-Thomas are both slang for penis; and rosbif - which the Urban Dictionary defined as a derogatory term for a Brit by the French, “probably because of the enjoyment and pride the English take in their roast beef.”
April 6, 2019
I absolutely adored Daggs' Haircuts, Hens and Homicide, and thought that Fa-La-LLama-La and Deck the Halles were equally brilliant, so Hate Bale had a lot to live up to, and I'm delighted to say that I was not to be disappointed. Hate Bale is every bit as funny and entertaining as Dagg's other stories.
In this story, our protagonist, Martha Bigglesthwaite, runs a small farm in France with a holiday cottage on site. She has been on her own since the death of her husband, Mark, some three years earlier. The cottage is to be let to the objectionable Carol Cuthbertson, Carol's downtrodden husband Roy, and their two grandchildren, in the week when Martha stumbles upon a dead body... and then goes on to find one and a bit more!
Martha has to deal with Carol's selfish complaining and general nastiness, whilst managing the farm, worrying about the killer at large, and training for a cycling competition which she decided, on the spur of the moment, to enter.
After finding the first body, Martha becomes the prime suspect with the two out-of-town gendarmes attending the scene, until Philippe Prudhomme, an adjutant-chef in the local gendarmerie, and friend of Martha's late husband, arrives to intervene on her behalf. He is concerned for her safety, and urges Martha to stay with a friend.
Enter Lottie, Martha's estate agent friend, who has offered her refuge while the killer is still on the loose. Lottie is fascinated by the sudden spike in the local crime rate, and, dragging the reluctant Martha along with her on a sleuthing expedition, they find the third body.
How Martha finally encounters the killer, and her friends race to save her, is brilliantly told in this highly amusing cosy mystery.
Dagg's writing style and observational humour appeal to me greatly. I smiled at the prospect of a hormonal, teenage lad sleeping under a presumably predominantly pink Disney Frozen-themed duvet cover, with his head nestled on a similarly pink pillowcase dedicated to Anna and Elsa. I loved the larger-than-life, exquisitely, although sometimes unsuitably-attired and manicured Lottie, who is prepared to face down the likes of Carol Cuthbertson, and would stop at nothing to help her friend. I also loved the sarcastic nickname, 'Skull Face the ungrateful', Martha bestowed upon the miserable cyclist she tried to help out of a ditch. The characters Dagg has drawn in Hate Bale are all completely lifelike, and the story has the perfect balance between suspense and comedy.
Hate Bale is a well-written, humorous, happy ending story. The plot is well-considered, and all the threads are neatly tied up in the closing chapters. I loved it!
In this story, our protagonist, Martha Bigglesthwaite, runs a small farm in France with a holiday cottage on site. She has been on her own since the death of her husband, Mark, some three years earlier. The cottage is to be let to the objectionable Carol Cuthbertson, Carol's downtrodden husband Roy, and their two grandchildren, in the week when Martha stumbles upon a dead body... and then goes on to find one and a bit more!
Martha has to deal with Carol's selfish complaining and general nastiness, whilst managing the farm, worrying about the killer at large, and training for a cycling competition which she decided, on the spur of the moment, to enter.
After finding the first body, Martha becomes the prime suspect with the two out-of-town gendarmes attending the scene, until Philippe Prudhomme, an adjutant-chef in the local gendarmerie, and friend of Martha's late husband, arrives to intervene on her behalf. He is concerned for her safety, and urges Martha to stay with a friend.
Enter Lottie, Martha's estate agent friend, who has offered her refuge while the killer is still on the loose. Lottie is fascinated by the sudden spike in the local crime rate, and, dragging the reluctant Martha along with her on a sleuthing expedition, they find the third body.
How Martha finally encounters the killer, and her friends race to save her, is brilliantly told in this highly amusing cosy mystery.
Dagg's writing style and observational humour appeal to me greatly. I smiled at the prospect of a hormonal, teenage lad sleeping under a presumably predominantly pink Disney Frozen-themed duvet cover, with his head nestled on a similarly pink pillowcase dedicated to Anna and Elsa. I loved the larger-than-life, exquisitely, although sometimes unsuitably-attired and manicured Lottie, who is prepared to face down the likes of Carol Cuthbertson, and would stop at nothing to help her friend. I also loved the sarcastic nickname, 'Skull Face the ungrateful', Martha bestowed upon the miserable cyclist she tried to help out of a ditch. The characters Dagg has drawn in Hate Bale are all completely lifelike, and the story has the perfect balance between suspense and comedy.
Hate Bale is a well-written, humorous, happy ending story. The plot is well-considered, and all the threads are neatly tied up in the closing chapters. I loved it!
April 20, 2019
I have decided Stephanie Dagg is the queen of cozy mysteries. Set on a farm in rural France, Hate Bale, is a wonderfully suspenseful and humorous mystery.
I love the humor in this novel. It really keeps the pace moving forward, and breaks when there needs to be suspenseful parts as well. The mystery is fantastic and I didn’t see the end coming.
I’ve grown to be a fan of Stepahnie Dagg. Her writing is great, her characters come to life on the page, and her mysteries are everything a cozy mystery fan is looking for. I highly recommend checking this one out!
*I received a copy of this book as part of a blog tour with Rachel's Random Resources. All opinions are my own.*
I love the humor in this novel. It really keeps the pace moving forward, and breaks when there needs to be suspenseful parts as well. The mystery is fantastic and I didn’t see the end coming.
I’ve grown to be a fan of Stepahnie Dagg. Her writing is great, her characters come to life on the page, and her mysteries are everything a cozy mystery fan is looking for. I highly recommend checking this one out!
*I received a copy of this book as part of a blog tour with Rachel's Random Resources. All opinions are my own.*
April 17, 2019
Hate Bale by Stephanie Dagg is a cozy mystery, set on a farm full of various animals, idyllic if not a little chaotic at times.
But then Martha discovers a couple of dead bodies and body parts! so she and her friend Lottie start some amateur detective work of their own…in a humorous double act…that will definitely make you smile…even though the subject is quite grim….I love the relationship between these two friends….and the lovely descriptions of rural France….a lovely cozy mystery…I hope there are more adventures for these two.
But then Martha discovers a couple of dead bodies and body parts! so she and her friend Lottie start some amateur detective work of their own…in a humorous double act…that will definitely make you smile…even though the subject is quite grim….I love the relationship between these two friends….and the lovely descriptions of rural France….a lovely cozy mystery…I hope there are more adventures for these two.
April 8, 2019
I want to spend my retirement years with Stephanie Dagg. She is like the best friend I have always asked for. No matter what life throws at her characters, she allows us all to see the brighter side and laugh at attempts to deal with whatever may come.
Martha and her husband had a dream of raising their kids in rural France, along with some animals, and appreciating the beauty around them. Sadly, Mark died much sooner than anyone expected, leaving Martha alone to care for the animals, deal with crops and ancient machinery, and crotchity summer tenants. As difficult as that all can be, when she discovers a murdered man at the feed store and has to deal not only with a language barrier but also city cops unused to country ways of life, life becomes stressful enough for her to start thinking about making a major change.
With some unexpected romance, some eye rolling, a lot of subtle humor and more laugh out loud moments, Hate Bale is another must read book to enjoy this summer. Who is murdering farmers and why must Martha be involved? Her best friend Lottie plays a role in that aspect.
With wonderful characters and escape worthy settings, this is a book you will enjoy getting lost in for a reading break. You just may have so much fun you don't want it to end.
Martha and her husband had a dream of raising their kids in rural France, along with some animals, and appreciating the beauty around them. Sadly, Mark died much sooner than anyone expected, leaving Martha alone to care for the animals, deal with crops and ancient machinery, and crotchity summer tenants. As difficult as that all can be, when she discovers a murdered man at the feed store and has to deal not only with a language barrier but also city cops unused to country ways of life, life becomes stressful enough for her to start thinking about making a major change.
With some unexpected romance, some eye rolling, a lot of subtle humor and more laugh out loud moments, Hate Bale is another must read book to enjoy this summer. Who is murdering farmers and why must Martha be involved? Her best friend Lottie plays a role in that aspect.
With wonderful characters and escape worthy settings, this is a book you will enjoy getting lost in for a reading break. You just may have so much fun you don't want it to end.
May 26, 2019
Well! How could you not love a book that touts itself with the sentence ‘There’s suspense, humour and excitement in this entertaining cosy mystery set in the French countryside?’
From the second I began to read and I had our lead, Martha, speaking about cows and piglets and the drama that comes with guests switching off the electric fence because the radio waves were interfering with their radio listening I was in!! I’m sorry to bring up the fact that we have an older protagonist than I’m used to, but I have to admit when I heard her husband of twenty seven years had died three years ago I was happy. Not … not happy he died, geez, how could you think that?!?! Happy because I’m thirty eight now and more and more books I’m finding have people my age and older (our lead here is in her fifties) as opposed when I started blogging and everyone was twenty something and it was a little off putting because I wasn’t.
Martha is a nice mix of pleasant and slightly cranky, and put with the charm of the farm (ouch, that doesn’t sound right, does it?;)), the french countryside and some equally as cranky people, I was happy out. (There were less cranky people as we moved on and I loved Martha and warmed to her throughout).
I don’t read cosy mysteries very often and have to admit when we encountered a dead body in the perfectly set circumstances (think “oh they’re not around, but then they’re not always…” kind of thing) I almost jumped up and down and thought ‘I really need to start properly reading this genre!’
The settings were great and put you right there
“Crickets chirped, songbirds sang lullabies to their nestlings, bats flittered in the early dusk and swallows still swooped by, on a quest for supper for their babies before, at long last, folding their weary wings and resting for the night. The sun sank gracefully towards its bed.”
This was joined with a great range of characters, from the whiny Carol, to Philippe, her lovely contact in the police department, to her excellent alpa friend Lottie. Put this with the sleuthing, the ‘another dead body?’, the realistic every day reasons for Martha to be put in certain situations, the murders themselves, farming related, which were quite shocking in this setting, the mystery and intrigue that was nicely added, and charm, romance and “have to read on” ness (what?!) and I have to say I devoured this book and can’t wait to read more, both from this author and from the genre. Thanks to Rachel from Rachel’s Random Resources for the book in return for an honest review and for allowing me to take part in this publication day push. And my advice on Hate Bale? Beyond recommended!
Rating: 4.5/5
From the second I began to read and I had our lead, Martha, speaking about cows and piglets and the drama that comes with guests switching off the electric fence because the radio waves were interfering with their radio listening I was in!! I’m sorry to bring up the fact that we have an older protagonist than I’m used to, but I have to admit when I heard her husband of twenty seven years had died three years ago I was happy. Not … not happy he died, geez, how could you think that?!?! Happy because I’m thirty eight now and more and more books I’m finding have people my age and older (our lead here is in her fifties) as opposed when I started blogging and everyone was twenty something and it was a little off putting because I wasn’t.
Martha is a nice mix of pleasant and slightly cranky, and put with the charm of the farm (ouch, that doesn’t sound right, does it?;)), the french countryside and some equally as cranky people, I was happy out. (There were less cranky people as we moved on and I loved Martha and warmed to her throughout).
I don’t read cosy mysteries very often and have to admit when we encountered a dead body in the perfectly set circumstances (think “oh they’re not around, but then they’re not always…” kind of thing) I almost jumped up and down and thought ‘I really need to start properly reading this genre!’
The settings were great and put you right there
“Crickets chirped, songbirds sang lullabies to their nestlings, bats flittered in the early dusk and swallows still swooped by, on a quest for supper for their babies before, at long last, folding their weary wings and resting for the night. The sun sank gracefully towards its bed.”
This was joined with a great range of characters, from the whiny Carol, to Philippe, her lovely contact in the police department, to her excellent alpa friend Lottie. Put this with the sleuthing, the ‘another dead body?’, the realistic every day reasons for Martha to be put in certain situations, the murders themselves, farming related, which were quite shocking in this setting, the mystery and intrigue that was nicely added, and charm, romance and “have to read on” ness (what?!) and I have to say I devoured this book and can’t wait to read more, both from this author and from the genre. Thanks to Rachel from Rachel’s Random Resources for the book in return for an honest review and for allowing me to take part in this publication day push. And my advice on Hate Bale? Beyond recommended!
Rating: 4.5/5
April 18, 2019
*I received a free copy of this book with thanks to the author and Rachel Gilbey at Rachel’s Random Resources blog tours. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*
Hate Bale is a jolly rural romance crossed with a surprisingly macabre cosy mystery.
Martha is in her fifties and struggling to manage her smallholding in France since the death of her husband. At least he died of natural causes though! As the nefarious deaths begin to stack up around her it soon becomes clear that marauding pigs and argumentative holidaymakers are the least of her worries with a serial killer around who appears to have a grudge against farming folk.
Martha is a lovely main character – very human in her impulses and grumbles, and yet totally endearing as she charges around with oodles of bravery, curiosity and good humour.
Considering the light, rom-com style of writing, the murders here are quite shockingly violent: far more inventive than the commonplace bonks on the head, guns or knives. Still Martha displays the kind of poise you would expect from a woman used to the cycle of birth and death on a farm, and devotes a fair chunk of her time to cycling and her eccentric friend, Lottie.
I was a little bit disappointed that I didn’t guess whodunnit here, but thoroughly enjoyed the chaotic, almost slapstick, climax and the resultant heroics from expected and unexpected sources.
I would recommend this for anyone who enjoys their cosy mysteries with a sense of humour and a touch of realistic romance.
Fortunately, on the whole Martha was good in a crisis. She’d get the shakes all over but her brain and composure were unaffected. This was why she’d coped so well when a five-year-old Jared had face-planted on a set of concrete steps outside the Beaver Scout Hall and knocked out six front teeth (fortunately all milk ones) and broken his nose. There’d been copious amounts of blood, and even more of general wailing and screaming from the other witnesses to the event who’d been no help whatsoever. Martha had remained cool and calm, and kept her son the same, while dealing efficiently with the aftermath.
– Stephanie Dagg, Hate Bale
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpres...
Hate Bale is a jolly rural romance crossed with a surprisingly macabre cosy mystery.
Martha is in her fifties and struggling to manage her smallholding in France since the death of her husband. At least he died of natural causes though! As the nefarious deaths begin to stack up around her it soon becomes clear that marauding pigs and argumentative holidaymakers are the least of her worries with a serial killer around who appears to have a grudge against farming folk.
Martha is a lovely main character – very human in her impulses and grumbles, and yet totally endearing as she charges around with oodles of bravery, curiosity and good humour.
Considering the light, rom-com style of writing, the murders here are quite shockingly violent: far more inventive than the commonplace bonks on the head, guns or knives. Still Martha displays the kind of poise you would expect from a woman used to the cycle of birth and death on a farm, and devotes a fair chunk of her time to cycling and her eccentric friend, Lottie.
I was a little bit disappointed that I didn’t guess whodunnit here, but thoroughly enjoyed the chaotic, almost slapstick, climax and the resultant heroics from expected and unexpected sources.
I would recommend this for anyone who enjoys their cosy mysteries with a sense of humour and a touch of realistic romance.
Fortunately, on the whole Martha was good in a crisis. She’d get the shakes all over but her brain and composure were unaffected. This was why she’d coped so well when a five-year-old Jared had face-planted on a set of concrete steps outside the Beaver Scout Hall and knocked out six front teeth (fortunately all milk ones) and broken his nose. There’d been copious amounts of blood, and even more of general wailing and screaming from the other witnesses to the event who’d been no help whatsoever. Martha had remained cool and calm, and kept her son the same, while dealing efficiently with the aftermath.
– Stephanie Dagg, Hate Bale
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpres...
April 18, 2019
› Hate Bale takes place in rural France. Martha is a fifty-three-year-old widow who lives on a farm with her dog Flossie, Hermione the pig, Horace the boar, with a donkey, alpacas, cats, rabbits, ducks, and other animals. Her husband of twenty-seven years, Mark, died three years ago. She's overwhelmed by all of the work involved at the farm, but at the same time feels at home. There is a holiday cottage on the property which is currently rented out to grumpy Carol, her husband Roy, and their two grandchildren.
› The mystery begins after Martha finds a dead body. She seems to have a lot of bad luck, which leads to a good bit of humor. Her husband's friend, Philippe, is a cop who helps her when she becomes the prime suspect after finding the first body. I like her friend, Lottie. She doesn't put up with any crap from anyone.
› Hate Bale is a fun mystery with some laughs, some love, and a great rural setting. Highly recommend this one to animal lovers.
Thank you to Rachel's Random Resources and the author for the complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review.
April 18, 2019
Very enjoyable cozy mystery....it had all my favorite things, mystery, humor, friendship, love, and second chances!
Martha suffered the loss of her husband three years ago, and she is trying to find her way again. She is busy with her farm and her animals. She definitely isn’t expecting to find a murder victim in the local farm supplies shop. She and her best friend, Lottie, decide to do some investigating on their own, not knowing it will put Martha’s life in danger. Luckily, police officer, Philippe, is also on the case. He may also be harboring some feelings for Martha. Will she be able to allow him into her heart? What ensues, is a mystery filled with humor and a possible romance.
The mystery was first rate, keeping me guessing every step of the way.I loved Lottie and Martha’s friendship...all of us need that kind of friendship! It was so enjoyable watching these two ladies try to solve the murder mystery! The are great sleuthing partners.
I also loved the relationship between Philippe and Martha. They have a bit of history as he played chess with her late husband. He helps Martha enjoy life again. I so enjoyed watching her come back to life again.
The setting is also beautiful, and I could envision the French countryside and Martha’s farm.
All of these elements combine together for a great mystery that is not to be missed!
Martha suffered the loss of her husband three years ago, and she is trying to find her way again. She is busy with her farm and her animals. She definitely isn’t expecting to find a murder victim in the local farm supplies shop. She and her best friend, Lottie, decide to do some investigating on their own, not knowing it will put Martha’s life in danger. Luckily, police officer, Philippe, is also on the case. He may also be harboring some feelings for Martha. Will she be able to allow him into her heart? What ensues, is a mystery filled with humor and a possible romance.
The mystery was first rate, keeping me guessing every step of the way.I loved Lottie and Martha’s friendship...all of us need that kind of friendship! It was so enjoyable watching these two ladies try to solve the murder mystery! The are great sleuthing partners.
I also loved the relationship between Philippe and Martha. They have a bit of history as he played chess with her late husband. He helps Martha enjoy life again. I so enjoyed watching her come back to life again.
The setting is also beautiful, and I could envision the French countryside and Martha’s farm.
All of these elements combine together for a great mystery that is not to be missed!
May 24, 2019
I’ve been a fan of Stephanie’s writing for a number of years and I know I will be entertained, find myself at the heart of a rural French community and pick up a few new words along the way too. This book was no exception. The characters were great fun; from frazzled Martha who seemed to have developed a habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, to Mrs Miserable, the impossible-to-please gîte guest, as well as ever-present Officer Prudhomme and larger-than-life Lottie, the friend who always looks out for her despite their many differences.
With a never-ending list of jobs to do on her smallholding and the needs and whims of her gîte guests to be catered for, the last thing Martha needs is for bodies to begin mounting up around her. Even if she has nothing to do with them, it is a worry, and the increased police presence is beginning to bother the guests. It was easy to feel sorry for Martha, but at the same time it was nice to witness her making the first steps towards her new life without her husband.
Despite the sometimes grizzly circumstances, there were lots of funny moments to laugh along with, plus a who-dunnit mystery to be solved and a hint of romance, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Hate Bale is another great read from Stephanie and would be perfect for those of you who enjoy visiting the ‘real’ France in the pages of your summer holiday reads.
With a never-ending list of jobs to do on her smallholding and the needs and whims of her gîte guests to be catered for, the last thing Martha needs is for bodies to begin mounting up around her. Even if she has nothing to do with them, it is a worry, and the increased police presence is beginning to bother the guests. It was easy to feel sorry for Martha, but at the same time it was nice to witness her making the first steps towards her new life without her husband.
Despite the sometimes grizzly circumstances, there were lots of funny moments to laugh along with, plus a who-dunnit mystery to be solved and a hint of romance, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Hate Bale is another great read from Stephanie and would be perfect for those of you who enjoy visiting the ‘real’ France in the pages of your summer holiday reads.
May 16, 2019
Hate Bale is an excellent introduction to cosy mystery stories. A genre I haven’t read much of as my reading habits are currently wrapped up in the classics. When a story invades your daily thoughts, urges you to return to its pages, you know it’s a great book. This book did just that. It immediately drew me in and transported me to a place I kind of know, rural France. The characters also help to make this tale special. Many friendships consist of a serious one and a flighty one. I particularly enjoyed the cross over. Martha, the serious one being somewhat clumsy and Lottie the flighty ditzy one proving herself astute. It just seemed to ring true, in my own observations of people.
I have read other books by Stephanie Dagg and am quite familiar with her expat life through her other books, Staying Afloat and Head’s Above Water.
I see many similarities with the main character and the locations used. Before I go, I must confess, as it’s only fair, that I was given a free copy of this book and this is my honest and voluntary review. However, this is definitely a book I can recommend without compunction. Five Stars.
I have read other books by Stephanie Dagg and am quite familiar with her expat life through her other books, Staying Afloat and Head’s Above Water.
I see many similarities with the main character and the locations used. Before I go, I must confess, as it’s only fair, that I was given a free copy of this book and this is my honest and voluntary review. However, this is definitely a book I can recommend without compunction. Five Stars.
May 14, 2019
Hate Bale is the second of Stephanie Dagg‘s cosy mysteries I have read, after Haircuts, Hens and Homicide last year, which I very much enjoyed. This too is a fun, easy and entertaining read.
Martha is a practical, three-dimensional and very human heroine, who encounters some quite gruesome scenes within the glorious French countryside. She is surrounded by colourful characters including a dashing local gendarme, her forceful best friend and the tenant from hell in her holiday cottage.
Although person or persons unknown are targeting the local villagers, similarly to H, H & H, the murder mystery is only part of the charm of this book, and a lot of the enjoyment comes from the characters’ interactions (both good and bad!) and reading about life on and around a smallholding in a tiny French village.
If you like a witty mystery, a feisty lead character and a well-written story, Hate Bale is a very pleasant way to vicariously spend a few hours in rural France!
Martha is a practical, three-dimensional and very human heroine, who encounters some quite gruesome scenes within the glorious French countryside. She is surrounded by colourful characters including a dashing local gendarme, her forceful best friend and the tenant from hell in her holiday cottage.
Although person or persons unknown are targeting the local villagers, similarly to H, H & H, the murder mystery is only part of the charm of this book, and a lot of the enjoyment comes from the characters’ interactions (both good and bad!) and reading about life on and around a smallholding in a tiny French village.
If you like a witty mystery, a feisty lead character and a well-written story, Hate Bale is a very pleasant way to vicariously spend a few hours in rural France!
April 23, 2019
Just recently I seem to be hearing people talk about the cosy mystery genre more and more, but I didn’t really understand what it was if I am being entirely honest, so when the opportunity to take part in the publication day for this book, I grabbed the opportunity to discover a new genre. It turns out that I am a fan. I often read fast-paced crime thrillers that keep you on the edge of your seat, but I found that I thoroughly enjoyed the slower pace of this book. Yes, there were bodies piling up around Martha (sometimes in particularly imaginative ways), but at the same time there was a warmth about the writing, and there was a touch of humour throughout.
I fell in love with adoring Phillippe, and equally adoring pooch Flossie, and I loved that the wayward livestock on Martha’s smallholding was injected with just as much character as the humans were.
I found that I couldn’t take to Lottie at all. She is exactly the sort of person who would instantly rub me up the wrong way and I found reading about her quite jarring. However, I think this was perhaps the point of the character, to act as a counterbalance to Martha’s sweet nature and to prevent the book becoming too sugary. The vast differences between their characters certainly make for a quirky partnership, and I can quite see them getting a taste for investigating and crime-solving in rural France, with their poor loyal policeman following them around and attempting to keep them in check.
As I am sure many people do, I often dream of escaping to a rural idyll, somewhere in the peaceful European countryside, and whilst my own dreams lean more towards France than Spain, I love the idea of running a smallholding with a holiday cottage attached. Obviously, as this book shows, the reality is somewhat harder than the dream, but it was still so attractive to me that I would have happily upped sticks and moved to France to help Martha.
I fell in love with adoring Phillippe, and equally adoring pooch Flossie, and I loved that the wayward livestock on Martha’s smallholding was injected with just as much character as the humans were.
I found that I couldn’t take to Lottie at all. She is exactly the sort of person who would instantly rub me up the wrong way and I found reading about her quite jarring. However, I think this was perhaps the point of the character, to act as a counterbalance to Martha’s sweet nature and to prevent the book becoming too sugary. The vast differences between their characters certainly make for a quirky partnership, and I can quite see them getting a taste for investigating and crime-solving in rural France, with their poor loyal policeman following them around and attempting to keep them in check.
As I am sure many people do, I often dream of escaping to a rural idyll, somewhere in the peaceful European countryside, and whilst my own dreams lean more towards France than Spain, I love the idea of running a smallholding with a holiday cottage attached. Obviously, as this book shows, the reality is somewhat harder than the dream, but it was still so attractive to me that I would have happily upped sticks and moved to France to help Martha.
April 22, 2019
https://donnasbookblog.wordpress.com/...
I thought that this was a fast and furious story – and I thoroughly enjoyed it!
I enjoyed the interaction between the characters and I thought that they were well developed. I enjoyed the author’s writing style too and the setting for the book was great.
There was a little too much detail for me in places in between the conversations which detracted from the main plot a little and stopped the flow of the story for me which has stopped it being five stars but it is still an excellent story.
Four stars from me for this one, highly recommended
I thought that this was a fast and furious story – and I thoroughly enjoyed it!
I enjoyed the interaction between the characters and I thought that they were well developed. I enjoyed the author’s writing style too and the setting for the book was great.
There was a little too much detail for me in places in between the conversations which detracted from the main plot a little and stopped the flow of the story for me which has stopped it being five stars but it is still an excellent story.
Four stars from me for this one, highly recommended
June 8, 2020
Hate Bale is very cosy. It has romance, humour and its setting and characters were different (depends what you’ve been reading, I guess) The murders though are brutal, when you think about what you are reading. The ending was wordy, and it went from 60 to 100 in the space of 3? chapters. I felt the plot and the pacing could have been tightened. It did meander, not that I mind a meander. Other readers may mind.
Not a bad read though. I liked it.
Not a bad read though. I liked it.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews