Murder at the Roman Baths

Honey Driver Mystery #7

by Jean G. Goodhind

Originally published as Wicked Words.

Honey Driver, owner of the Green River Hotel, is at the funeral of one of her mother’s friends. But before the deceased can be properly laid to rest, another body is found already placed in the grave.

The victim is C.A. Wright, a renowned hotel reviewer with a nasty reputation and some even nastier habits. Wright was known as a leech, a lecher and a venomous cockroach by most people who crossed his path.

Honey and her police inspector boyfriend, Steve, discover multiple poison pen letters addressed to Wright from several people, all threatening his life. But which one meant what they wrote?

This time Honey finds herself in the spotlight as a lead suspect — she too is a hotel owner who had been at the wrong end of Wright’s vicious pen . . .

Determined to clear her name, Honey starts investigating. But then Honey accidentally stumbles across another body . . .

Genres: Cozy Mystery, Mystery

281 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 1, 2011

About the author

Jean G. Goodhind is a popular writer of women’s fiction, romance and comedy. For many years she owned and ran a haunted guest house on the outskirts of Bath and was one of the founder members of the Bath Hotel and Restaurant Association. Her experiences inspired the international bestselling Honey Driver series. She has won a BBC Radio award for scriptwriting. She also writes women’s fiction as Lizzie Lane and has writes a regular column for the Western Daily Press.

Reviews

[Ivonne Rovira · Rating 2 out of 5]

C.A. Wright is an obnoxious, misanthropic libertine who writes hotel reviews and isn’t above taking bribes — whether in money or sex — in exchange for a good review. For some reason, Wright’s readers give this poisonously unreliable writer so much credit that he can make or break a hotel. When Wright turns up dead, stuffed into a gigantic teddy bear and dumped in a new grave, every hotelier in Bath — including our heroine, Honey Driver, owner of the three-star Green River Hotel — is a suspect.

Honey continues to serve as Bath’s police liaison for the Bath Hotel Association in J.G. Goodhind’s seventh novel, but the premise is beginning to stale. Wright’s persona is over the top, as is that of Honey’s overbearing mother, the glamorous and carping Gloria Cross. The vain and self-absorbed Gloria can sometimes be diverting, but in Wicked Words, she’s such a hyper-critical harpy that I wanted to throttle her. The book could have been pared by a fourth by eliminating most of the nonsense about Gloria and her silver-haired set — including a piddling and nasty lap dog — and cut right to the discovery of Wright’s body. Goodhind stoops to so many cheap laughs that there’s no room left for anything truly funny. That’s unfortunate because the Honey Driver books used to be a real pleasure.

There’s no doubt that this is the worst book of the series. When, halfway through the book, Honey gave in yet again to her mother’s emotional blackmail, this time over the aforementioned odious dog, I was done with Gloria Cross — even if Honey wasn’t — and with this book. I simply couldn’t finish it.

[Sandy Adams · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this story but...

It was just too cutesy for me and not much of a mystery. Characters were blah and more interested in themselves to the point I did not ever want to know more about any of them. I kept wondering if the mother and her ditzy friends would take over and perhaps liven things up...or the dog thief who apparently was just there to fill up a page or two. Add to this mess, anyone who is that lackadaisical as Honey about a dog napping - no matter it was not her pup - is no one I will bother to read about in further escapades.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hotel keeper Honey Driver is never delighted by murder, even if it gives her a chance to work with her significant other, Detective chief inspector Steve Doherty. But she's willing to make an exception in the case of C. A. Knight, a corrupt, vicious hospitality industry critic who has ruined many small hotel keepers who were too naive to bribe him. Honey has other things to worry about, too, including her impossibly interfering mother Gloria and the presence in her hotel of an objectionable dog. I usually enjoy this series, but found that the chronology of this book was confusing.

[Robin Richmond · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book but the end was too tame

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Bath wird die Leiche des Hotelkritikers C. A. Wright gefunden. Sowohl der Ort als auch die Umstände des Todes sind interessant. Wright wurde während der Beerdigung auf einer Friedwiese gefunden. Er steckte im Kostüm eines Teddybären eines Wohltätigkeitvereins und in seinem Hals steckte ein Schaschlikspiess. Aufgrund seiner Kritiken, die schon Existenzen vernichtet haben wenn man nicht ausreichend für eine gute Kritik bezahlt hat, gibt es viele Verdächtige. Auch Honey Driver, Hotelbesitzerin und Geliebte der ermittelnden Beamten Detective Chief Inspector Steve Doherty.

Eine alleinerziehende Hotelbesitzerin wird von ihrer Mutter und deren Freundinnen auf die Beerdigung des Mannes geschleppt, den die Mutter als neuen Schwiegersohn vorgesehen hat und stolpert über eine Leiche. Beim anschließenden Leichenschmauß liefert sie sich außerdem noch einen filmreifen Zickenkrieg mit der Witwe. Nebenbei kümmert sie sich um einen inkontinenten Hund und hilft ihrem Freund bei den Ermittlungen.

Honey Driver ist schon eine spezielle Ermittlerin. Wirklich ernst konnte ich diesen Fall nicht nehmen, aber für ein paar nette Lesestunden mit leichter Lektüre war er genau das Richtige.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The funeral was a farce except for extra body in the grave. After all, a cardboard coffin marked Please Recycle and a picture of Superman, the embalmed corpse also wearing Superman attire? Then there's Honey's cantankerous mother and her drama queen friends!
That's just the beginning. Once the unplanned corpse is found it's all hands-on-deck to find out the rest of the story. The sleuthing is interesting, and really ramps up when another body is located elsewhere.
If you like your cozies irreverent and with a lot of laughs, you'll love this one as much as I did!

[Heyer 100 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have now read seven books in this series. I wanted a British Cosy Mystery and Bath makes a change of setting to London! The books have a wide and varied cast of characters, there are some comic moments, the descriptions of Bath are evocative. There are some inconsistencies in character backgrounds - breaks in continuity - that I find jarring. However, the books make a pleasant, light read against a picturesque background - gripping they are not!

[Suzette Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Murder At the Roman Baths

Good story and funny in parts. The author really tells a story of mystery and some romance. I love the fact the two characters are together. Can't wait for next!!

[Cindy Meadows · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice Read. I enjoy these series. They are interesting and something unusual happens at the end of each one.

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wright found in someone else's grave.

[Past Tenseee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually didn't expect the killer of this book. The story is witty and very thrilling. It is not a typical murder mystery that shows a total mystery. But I like the touch of reality as a Detective. Also, It's very British, can't get enough of British wit. The ending is tame, but it's okay.

[Robert Richmond · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun book to read. I liked the characters but I believe the end was tame.