Anybody who enjoys the TV series Heartbeat, or has read the books of Nicholas Rhea will surely love this. The first in a series about the cases of Deepbriar, it is both a fascinating look at country life during the 1950s and an absorbing detective story. A complex and convoluted tale nicely offsets the gentle appeal of a vanished way of life, portrayed as being simpler and less hurried although fortunately not entirely as a bed of roses. Reading it is rather akin to lying in a warm bath with the rain outside, sipping a nice cup of tea, and as these are all good things you can tell I enjoyed it and hope for many more in the series. If you are looking for a fast pace, bloody deeds and the wonders of forensics you won’t find them here. But it is good to be reminded that there are as many types of detective stories as people who enjoy reading them.