Aunt Dimity and the Village Witch
Aunt Dimity series, # 17
Nancy Atherton

Viking Adult /Penguin Publishing
April 26, 2012 / ISBN 978-0670023417
Fiction / Paranormal Cozy Mystery
Amazon

Reviewed by Linda Morelli

Being a lover of mystery and the paranormal, I was intrigued by this book's description, and I'm so glad I was. This was my first exposure to Lori Shepard, an American to lives with her husband and twin sons in the English Cotswold village of Finch. She inherited a fortune and a cottage from her mother's friend, Dimity Westwood, whom Lori knew as Aunt Dimity when she was a child. Lori now lives in Aunt Dimity's old home. Aunt Dimity's spirit communicates with Lori via a journal. Aunt Dimity's spirit writes messages in response to Lori's questions, and those messages disappear when their conversation is over.

Aunt Dimity is a fountain of information to Lori, who has joined the villagers in attempting to learn more about their new village resident, Amelia Thistle. Lori being forthright, she soon learns that Amelia is actually a well-known and highly respected English botanist and painter, Mae Bowen. Lori also discovers that Amelia moved to live in Finch in order to solve a mystery that her now-dead brother wanted to solve: one involving the existence of a village witch who lived there centuries before.

I enjoyed following Lori and the other villagers in their search for clues. The first begins with a missive found by Amelia's brother, written in Latin by the local priest, involving Mistress Meg, who was accused of witchcraft. The note ends with a cryptic drawing which, once deciphered, leads them to another search for one of many missives hidden in structures throughout the village.

This was one of the most charming cozy mysteries I've read in ages. I enjoyed all the village characters, but especially Lori and Aunt Dimity. The village and characters are wonderfully described, and the touches of humor throughout makes for a wonderful read. I loved it.

Reviews of other Aunt Dimity Titles

The Family Tree,
The Deep Blue Sea, 11
Goes West, 12
Slays the Dragon, 14
The Villiage Witch, 17 [Review 1] [Review 2]