Is there anyone who does not like people-watching? I can’t imagine so, even if not everyone wants to admit it, so novels like this one which take you into the heart of a community, are ideal. The reader spectates from a safe distance.

After a brief, enticing prologue, the novel proper begins when a man dies in the shower, apparently of a heart attack. It could have been embarrassment all round when he is found; young Jasper is certainly in a state of shock but of course the victim feels nothing because he is dead.

The murder is announced somewhat dramatically at a village meeting where conflict is rife. Locals are at odds with each other. ‘Blow-ins’ or outsiders, are blamed for the proposed closure of the village school along with everything else. The village of Maidcombe in Devon is becoming a museum because of all the holiday lets, Airbnb’s and second homes. It’s a beautiful part of the world but the village community is rapidly reducing in number. Those who are left are divided. Local businesses rely on the tourists and the owners of second homes who spend plenty when they come for a weekend, but the other residents argue that their own offspring can’t afford market prices and are leaving. There will be no future generation. It’s a very real modern day problem for some areas. The antagonism is palpable and the atmosphere, fractious. Then comes the sudden announcement: death at Death Watch Cottage.

As in all good murder mysteries, the pendulum swings from one suspect to another, dangling clues which are just as quickly snatched away, leaving the reader to scratch their head ...

There is more conflict at said cottage, which is quickly designated a crime scene. CSI Ally Dymond is known for robustly defending her space, if necessary, whatever the rank of the police officer trying to force a way past her. She has history with the local Force, having been responsible for uncovering corruption a couple of years previously, and relations with some are tetchy to say the least. It makes for a good secondary plot.

It quickly transpires that the dead man was having an affair with a local woman. They shouldn’t have even been in Death Watch Cottage and what’s more, it wasn’t a heart attack. Given the victim was a wealthy and influential chap, very well known in certain circles, the Major Investigations Team is called in because the list of suspects is not short and likely to grow further. Motives cover the usual range, jealousy and revenge to name just two. As in all good murder mysteries, the pendulum swings from one suspect to another, dangling clues which are just as quickly snatched away, leaving the reader to scratch their head as much as DI Harriet Moore, who leads the team of investigators.

Sex rears an ugly head and the team believe they have got their man but not all the threads are tied up and, just as a good copper has a nose for the truth, so the reader knows it’s not the end - and they’re right.

The narrative has different strands. Alongside the murder mystery, Ally has a life. She needs to find a new place to live and there is little available in her price range, which is suitable for her and her teenage daughter. She really doesn’t want to accept money from her ex husband to pay for something decent even though he hasn’t paid any maintenance for years and her mother believes Ally is owed. Her current boyfriend is Liam, a supportive ex-cop who now runs a café in Maidcombe and needs the tourists to survive. Ally also believes she is being framed, her DNA having been found at another crime scene. She knows it’s an impossibility and she has her sights firmly fixed on the latest addition to the MIT who she believes might just be paying her back for whistleblowing on his mates. She knows she has powerful enemies on the force and needs to protect her reputation. Add to that Defnas Cempen, an anti-tourist group who are leaving menacing graffiti messages around the village, and Rex Sampford, a property developer of questionable morals and coincidentally, the owner of Death Watch Cottage. One thing is certain, no-one seems keen to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

The plot thickens still further as things have a habit of catching up with the unsuspecting. Sex rears an ugly head and the team believe they have got their man but not all the threads are tied up and, just as a good copper has a nose for the truth, so the reader knows it’s not the end - and they’re right. Don’t make assumptions as Munro keeps you guessing till the very end as she interweaves many threads to ensure the reader is kept on edge.

She clearly draws on personal experience to make this an authentic portrayal, albeit of fictional crime. Death Watch Cottage is well-paced and cleverly plotted, keeping you guessing to the last page. It is a stand alone in the CSI Ally Dymond series and would easily transfer to the small screen.



Death Watch Cottage is published by HQ