Agatha Raisin and the Wellspring of Death (Agatha Raisin Mysteries, No. 7) - Softcover

Beaton, M. C.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0312966954 ISBN 13: 9780312966959

Publisher: St. Martin's Dead Letter, 1999

Synopsis

This time, the feisty sleuth stumbles upon the victim of an unnatural death in Cotswold village's famous natural spring. Who was the unlucky corpse? The Ancombe Parish Council chairman-and the only uncommitted member voting on whether to allow the Ancombe Water Company to tap into the town's spring. Add ex-fiance James, watery politicians, and slippery entrepreneurs to the mix, and you have Agatha Raisin up to her neck in a murky murder mystery.

About this title

Review

Agatha Raisin, the crusty, yet perversely self-conscious Londoner who has resettled in the ostensible calm of a Cotswold village stars in her seventh adventure by M.C. Beaton. In this episode, Agatha has agreed to come out of retirement to manage the publicity for the launch of water bottled from a village spring--much to the chagrin of some of her neighbors. Worried that the commodification of at least part of the village's charm might wreak havoc on their peaceful existence, some of the community try to stop it once and for all. Still, killing off a member of the village council and leaving the corpse in the spring itself seems a little extreme, especially as it makes Agatha's paying job a bit more difficult. Believing that a dead body might destroy the chances for a successful campaign to market her product, Agatha begins an investigation into who might have wanted the victim dead.

Agatha Raisin continues to be an engaging and slightly puzzling heroine in The Wellspring of Death. She careens around the Cotswolds asking impertinent questions regarding the personal lives of her neighbors, all the while wondering why so many of them are unpleasant to her. She manages to muddle her own romantic affairs to such an extent that she finds herself in bed with her young and handsome employer--to the dismay of her former fiancée. Yet, in spite of all this, she engages in the occasional humorous assessment of what life among charming façades and lovely vistas is really like (crowded shopping in too small stores) and has a peculiarly British obsession with class and accent. There is much to appreciate here and little that is daunting or dismal. --K.A. Crouch

From the Publisher

Praise for Agatha Raisin:

"Beaton has a winner in the irrepressible, romance-hungry Agatha." --Chicago Sun Times

"[Agatha] is a glorious cross between Miss Marple, Auntie Mame and Lucille Ball, with a tad of pit bull tossed in. She's wonderful." --St. Petersburg Times

"[Agatha] is an absolute gem." --Publishers Weekly

"Anyone interested in a few hours' worth of intelligent, amusing reading will want to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Agatha Raisin." --Atlanta Journal-Constitution

About this edition

• Publisher: St. Martin's Dead Letter
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0312966954
• ISBN 13: 9780312966959
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Number of pages: 256