Murder Among the Pineapples and Proper Complaints

A Cozy Regency Mystery of Murder, Love & Ghosts

I am the narrator of this book, which means I will haul you through every humid corridor, every polite lie, and every outrageously starched cravat; first they insist I must sell it as well. Splendid.

Welcome to Marshwood Grange, where the pineapples are treated like visiting royalty and the staff are expected to perspire with gratitude. Miss Elinor Strickland has been hired to illustrate Lady Agnes March’s prized fruit, which is a respectable way to earn a living if you overlook the small matter of the hothouse manager dropping dead at her feet.

Naturally, Mr Barnabas Quill’s ghost rises at once, still furious about labels, order, and the general incompetence of the living, and naturally Elinor is the only person who can see him. So while the household tightens into whispers and locked doors, she must investigate a death that makes no social sense, keep her commission intact, and avoid being discovered arguing with thin air. Mr Nathaniel Calder, the estate’s cold eyed problem-solver, notices more than is convenient and disapproves of chaos with a steadiness that is, annoyingly, attractive.

Expect a cozy Regency whodunit with a clue-rich trail and a satisfying, logical reveal, served with sharp manners, sharper observations, and a closed door, slow burn romance with a happy-for-now ending. The violence is non-gory, the humour is dry, and the ghost is not here to help, he is here to complain.

Perfect for readers who like country-house secrets, prickly heroines with practical brains, vexingly competent heroes, a nuisance ghost with opinions, and mysteries that get solved without wallowing.

This is a complete, standalone case in the Regency: Ghostly Grievances Society world, you can start here without anyone scowling at you for it, except me. Now go on, click Look Inside and step into the glasshouse.