About book Agatha Raisin And The Murderous Marriage (1997)
It appears at long last Agatha Raisin's dreams are about to come true. She is set to marry her neighbour James Lacey and has visions of them living happily ever after. However unknown to her, in London her old friend Roy has uncovered Agatha's ex husband Jimmy and he is about to spoil Agatha's plans. Jimmy arrives and the wedding is off and the town scandalized. They are about to be even more so when Jimmy is found dead the next day. Agatha and James are the lead suspects and everyone in the village also suspects them as well. Eager to clear their names the two set out to discover who the real killer is. Along the way they encounter an odd cast of characters, there's police detective Maddie Hurd who has caught the eye of Bill Wong. While Agatha sees through her façade immediately, like Agatha, Bill seems a romantic at heart and seems blind to who she really is. Also there is Mrs. Hardy the woman who bought Agatha's cottage before the wedding was broken up. Often grumpy and keeping mostly to herself she seems suspicious as she showed up shortly before the arrival of Jimmy Raisin. Agatha and James find themselves traveling to a health farm where Jimmy stayed with a mysterious and apparently wealthy woman and apparently cause a stir among the other guests, giving all of them motive, from Lord Derrington who was staying with a woman who was not his wife, to a Miss Purvey and Mrs. Comfort and finally Helen Warwick, all of whom have secrets they didn't want to get out. As Agatha and James travel around the Cotswolds and off to London to gather information danger stalks them at every turn. People often end up dead or missing after they visit them, a fire that could've turned fatal, a hold up on a country road at night are just some of the warnings that Agatha and James are given, before the story finally comes to it's final and exciting conclusion revealing who killed Jimmy Raisin. A bit darker than previous Agatha mysteries, it was still fun and enjoyable. Agatha has not changed much, as even though she accepts the wedding to James is off she is still capable of feeling jealousy one minute and then pure annoyance toward him the next. Many beloved and not so beloved recurring characters reappear. Mrs. Bloxby the vicar's wife, the Boggles who everyone seems to love to hate with reason, Roy Silver Agatha's sneaky best friend and of course Bill Wong from the police. It was a quick read and very engaging. Though it didn't end on a cliff hanger the last chapter did leave me looking quite forward to reading about Agatha's next adventure, this time far out of England in a completely different country. Can't wait!
Oh, Agatha...tut tut tut.Agatha Raisin and the Murderous Marriage is probably the best installment yet. Emotions are high, bodies are piling up, and Agatha herself has some near misses with the grim reaper. Though it was the pleasant, easy read I've come to expect from Beaton, the pace was faster and the characters better represented. This book accomplishes something the previous four did not: it gives James Lacey a more distinct personality. Previously, he came across as a cardboard cutout of the attractive yet distant bachelor. Though those descriptors still apply, Beaton manages to flesh him out more. Interesting that this coincides with Agatha's rose-coloured glasses losing a bit of their tint.The mystery here is of a personal nature for Agatha, leading her to elaborate on her downtrodden past. I already knew she was ambitious and determined, but her backstory proves she's quite the survivor. As always, village life plays a major role in the story. At times in this series I think it is the story, with the mysteries merely providing structure for the residents' conversations. This is shored up by the fact that Agatha does more blundering than investigating. As friend and police officer Bill Wong comments:"I don't know if she exactly solved those last crimes, but she made things happen by poking her nose in; otherwise we'd never have got to the murderers." (p.89)My opening line is in response to the final pages. For all her business aptitude and ballsy attitude, Agatha makes some disastrous decisions - never more apparent than in this volume. She makes a fabulously horrible one towards the end, setting us up for more emotional turmoil and mayhem. What one earth will she be poking her nose into next?
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I am still liking this series, but this one felt like Agatha was a little off her game. She did have a lot to contend with in this book, so I will give her a pass. I love that Agatha is a flawed, far from perfect character. She seems to be developing right before our eyes, and is showing that there is room for her to still grow. I don't think the strength of these novels is to fool the reader into who the killer is, but the bungling and misinformation, filled with wit and humor that sort of takes away any sadness of why the victim met their demise. Not saying that they deserved to die, just sayin..............not so sad.
—Kitty
Agatha Raisin’s big day has finally arrived. She finally snared her man…she is about to marry her neighbor, James Lacey. All of her dreams are about to come true…until her legal husband, Jimmy Raisin shows up at the wedding ceremony. Agatha assumed he had drunk himself to death years ago, but instead he shows up to cause trouble. If nothing else, he stops her from committing bigamy.However, James Lacey is more than a little disgusted and walks out on Agatha. He breaks off their engagement and wants nothing more to do with her. Agatha publicly threatens Jimmy. When the man turns up dead, all eyes turn in Agatha’s direction. The police are convinced that if Agatha didn’t do it, then James must have done the deed.Agatha and James team up one more time to clear their names and find a killer. They end up finding more and more questions and they wonder exactly what Jimmy had gotten himself into. Agatha also wonders if James will ever forgive her and if there is still a chance for them to marry.I’m speeding through this series. Audio is a great way to go through this series and I love the narrator. I’m warming up to Agatha more and more with each book, but she really makes some of the most stupid decisions. LOL You would think a successful career woman would be smarter than this.The mystery isn’t very complicated, but it’s interesting to try and figure it all out with Agatha and James. I just wish I understood Agatha’s attraction to James. He seems like a cold fish to me and, yet, she’s obsessed with him. Then, again, she’s kind of a grump herself. Now that I think about it, maybe they are perfect together. LOLI’m looking forward to my next trip to the small English Cotswold village.
—Yvonne
I believe this is the fifth of the Agatha Raisin series. She really tickles me, and I'm not reading them necessarily in order. I really like James, who she was preparing to marry, like Bill Wong from the Police, and Roy, though much younger...they are all smart, have strong personalities and tickle me while reading.This one had James & Agatha preparing for their wedding day, when it appears that her former husband is in fact alive, when for about 7 years she thought he was deceased. So here he appears, then before we know it he is dead, and Agatha and James are prime suspects. Quite a cute and clever story as they are solving the mystery and who killed Agatha's first husband. James & Agatha, one would think would get married right away, but they don't this book but wonder when and if they do. They are, however, delightful in their professional relationship and friendship. Agatha has been living with James, as she sold her home (next door to James). She has bought it back, and that's kind of where I am. Waiting to see what might happen next. Enjoying! :-)
—Carol
