Another madcap mystery featuring Epiphany Bloom, this time as a substitute sports teacher!. Hilarious references to past escapades, quirky family members (easy to see where Pip fits in) and a good plot make for a fun and must read cozy mystery. Looking forward to more in this series!

Death at the Gates is Katie Gayle’s latest mystery. I really enjoyed the first two books and I’m delighted that the third has appeared. Epiphany (Pip) has lost her job at the costume museum after an unfortunate incident with the fire juggler; the vintage waistcoat on display; and the hair belonging to the Led Zeppelin tribute band’s Robert Plant lookalike. This shouldn’t be a surprise, as Pip has always lost jobs due to unfortunate incidents.

However, Pip’s flatmate, Tim, needs her help. His sister, Claire, is going to be expelled from school because the headmistress suspects she cheated by getting a copy of the exam paper. It looks like other girls have acquired papers before they sit exams too. Pip is taken on as a substitute sports teacher (sports? Pip? “Our” Pip? Oh, dear!) and is given two weeks to solve the exam paper mystery. During that time, Pip stumbles over a dead body and Pip has near misses, e.g. a plant pot just missing her head.

We have the same cast of characters as the previous two books: Tim, Flis (Pip’s sister with a wonderful misuse of words: it’s trolls who make nasty comment on the Internet, Flis, not trollops), Jimmy (the manager of the gym that Pip attends) and others. However, this book sees Pip solving the mystery with far less help from others. We still have Pip making it up as she goes along – that’s what she’s good at – but there are fewer far-fetched coincidences and luckily finding stuff on social media. It feels more believable. Don’t get me wrong – I loved the first two books in the series, but they did rely upon a huge suspension of disbelief. I was going to state that Katie Gayle’s has matured, but that implies the earlier books were immature, which is emphatically not the case. I then wondered if it was more confident but, again, the earlier books were written in a highly confident manner – bold, even, in their use of modern tools like social media to solve crimes. I think, perhaps, what the book shows is a confidence in Pip herself.

If you like the cosy subgenre of crime fiction then do try this book.

#DeathattheGates #NetGalley

Pip Bloom may have been fired from her last job after she accidentally set fire to the museum, but she has a new gig as a sports teacher where she is trying to figure out who is getting exams to students in advance of big tests. Pip has to do this because Tim’s sister has been accused of cheating and she really did study hard to get her increased marks. But what does Pip know about sports?

As Pip tries to figure out who is selling test and who is cheating, she finds herself looking into the murder of a parent during the school’s fun day. Pip believes the murder is related to the exam scam and finds herself the target of attempted murder, not one time, but many times. Will the murderer succeed in killing Pip or will pip figure it out before she’s knocked out for good?

I love the llamas that Pips mother has as well as Most and the kitty. But there’s always something up with the llamas and Pip is often involved and hilarity ensues….it could have happened to anyone, really! What a great series with so many options for Pip to job hop and find new bodies. A great and funny British cozy that will leave you eager to find out what Pip’s next job will be and how she will lose it.

More Adventures In Detection....
The third in the quirky Epiphany Bloom mystery series. Epiphany is rather a walking disaster. Being mistaken for a missing persons expert by a private investigator Epiphany finds herself on the job and decides that she will grasp the opportunity rather than admit to the mistake and, here, her adventures in detection continue when suspicious and bizarre occurrences at Hurlingham House school lead to an investigation. It’s not long before a body is discovered and, needless to say, a catalogue of disasters ensues. Enjoyable, fun reading with a likeable protagonist in Epiphany whose heart is always in the right place, even if she isn’t

A charming and totally addictive cozy mystery with a hilarious and warm-hearted heroine which I have just finished reading. Book 3 in the series and a wonderful read. Definitely a book to add to your list of books to read in 2021! I was pulled into the story and it did not let go. The book is well written with a strong character driven story and many a twists and turns
Recommended 4 star read ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️