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Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Dembley (Agatha Raisin #4)
by M.C. Beaton - 3/5
At three quarters in the book I had penciled it as a one star book. I was beginning to cohere about writing the review differently from the usual. I wanted to list 10 reasons why the book was irredeemable. Well, here we are in the middle of a 3 star review with no bullet points in sight. As soon as the annoying young ramblers were gone from the story, the book picked up pace.
Agatha Raisin got lucky with James, but that was not the only reason for the change in my mind. I thought that for someone as Agatha, there was a lot going to go against her, what with her stubborn and a tad abrasive ways, and what not. It's a pity that the author tried to give voice to a group of young teachers which were ramblers and militants. She isn't good at it and should not repeat such an experiment. She'll only embarrass herself, same as her obvious role model, Agatha Christie herself did. That side went nowhere and took the place of the usual build up that was so merrily cozy to read in previous books. I'm also beginning to be worried about the murders themselves.
I think that only the first book encased a truly well thought out murder with a clever culprit. Ever since then, not only have the murders been less ingenious, but Agatha herself only got her murderer by luck, sometimes with no shred of proof for support. I'm sure those issues aren't going to be an issue and that the enticing cliffhanger that promises a world of hurt for Agatha will bring in further developments. These books in the series are neither lowbrow nor thrash, but I can't defend them against accusations of being light and fluff. I hope, now that I have a vague resolve to read most of the books, that the best of the lot isn't already past me. Enough room exists where things can evolve. The series is still fresh. I have reasonable faith for the future.
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