[sufue]

Evans Above is the first title in Rhys Bowen's first series, the Evan Evans series. It's a fun cozy series that I read mostly in DTB, which is a good thing because the e-books in the US run $11.99 each, having gone UP from $7.99 a while back. Which is insane for very old (late 1990s/early 2000s) backlist, and they almost never go on sale - like, I've never seen most of them ever on sale. So I almost hesitate to mention that Evans Above has dropped to $3.99 in the US, which is still a bit high for backlist IMO. But worse, if you like it, the rest of the series is going to cost you, unless you can find them at your library or at your local used bookstore, so be forewarned...

Kindle US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007IVOJ42
Kindle US/Smile: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B007IVOJ42
Kobo US: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/evans-above

Spoiler:

Evan Evans is a young police constable who has traded in the violence of city life for idyllic Llanfair, a Welsh village tucked far away from trouble. Nestled among the Snowdonia mountain range, Llanfair looks to Constable Evans like a town forgotten by time, but he quickly learns that even the bucolic countryside has its share of eccentric--and deadly--characters. Evans' new neighbors include two competitive ministers vying for the souls of their flock, one lascivious barmaid, and three other Evanses: Evan-the-Meat, Evans-the-Milk, and Evans-the-Post (whose favorite hobby is to read the mail before he delivers it).

Before Evans has time to sort through the complicated relationships and rivalries of his new home, he's called to the scene of a crime as brutal and fearsome as any he encountered in the big city. Two hikers have been murdered on the trails of the local mountain, and Evans must hunt down a vicious killer--who may or may not be linked to the mysterious destruction of Mrs. Powell-Jones' prize-winning tomatoes.

Oh, and Minotaur Books clearly wants to hook you, because Evans Above is also KU, but none of the other titles is. So be doubly forewarned...