M. C. Beaton

Putting all her eggs in one basket, Agatha Raisin gives up her successful PR firm, sells her London flat, and samples a taste of early retirement in the quiet village of Carsely. Bored, lonely and used to getting her way, she enters a local baking contest: Surely a blue ribbon for the best quiche will make her the toast of the town. But her recipe for social advancement sours when Judge Cummings-Browne not only snubs her entry--but falls over dead! After her quiche's secret ingredient turns out to be poison, she must reveal the unsavory truth... Agatha has never baked a thing in her life! In fact, she bought her entry ready-made from an upper crust London quicherie. Grating on the nerves of several Carsely residents, she is soon receiving sinister notes. Has her cheating and meddling landed her in hot water, or are the threats related to the suspicious death? It may mean the difference between egg on her face and a coroner's tag on her toe...

The Quiche of Death

brie

i knew there was a reason why i never cared for quiche. i just have to say that British cozy mysteries have a very special place in my heart and i really wanted to like the first book in this series so i could dedicate my time to reading the rest. i was not disappointed and could not put this down! 

Agatha is formidable and i like her character (although she can be quite unlikeable sometimes but somehow it works), however my only hang-up was that there were some questionable and problematic things said in the book that made me uncomfy. hopefully that’s not the case for the rest of the books in the series.

Mélissa

L'histoire me fait un poil penser a Miss Marple mais avec un personnage un poil moins attachante. L'histoire est intéressante mais je ne sais pas si j'ai envie de continuer a la suivre.

The first book in M. C. Beaton's New York Times bestselling Agatha Raisin series—now a hit show on Acorn TV and public television. Putting all her eggs in one basket, Agatha Raisin gives up her successful PR firm, sells her London flat, and settles in for an early retirement in the quiet village of Carsely. But she soon finds her life of leisure isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Bored, lonely, and used to getting her way, she enters a local baking contest: Surely a blue ribbon for the best quiche will make her the toast of the town. But her recipe for social advancement sours when the judge, Mr. Cummings-Browne, not only snubs her entry but also falls over dead! After her quiche’s secret ingredient turns out to be poison, she must reveal the unsavory truth. . . . That is, Agatha has never baked a thing in her life! In fact, she bought her entry ready-made from an upper-crust London quicherie. Grating on the nerves of several Carsely residents, she is soon receiving sinister notes. Has her cheating and meddling landed her in hot water, or are the threats related to the suspicious death? It may mean the difference between egg on her face and a coroner’s tag on her toe. . . . The Quiche of Death, the first book in this beloved series, is now a Minotaur Signature Edition, complete with a discussion guide and essay by the author.

The First Agatha Raisin Mystery

Yulande Lindsay

Agatha Raisin really shouldn't be likeable...aggressive, a bully, whiny and unscrupulous, but somehow sympathetic. A lot of fun.

Barbara Williford

What a fun little mystery! I love Agatha! She is a middle aged woman who knows her mind and is not afraid to tell you what’s in it. Agatha has just moved to a new village after retiring from London. Immediately after she moves in, there’s a murder and she’s the number one suspect. As she’s getting to know her neighbor, she’s also trying to figure out the murder. Humorous, witty and laugh out loud moments.

oihane

you can tell an old white lady wrote this and that’s not good plus the mystery was not that mysterious, I guessed it as soon as the body was discovered.

Oh, how torn I am about Agatha Raisin. For one, and this is only for people buying the books new, dang they are pricey. Like ten bucks just for the Kindle version. That's pricey for a cozy mystery where the average is from free to five dollars a book.

Second, I like her as a character. I am a lot like her, I feel, and the idea that it's hard to just jump into a new town and be friends is relateable. I also feel that she has a deeper, underlying, insecurity where she feels like she isn't good enough for people to be her friend. Heck, the only friend she considers herself to have is a pretty big jerk who used her to help promote himself and then leaves her in the dust.

I don't like a lot of the townspeople. I think they're overtly mean and designed to simply further ostracize Agatha. I also didn't like the heavy handed insertion of her reading cozy mysteries. It's a weird break in the fourth wall. I also don't like her limitless funds. She should really be budgeting her money. And the woman cooked fish and turned back to the microwave like she had no clue what to do, waiting for the townspeople to teach her.

I did like the way the , mystery played out. It left a lot to be desired throughout, but didn't throw the clues in last second, which is nice. There was even a red herring, which I don't see much of in this little subgenre.

If these were priced more reasonably I would be hooked, but the price keeps me intrepid.

Anna Adams

I didn't bother to read it at first because I'd seen the series. I actually loved the book more than the series. (Though I'll continue with both! If I can stop watching Ted Lasso over and over!)

Rebecca C Wright

Sonia Grgas

Meryn Kae Addison

Christin Sharp

Maggie Gordon

Sonja H

Claire Knight

The first book in M. C. Beaton's New York Times bestselling Agatha Raisin series—now a hit show on Acorn TV and public television. Putting all her eggs in one basket, Agatha Raisin gives up her successful PR firm, sells her London flat, and samples a taste of early retirement in the quiet village of Carsely. Bored, lonely and used to getting her way, she enters a local baking contest: Surely a blue ribbon for the best quiche will make her the toast of the town. But her recipe for social advancement sours when Judge Cummings-Browne not only snubs her entry but falls over dead! After her quiche's secret ingredient turns out to be poison, she must reveal the unsavory truth... That is, Agatha has never baked a thing in her life! In fact, she bought her entry ready-made from an upper crust London quicherie. Grating on the nerves of several Carsely residents, she is soon receiving sinister notes. Has her cheating and meddling landed her in hot water, or are the threats related to the suspicious death? It may mean the difference between egg on her face and a coroner's tag on her toe... The Quiche of Death, the first book in this beloved series, is now a Minotaur Signature Edition, complete with a discussion guide and essay by the author.

The Quiche of Death

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