The sweeping lawns and old stone walls of Coates House make it the perfect backdrop for a baking competition. But Sarah Vane must put her scones aside to figure out who would kill for it…

Sarah Vane’s making the most of her retirement, entering the annual baking competition at the stately Coates House. Normally it runs like clockwork under the eagle eye of Madeleine Brett-Coates. But when Sarah stumbles across the body of the lady of the manor, a string of bunting wrapped tightly around her neck, the event is plunged into chaos.

Mrs Brett-Coates’s children appear heartbroken but soon Sarah learns that the kind old woman ruled her roost with an iron rod. And as well as whispers of a secret fling, Sarah discovers that someone’s name was hastily crossed out of her will just days before her death…

Everybody at the manor, even the staff, had a motive and all of them have secrets they’d kill to keep. But when one of the Brett-Coates heirs vanishes, and a threatening note is sent to the others, Sarah suddenly sees a much bigger plot unfolding. Can Sarah track down the killer before another victim is claimed?

A delightfully cozy and utterly unputdownable murder mystery, perfect for fans of Faith Martin, J.R. Ellis and Clare Chase who are looking for their next addictive read.

Readers love the Sarah Vane Mysteries:

‘Wow!!!… I absolutely LOVED this… had me hooked from the start to the end!!… Absolutelygorgeous… brilliant… amazing… incredible… absolutely smashed it out of the ballpark again!!!… I felt myself walking around with my kindle in my hand every chance I could get… perfect.’ Bookworm86, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘LOVED!… Many laughing moments!… A real page-turner… once start, you won’t be able to put down until finished.’ Coffeeandpages2021, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Wow!… fantastic… I enjoyed every page… I loved the vivid scenery… I was chuckling throughout… unputdownable… Captivated me from the first to thelast page.’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Fantastic… I can’t wait for this to come out and for y’all to lose your minds… You’re going to want to read this one. I raced through it this weekend… Brilliantly plotted and compelling.’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I read this in one day… laugh out loud… I highly recommend this book! More please!!!’ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Kept me glued to my Kindle! I loved the setting, the writing style. The main characters, and the antics of Hamish the Scottie dog.’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘A delight… twists and turns from start to finish… brilliant… highly recommended.’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Gripping… The mystery was very intricate, the characters interesting and it took to the very last few pages for all the clues to fall into place… laugh out loud.’ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘A total delight.’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I love this series… it’s very easy to get sucked in and read the novel in one sitting.’ Thecosymoose, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐