Blog Tour: Murder at the Water Mill – Jon Harris

Sunday lunch goes cold when a body is discovered in a charming Somerset mill…
Julia Ford — part-time PI, full-time chaos magnet — and her terrier, Rumpkin, are in
the picturesque village of Ablebridge for a family meal. But instead of enjoying roast
pork, they find themselves staring down at a body, wedged awkwardly in the local
heritage water mill.

The police soon write it off as an accident, leaving the mill at risk of closure. But
Hannah, a local volunteer at the mill, is not convinced. With no faith in the local law
enforcement, she and the mill trust committee hire Julia to uncover the truth.
Soon, Julia and Hannah are knee-deep in village politics, cider scandals and bickering committee members. But with threats of more ‘accidents’ on the horizon, they must solve the mystery before another body turns up.

A charming, witty cozy mystery full of eccentric villagers, rural mischief and a dog with no boundaries.

Perfect for fans of Richard Osman, Jeanne M. Dams and Faith Martin.

Goodreads Purchase

Jon Harris grew up in the West Country just outside Bristol before moving to Cardiff to study physics and then Durham where he studied for a PhD in astronomy. After spending a few years staring into space he returned to the West Country for work and took up writing. His first novel, Murder on a Country Lane, was published in 2023.
He now lives in a village in North Somerset with his wife, son and pet tortoise. He’s happy to report that the village is far less murderous than its fictional counterpart.

My thoughts: The Water Mill of the title is used by a small collective of community businesses to sell their produce and by one to actually mill flour, unfortunately their handy man is found dead in the mill pond, meaning the police shut everything down. 

So now, the sellers must find a new market, and the police, who don’t seem that interested in the case, are in control. Hiring a PI seems like a good idea, maybe Julia and her very nosy dog might get answers faster than the distracted detective supposedly on the case.

I enjoyed this crime caper, I liked Julia and Hannah very much, as they attempt to get to the bottom of who on earth might want to kill a genial carpenter and Hannah tries to decide whether she’s actually attracted to a rich celebrity farmer (read less annoying Clarkson) or just overwhelmed.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.