A MARKET FOR MURDER

Rebecca Tope

Allison&Busby £17.99hbk

Reviewed by John Esctott

This story starts with a bang – literally – when a bomb goes off in the supermarket of a busy country town. Karen Slocombe, stallholder at the local farmers` market, is visiting the supermarket at the time, hoping she doesn`t meet anyone she knows. Her fellow members of the Food Chain Group, and in particular the so-called `three witches` - founder-members of the Group - certainly wouldn`t approve. Then, within days, Karen witnesses the shooting (with a crossbow) of Peter Grafton who runs the fruit juices stall at the market. Are the bombing and the murder linked in some way? Some members of the Food Chain Group appear to be more fanatical than others. Could their activities be at the centre of the mystery? Then there are the complicated relationships and jealousies of a number of Karen`s friends and their partners, some dating back to the time when they were at school. And why is Karen asked by one of the `three witches` to keep certain facts secret from the police?

Ex-policeman, Den Cooper, and his girlfriend, Maggs, who works with Karen`s husband, want answers; as does Karen herself. They are soon embroiled in a tangled puzzle which they urgently need to unravel before someone else is hurt.

Unfortunately they are not quick enough.

The story is carefully constructed, with some well-rounded, interesting characters. There are also some real insights into the workings of the countryside today, and the difficulties faced by farmers and growers. I also like Rebecca Tope`s very readable style of writing. The story was, however, somewhat drawn-out at 278 pages. You get the feeling, rightly or wrongly, that the author was stretching the plot to make it a `fatter book`. A shame, because at 200 pages it would have been a better, tighter story.