Agatha Raisin and the Murderous Marriage [Mass Market Paperback]

 

 

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This is the fifth book in the Agatha Raisin cozy British mystery series. Fans of Agatha will not be disappointed. Her neighbor, distinguished retired colonel James Lacey, has finally succumbed to Agatha's charms, and they are now about to be married. Just as they are about to tie the knot, however, who should inconveniently turn up at the wedding but Agatha's first husband, Jimmy, who she had presumed to be long dead from alcoholism.

James Lacey promptly calls off the wedding and vows never to marry Agatha. When Jimmy turns up dead shortly thereafter, both James Lacey and Agatha Raisin are the prime suspects. Despite the elephant in the room, James and Agatha join forces to do some amateur sleuthing, much to the chagrin of the local police. Before they know it, the bodies start piling up.

Agatha's friend, Detective Bill Wong has a larger, more involved role that usual, and he is truly a wonderful and funny character. As with all cozy mysteries, the mystery is secondary to the evolvement of the recurring characters and the ordinary discourse of life that binds them. As always, the dialogue moves the plot along at a brisk pace, and the book is peppered with a host of interesting, quirky characters that entertain the reader. This is a highly addictive series that makes the reader race off to get the next volume.

If you haven't read any other Agatha Raisin stories, go back and start with Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death. You'll be sure to like that book and your appreciation of this one will be greater if you start with Quiche.

In Agatha Raisin and the Walkers of Wembley, Agatha and her handsome next-door neighbor, James Lacey, went undercover and lived together as man and wife to track down a brutal murderer. Agatha naturally hoped the propinquity would give James ideas, but he was notably unromantic throughout . . . except in the end when he proposed to Agatha and she accepted his proposal.

But you may remember from Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death that Agatha was separated and not divorced from her husband, Jimmy Raisin, when she moved to Carsely in the English Cotswolds. Since she had told everyone that, naturally people asked her about her plans to marry James. Concerned that a delay might cause James Lacey to change his mind, Agatha tells one and all that Jimmy had died of drink. But that's only her fond hope. She plans a low-key wedding that won't attract any attention.

But Roy Silver, a former employee from her old PR agency, moves into the information breach by hiring a detective to find Jimmy after Agatha rebuffs Roy's attempts to get her back into PR. The detective finds Jimmy, Roy tells him about the wedding, and Jimmy heads for Carsely on the wedding day.

The wedding doesn't happen, and Agatha barely escapes being charged with attempted bigamy. James Lacey is outraged at Agatha and takes off. Thoroughly annoyed with Jimmy Raisin, when Agatha next encounters him she slaps him hard and pushes him into a ditch. An hour later, the police charged her with Jimmy's murder.

From there, Agatha finds herself interested in clearing her name, regaining the affections of James Lacey, and regaining her cottage (which she had sold in anticipation of the marriage to James.

In the process, Agatha finds out what being married to James might have been like and discovers it's not all good news. The pursuit of James' affections is complicated by someone who seems to be interested in killing Agatha. Others find themselves as risk after Agatha and James visit them. Does Agatha have a death touch?

If this book hadn't had such a strong first chapter, I would have rated it at three stars. Much of the book is taken up with the emotional reticence of James Lacey, a subject that doesn't interest me all that much.

The mystery of who did the murders is fairly easy to solve and doesn't provide enough of a counterbalance to the James Lacey-Agatha Raisin romantic complications.

But if you are committed to the Agatha Raisin series, you can't skip this book: You won't be able to fully appreciate Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist, the next book in the series.

Having started from the beginning of this series at a late date, I have to say that this is one of the best to this point. The situations were more realistic than some of the earlier episodes and usually written with a good blend of humor and real emotions.
Agatha's dream is finally coming true: she is marrying James Lacey. Needless to say, things in Agatha's life cannot go smoothly. Her thought-to-be-dead husband shows up demanding money and then ends up dead. James, furious with Agatha, refuses to consider returning to where their relationship was but the two of the must work together to solve the murder as they are both prime suspects.
A fun book to read, particularly in regards to some new revelations regarding Agatha's childhood and family history. Looking forward to the next in the series.

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5.0 out of 5 stars --Until death do you part--
AGATHA RAISIN AND THE MURDEROUS MARRIAGE begins with Agatha preparing to marry James Lacey, the man of her dreams. Read more

Published on Jan 29 2004 by Judith Miller

5.0 out of 5 stars The more books out, the more I like her
Agatha was desperate to get married to James unless the bad feeling might be realized before the ceremony. But...she was almost close to commit a bigamy. Read more

Published on Sep 16 2003 by kel

5.0 out of 5 stars Marriage Can Be Murder!
Agatha Raisin returns in the 5th book in the series, and is finally going to realize her dream of marrying James Lacey, her next-door neighbor. Read more

Published on Jun 20 2003 by L Smith

4.0 out of 5 stars Agatha Raisin back in Fighting Form
I really enjoyed this book. It was a strong entry into the series about Agatha. In this one she is trying to tie the knot with her handsome neighbour, James Lacey, and lo and... Read more

Published on Dec 30 2002 by S. Schwartz

5.0 out of 5 stars How stubborn the human heart is!
There are a lot of characters and situations in this novel that are hysterically funny. This is a very well-paced story, with a wider scope than most of the books in this series... Read more

Published on Oct 24 2002 by Martha E. Nelson

5.0 out of 5 stars Agatha Raisin is unique
I have enjoyed the character development in this series. It helps to read the Agatha Raisin books in sequence although it is not necessary to enjoy each story. Read more

Published on Nov 4 2001 by Anne Melvin

4.0 out of 5 stars Now she's having fun with us!
This time there's a lot going on with Agatha Raisin. We learn more about Agatha's background and childhood, her marriage, and her motivation. We also learn more about James. Read more

Published on May 27 2001 by MLPlayfair

5.0 out of 5 stars Not a fan of Higgins Clark? Try these.
I LOVE the Agatha Raisin series. I found the first three at the library many years ago and read straight through them. Read more

Published on April 23 2001 by Tricia

5.0 out of 5 stars "AGATHA IS GREAT"
Another good one by M C Beaton. I have enjoyed all the Agatha Raisin books I have read. In this one Agatha is finally getting to marry James Lacey. Read more

Published on Mar 24 2001 by Mac Blair

5.0 out of 5 stars Bigamist or Murderess?
Agatha Raisin plunges into marital mayhem when she snares her handsome neighbor, James Lacey, assuming (incorrectly) that the derelict husband she left behind decades ago has... Read more

Published on Jun 6 2000 by Mamalinde

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