Agatha Raisin and the Murderous Cotswolds

Having finished the marvellous Air, I've now started another of the enjoyable Agatha Raisin books by M.C. Beaton. These are a series of crime novels, set in the Cotswolds, with a retired, bitchy middle aged heroine, Agatha Raisin who since moving from London has found herself embroiled in murder investigations around the sleepy Cotswold village of Carsely. These are great books, very easy to read with engaging mysteries and a great set of characters, especially Agatha who is really well drawn.
That said, the latest one in the series, The Terrible Tourist has turned out to be something of a disappointment so far. I think it's that old mistake of taking your characters away from their natural setting. Agatha works so well within the confines of the village, especially in her interactions with the other inhabitants, that it doesn't feel right to follow her on holiday in Cyprus. Maybe it's just because I haven't got to the murder yet!
This novel, more than the others, also suffers from massive info-dumping in the text. It's as if MC Beaton was so desperate to show her research that she just wrote paragraphs of information in that slow the book right down... show not tell! You'd think she'd know that!

I've just made a really lovely cup of tea! Sometimes you get one that's far better than any you've had for ages... this is one of them. I think it's fair to say that over the last few months I seem to have adopted the McCow approach to making tea: always leave the teabag in the mug and come back to it a while later and it seems to have paid off. Don't tell him I said so though!

I'd really like a hot cross bun right now, but I'll stick with my banana for the moment!

Current Book: M.C. Beaton: Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist
Current music: Simpson/ Derbyshire: Chromaphone Band
Current Sandwich Filling: Liver sausage