Never having read any of the Mrs. Pargeter books before I was a little concerned that I might miss out on full enjoyment due to not knowing the back stories.

Pleased to say that this story quite happily tells it's tale on it's own and it has certainly encouraged me to look up and read the previous tales.

Amusing at times, nicely paced and a very enjoyable read.

Absolutely loved this book, read in one sitting.
It is funny and heartwarming and still a murder mystery. The innocence of Mrs Pargeter is wonderful to see

Mrs. Pargeter's Patio by Simon Brett continues the saga of does she or doesn't she know what her deceased husband's business was? After finding a skeleton under her patio, Mrs. Pargeter gets out the little black book her husband left her and proceeds to solve the mystery of who it was while not getting any of her slightly shady friends in trouble with the police. This series is thoroughly enjoyable and the characters are very likeable, their dubious nature and ways of solving problems a plus.

This book grew on me. Mrs. Partger’s Patio is a cozy Murder that follows the kind old widow Mrs. Partager as she tries to discover why she found a dead body under her remodeled Patio. With the help of her husband's former friends, who are criminals but also kooky and kind, Brett takes us throughout London to try to figure out the mystery.
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I’m docking some stars off because of the complete lack of subtly. A big plot point is that Mrs. Partager had no idea her husband was a crook. But the lack of subtly in the writing was a little alarming. On every page, we were reminded that her husband's former employees had to make sure not to give up the jig. The plot also moved lethargically, with little momentum until the halfway point. But I was pleasantly surprised with all of the twists!

Sometimes a ‘cosy mystery’ just hits the spot and ‘Mrs Pargeter’s Patio’ is no exception. I have to admit that this is the first time I have read any of Simon Brett’s novels, but it will certainly not be the last. The indomitable Mrs Pargeter is a wonderful character - along with her faithful entourage of colourful ex-villains, all willing to aid and abet her investigations. An ideal feel good experience from start to end. Now for doing some of my own detective work into Mr Brett’s back catalogue!

Many thanks to all concerned for allowing me to read and review this terrific novel.

The return of Mrs Pargeter is very welcome. This time, when she finds trouble, it's closer to home with a classic body under the patio discovery. A joy to welcome back her dip into the Mr Pargeter's little black book for help from some people who have a very close acquaintance with crime - although, of course, fully reformed via his generosity. And on this occasion Mrs Pargeter, who is concerned that the murderer's identity may not be welcome news, takes a very close interest in what happened eleven years earlier., to the point that she decides to do a little sleuthing on her own. Much fun. Thoroughly recommended.

Mrs Pargeter finds a body under her patio. With the help of her late husbands friends she solves the case with the,. And helps her gardener to find her dad. Typical english in an untertaining way.

I was surprised to see that I first read a cozy mystery featuring Mrs Pargeter almost 35 years ago. This is a really fun series about Mrs Pargeter, the well off widow of a rather shading sounding character. I always think that Mrs Pargeter is not as naive nor innocent about her late husband's businesses dealings as she seems to be. She just chooses to always remember him in the best light. Her husband left her in the care of his former work associates and they help Mrs Pargeter solve mysteries when she doesn’t want to bother those over worked local policemen. This is just a fun, easy series to read. I was so happy to read the newest installment.

I must confess that this is the first Simon Brett book that I have read but it certainly will not be the last. I loved it. It was such an easy read with all Mrs Pargeter’s associates have such interesting names, that included their speciality caused me to have more than one chuckle. The storyline just flowed through the book to a very successful conclusion. I thoroughly enjoyed it and was totally engaged from the first chapter.

This is the latest in Simon Brett's Mrs Pargeter series. I have read them all and always look forward to the next instalment. Mrs Pargeter's late husband was a big name crook and, during his career he helped out a number of career criminals in a way that has made them deeply loyal to his widow, Melita Pargeter. Mrs P's intriguing habit is to deny all knowledge of her late husband's crimes and a lot of humour is derived from his former cronies helping her solve crimes whilst trying not to mention her husband's criminal career even though it is clear that, on one level, she is well aware of how he earned his money. In this adventure, a body is discovered under Mrs P's new house which Mr Pargeter had asked his associate, Concrete Jacket, to build. Sadly, Concrete had to go away for a spell towards the end of the house's construction and farmed the job out to a builder who was known for disposing of bodies for the criminal underworld. With the possibility that Mr Pargeter may become a suspect in the killing, Melita and her friends go about solving the crime before the police. At the same time, she is trying to find her gardener's father who disappeared around the time the victim was last seen. Not unsurprisingly, the two investigations turn out to be linked and Mrs P finds herself in great danger. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story which made me laugh at the same time as making me want to solve this cosy crime mystery.

A whimsical read that captivates one with its’eclectric characters along with Mrs Pargeter’s mystifying ‘aura of serendipity and of synchronicity’.

Thank you NetGalley and Severn House for the eARC.

This was my first book by Simon Brett and I an wondering how I missed this author. I am an avid mystery reader and I loved this book. I had a little bit of a hard time remembering all the characters names but it didn't ruin the book. Great Mystery!!!

This book was a very pleasant surprise. I have read a few of the author’s other works and, like them, this was a light and humorous cozy mystery. What was surprising was that after reading the description of Mrs. Pargeter finding a skeleton under her patio while having her morning tea I rather expected Miss Marple, a quaint little old lady with a knack for solving mysteries. But Mrs. Pargeter was quite different. She was younger than I expected and a bit more glamorous. Her love for her late husband was apparent, as was her ignorance of the nature of his former business dealings. Like him though, she greatly admires the police and the tough job that they do. She also knows how overworked and understaffed they are, so when she finds the skeleton under her patio she decides that delaying contacting them would be a kindness to avoid adding to their immediate workload. Instead, she consulted her husband’s little black book of handy contacts and called in private investigator Truffler Mason. Together with him and a marvelous cast of colorful characters devoted to her late husband they set out to learn the identity of the body and to find the killer. Their names alone made me chuckle: Concrete Jacket the builder, Fixin Nixon, Handbag Harrison, Hedgeclipper Clinton, Keyhole Crabbe, Melting Maurice, etc. It was a fun and entertaining read that I would recommend to anyone who likes a humorous cozy mystery. Thanks to Severn House publishing and NetGalley for letting me read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Net Galley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Mrs. Pargeter’s Patio, by Simon Brett is a cozy mystery about an affluent woman and amateur sleuth who finds a body under her patio stones. She calls upon a multitude of characters from her now deceased husband’s past to assist her in solving the mystery.

While cozy mysteries are typically not my choice of genre, I do enjoy Agatha Christie type novels. As I read, I tried to keep in mind the point of a cozy mystery, and also the history of how they came to be. In the past, cozy mysteries were created during the 1930’s as a way to provide intriguing murder mysteries, while avoiding the messiness, and uncomfortableness of things that were seen as too graphic for the time period. They typically involved some sort of eccentric, non- threatening, wealthy character who went about solving crimes (think Nancy Drew, or Agatha Christie characters). The crimes themselves were described in details that avoided anything graphic, or gruesome in detail. The idea was to encourage the reader to scour the book for clues, and to solve a puzzle while never feeling uncomfortable with the murder details. Cozies are a relic from a bygone era of the Golden Age of murder mysteries.

I know that Simon Brett has many fans out there and that he is a prolific writer, however his work did not resonate with me, and I am sure that this will be an unpopular review so I will tread lightly…..a cozy review?


What worked: Brett hits all of the key notes of a Cozy, including the eccentric, harmless, older lady who is the sleuth along with a pack of even more eccentric supporting characters. Some of the names made me laugh, and I wasn’t sure if they were to be taken seriously! (Concrete Jacket, the builder for example ). The book provides twists and turns, while avoiding any unnecessary messy, gory details. The author also made good use of dialect to induce a feeling of old time, hard boiled, noir, detective novels of the past.


What didn’t work:

If this book had not been set in modern times, I think that it would have translated better into what the author was aiming for, an Agatha Christie-esque mystery. If felt a little unbelievable to me, that this rich, philanthropist lived in a giant house, and was surrounded by all of these odd characters that felt like they were from the 1930’s mob movies.

I did not find the characters to be very likable, particularly Mrs. Pargeter. If anything, I found her to be snooty, slightly racist, condescending, and totally detached from reality where her primary focus was living the rich life, and helping others out of pity to boost her own ego. Most, if not all of the characters, were built out of stereotypes. One example, the Jamaican, female gardener who was “rescued” by Mrs. Pargeter after she tried to break into her house and steal from her. The gardener, of course comes from a broken background, and of course must be rescued (eye roll ).Mrs. Pargeter described her as “skinny and wretched looking, with coffee-colored skin, and matted dark curls”. Without spoiling anything, it only get more stereotyped later on in the book! This did not endear the main protagonist to me, and felt a bit …well…icky, as did the rest of the stereotypes going on in the book, and was a turn off to reading future books in the series.


In summary, did the author write a formulaic, cozy murder mystery? Yes, he checked all of the boxes. Was it on the level of the greats of cozy Mystery authors? No. Eliminate the stereotypes, change the setting to be more realistic, and it could have been a much more enjoyable read!

I am giving this book three stars out of five.

Another riveting outing for the widow Mrs Pargeter and her band of devoted helpers, armed with her late husbands black book of associates in this latest episode she helps her young gardener enter the cheesy tv show "Dirt beneath your fingernails" ,discovers who has put a long dead body under her new patio,uncovers the identity of The Fat Controller and finds the long lost father of her gardener all with the help of her late husbands associates and his little black book

Read this in one sitting and thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend. Thank yiu to Netgalley and the publisher for this Arc

When a widow steps out onto her patio one morning, a stone splits in half, revealing a skull. The secret of the skull plus a disappeared father leads Mrs. Pargeter and her supporting crew of eccentric folks with various talents on a merry chase. Full of possibly dead ends, new identities, and mysteries inside mysteries, the book is a delight.

I find Mrs. Pargeter to be an intriguing character – a confident widow who knowingly overlooks her late husband's mysterious criminal activities. Although he left her financially secure, his true bequest was a little black book containing contacts for his network of resourceful accomplices. This eclectic group is skilled in cracking safes, forging fake IDs, "acquiring" stolen goods, and even gathering intelligence on police investigations.

One day, Mrs. Pargeter's protégé and gardener makes an astonishing discovery – a skeleton buried beneath the patio of Mrs. P's new home, the place she moved into after her husband's passing. While the police conduct their investigation, the real sleuthing unfolds among her husband's associates, who still admire him greatly.

As the plot thickens, it leads them down a path of long-forgotten connections and intertwines with the gardener's quest to find her missing reggae musician father, who disappeared when she was just a girl.

The story is highly entertaining and a delightful quick read. I had the privilege of receiving an advance review copy without charge, and I willingly offer this review as a testament to the enjoyment I experienced while reading it. Mrs. Pargeter's world is filled with mystery, intrigue, and unexpected connections, making it an engaging and satisfying read for all mystery enthusiasts.#MrsPargetersPatio #NetGalley

So happy Mrs Pargeter is back in action after too long of an absence. I’ve read the series multiple times because they are so much fun and a light relief for trying times. My advice is to read this if you want a light-hearted mystery with a colourful cast of characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance digital copy. I happily and heartily recommend.

3.5 stars

I quite like Mrs. Pargeter -- she is a confident widow who willfully turns a blind eye to her late husband's vast and shadowy criminal enterprises. He left her very well off financially, but his real legacy was a little black book with contact info for his army of enterprising helpers. They can crack a safe, provide fake ids, "locate" stolen goods, find out about police investigations -- you get the idea.

Mrs. Pargeter's mentee and gardener stumbles across a skeleton under Mrs. Pargeter's patio, at the home Mrs. P moved into after her husband's death. The police do investigate, but the real investigation is by her husband's compatriots who still hold him in high esteem.

This leads down a road of old networking from years ago and ties in with the gardener's search for her reggae father who disappeared when she was a girl.

It's all very entertaining and a quick read. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Mrs. Pargeter finds a body buried under the patio of her mansion and calls on a variety of her late husband's acquaintances to help her solve the mystery of who it was and who buried the body. Entertaining, fast-paced, and a solid mystery that mocks reality TV shows and gives Mrs. Pargeter the chance to right old wrongs. The book works as a standalone mystery, but the whole series is entertaining so recommended to read in order. I always enjoy catching up with Mrs. Pargeter and the recurring characters who make up her detective squad. Thanks to NetGalley and Severn House for the ARC in exchange for a frank opinion.