In his own inimitable style Cash Peters cleverly injects a vein of humour and wit into a novel with a serious subject without in any way compromising its validity as a scary murder mystery.
The horror referred to in the title is the appearance of two bodies of unknown identity in the Lodge of Horsfield Manor in Chillingley village.
The police don't have any leads, but one of the villagers, a certain Muriel Wang,is sure she does. She has been secretly shown malicious notes sent to one of the other residents,Lydia, an American actress, and is convinced that the writer is the perpetrator of the murders and wants to frame her friend.
Matters are complicated by the appearance of two more bodies, one of them being that of a local person. Can they be connected or is there more than one murderer at large?
Muriel determines to find the answers and with the help of another villager and that of Tom, the handwriting analyst, sets out to do just that.
She has her work cut out as she follows up all the leads, sometimes placing herself in hair raising situations.
There are numerous twists,frightening scenes and lots of action before the mystery is finally solved.
The characters play an all important part. They are not just means to an end in terms of the plot, but have great depth and human interest.I found myself hoping there might be a sequel so I can find out what happens in their lives!
All in all a great read that kept me puzzled and amused throughout.
This one gets full marks from me. ( )