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Agatha Raisin and the Fairies of Fryfam (Agatha Raisin Mysteries, No. 10)
by M.C. Beaton
Product Group: Book
Publisher: Books on Tape, Inc. (2001-05-29)
ISBN: 0736670521
EAN: 9780736670524
Audio Cassette
SKU: 07090357
Condition: Like New Like New
Comments: Book on 4 audio cassettes in like new condition. "Collector's Edition" Very nice clamshell case with like new art.
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Editorial Reviews
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Product Description
When a fortune-teller informs Agatha Raisin that her destiny - and true love - lies in Norfolk, she promptly rents a cottage in the quaint village of Fryfam. No sooner does she arrive than strange things start happening. Random objects go missing from people's homes and odd little lights are seen dancing in the villagers' gardens and yards. Stories soon begin circulating about the presence of fairies. But when a prominent resident is found murdered and some suspicion falls on her and her friend Sir Charles Fraith, Agatha decides she's had enough of this fairy nonsense and steps up her sleuthing for a human killer. The prickly yet endearing Agatha will have fans dangling in suspense: Will she catch her crook - and a husband?
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Customer Reviews
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Sometimes you just can't get away from it all
Rating  (4)
Date: 2008-07-20
Agatha Raisin had gotten away from the Birmingham slum she had been born in, worked her way to the top of the PR business in London and finally achieved her childhood dream of owning a cottage in a village in the Cotswolds. All would have been so perfect if not for Agatha herself. Ms Raisin had a certain way with her, one that tended to annoy those around her. A way that, when coupled with her sometimes loose interpretation of the truth led her into trouble, particularly in the romance department.
When a fortune teller 'saw' Agatha moving to Norfolk Agatha was only too willing to pack up her cats and flee Carsley (and her on again/off again romance with next door neighbor James Lacey) for Fryfram. Unfortunately for Agatha Fryfram was a lot like Carsley, only the cottage lacked central heating and a microwave, the villagers weren't as friendly, and the weather was awful. In fact the only real similarity was that here too were deep hidden secrets, gossip, scandal and murder. Agatha found herself once again tracking down clues and stepping on toes but this time lead on by the fairies haunting her garden.
This is the tenth in the long running Agatha Raisin series of cozy mysteries. Those who are fans of the series will be a bit disappointed in the absence of many of the usual cast of characters but will undoubtedly enjoy the focus on Agatha and Sir Charles and the surprise ending. As always with this series the true appeal is in the characters, not the mysteries. Cozy fans new to this series would really be better off starting with AGATHA RAISIN AND THE QUICHE OF DEATH and those readers looking for a challenging puzzler will want to give the entire series a miss.
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Odd Doings in Norfolk Are Sorted Out by Agatha Raisin and Sir Charles Fraith
Rating  (3)
Date: 2007-08-06
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
As the book opens, James Lacey has once again left Carsely without saying good-bye to Agatha. Near the end of Agatha Raisin and the Witch of Wyckhadden, Agatha paid to have her fortune told. Although Agatha claims this is only a lark, she decides to act on the advice that the man for her will emerge if she goes to Norfolk. In typical Agatha fashion, she sticks a pin in the map and rents a cottage sight-unseen in Fryfam.
Almost immediately, Agatha is discouraged. Fryfam is cold and flat. The cottage has no central heating. No one wants to listen to her brag about her experiences as a detective. And there are some mysterious lights in her garden . . . and a missing item. The only person she likes is Mrs. Wilden, who runs the pub . . . but the other women don't care for her because their husbands spend every possible moment in the pub admiring Mrs. Wilden's beauty.
Invited to tea a the local manor, Agatha soon finds herself snubbed by Tolly Trumpington-James . . . a business man on the make with the hunt set. In annoyance, Agatha decides to write a murder mystery that will feature the death of Tolly-like character in a fictional manor house based on the one she's just visited. Soon thereafter, Tolly's prize painting is stolen after more mysterious lights. Agatha's decision to write becomes quite a problem when Tolly turns up dead by the method that Agatha's brief manuscript describes.
Buttressed by telephone calls to Mrs. Bloxby, the ever patient vicar's wife in Carsely, and a visit from Sir Charles Fraith, Agatha decides to find out what those mysterious lights are all about and to clear her name with the police.
Sir Charles is up for a bit of fun and games with Agatha, which she attempts to fend off. What will happen between the two of them as the mystery and danger deepen?
Meanwhile, Mrs. Bloxby does her best to steer Agatha away from thinking about the missing James Lacey. Sir Charles goes so far as to tell Agatha that she should see a therapist to get over her fixation on James. Agatha's competitive instincts are aroused, however, when she finds that James is back in Carsely and keeping company with Melissa Sheppard, the latest blond to set her sights on becoming Mrs. Lacey.
This story doesn't quite work. I found that I wasn't interested in the mysteries or Fryfam. M. C. Beaton portrays a village inhabited by people you wouldn't want to know . . . and I didn't. The superficial Sir Charles Fraith is a weak reed to rely on for building a good story. He's not really charming, just a socially skilled with the morals of a tom cat. There's a lot of intended humor in the book, but I found it to be too heavy handed to be satisfying.
The mysteries are pretty predictable in their resolutions and didn't do enough to sustain my interest.
I would grade the book down to two stars, but there's one development that makes the book a more interesting read than that for those who are long-time fans of the series.
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Scrabble anyone?
Rating (3)
Date: 2006-12-23
1 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
I'm not through the book, yet, so perhaps this gets addressed later, but what happened to the third cat Scrabble from her previous book?
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--Searching for a murderer in a fairy village--
Rating (4)
Date: 2003-09-18
11 out of 12 customers found this reveiw helpful
In this story, Agatha Raisin decides to take a short vacation in the Norfolk area of England, where she rents a small cottage in the village of Fryfam. She felt that she needed to get away from her home in the Cotswolds, and think of something else rather then James Lacey, a man who didn't return her love. Also, by chance, a fortuneteller told her that she might find true love in Norfolk. The rented cottage in Fryfam has a large garden and often little lights appear among the bushes. Many of the villagers seem to believe that fairies are the cause of the mysterious twinkling lights. Agatha makes a few friends who invite her to quilt with them, and when she discovers that their husbands are ignoring them, she intrudes with some suggestions to make the errant husbands take notice. Agatha's friend, Sir Charles Fraith shows up for a surprise visit and to keep Agatha company. When the local squire is murdered, she and Charles do some sleuthing to try and discover the killer. I've read several of the Agatha Raisin books and learned that the more you read them, the more interesting you find the stories and the characters. Initially, it did take more than a few chapters to get involved with, and understand Agatha, who is a little cranky. If you like mysteries that are set in the British Isles, try out a M. C. Beaton book, they are all fun to read.
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Do you believe in fairies?
Rating  (5)
Date: 2003-07-06
11 out of 12 customers found this reveiw helpful
In this 10th adventure of Agatha Raisin, we see our heroine gloomy over the loss of romance with love-interest, James Lacey. To cheer herself up, Agatha sticks a pin in a map, and sets out for holiday in the village of Fryfam. She rents a cottage, and soon meets a group of ladies from the local women's club that she immediately tries to impress by saying she is writing a novel. However, she soon becomes embroiled in another murder investigation, when the title character of her "novel" dies in real life and she is implicated in his death. Add to this the "lights" she sees at the edge of her garden, a stolen painting, another murder, and the theft of Agatha's two cats and the reader finds themselves in the middle of a perfect case for Agatha! Will Agatha triumph in a village so far away (in distance and in culture) from her own?I have cherished every book in the Agatha Raisin series and this book was a delight. Although some of the other characters were noticeably absent (not much was heard from Mrs. Bloxsby or Roy Silver), I still enjoyed reading about the zany adventures of Agatha Raisin. Once again, this plucky sleuth sticks her nose in where most people would not, and in the process she finds courage to always catch the killer! The first book in this series is "Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death". Enjoy!
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