To all the sleuths out there — the armchair ones ☕ — here’s a debut novel you might enjoy.
10 Marchfield Square is set in London’s smallest “square,” home to a group of unlikely residents carefully “collected” by the cool, eighty-year-old landlady, Celeste. On Bonfire Night, one of the residents, Richard Glead, is found murdered. The police immediately suspect his wife, Linda — only for her to be found dead forty-eight hours later.
The police conclude that Linda took her own life out of grief. Celeste, however, is not convinced. Firm in her belief that someone else is responsible, she hires two fellow residents to investigate: Audrey, the cleaner, and Lewis, a somewhat successful crime novelist. What follows is the investigation led by this unlikely yet endearing duo.
The story is written in multiple points of view, allowing the reader — tea in hand, comfortably seated — to piece together clues and join the hunt for the whodunnit. This slow-paced (in an engaging way) cozy mystery keeps you pleasantly hooked. Every resident becomes a suspect. Secrets unfold. Just when you think you’ve figured it out, the story twists — and twists again just when you believe the case is closed.
You really can’t guess the climax — and I found myself laughing delightfully by the end.
By the final pages, you grow attached to the well-fleshed-out characters, especially Celeste. She is no Vera Wong. She is simply Celeste — and I think I love her even more. Through this story, the author cleverly reflects modern-day communities and quietly poses an important question: do we really know our neighbours? And are we really there for each other living just a wall apart?
I can’t wait to see what Celeste gets up to next.
If you pick this book up, let me know — could you guess the final twist?
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Chai and Chatter Chronicles 