Betty Church and the Suffolk Vampire: A gripping WW2 crime mystery

By M.R.C. Kasasian

A man is murdered in broad daylight by a stealthy killer in this pitch-perfect WWII crime mystery.

September 1939. Inspector Betty Church – one of the few female officers on the force – has arrived from London to fill a vacancy at Sackwater police station. But Betty isn't new here. This is the place she grew up. The place she thought she'd left for good.

After a slow start, Betty's called to the train station to investigate a stolen bench. But though there's no bench, there is a body. A smartly dressed man, murdered in broad daylight, with two distinctive puncture wounds in his throat.

While the locals gossip about the Suffolk Vampire, Betty Church steels herself to hunt a dangerous killer.

Reviews for BETTY CHURCH AND THE SUFFOLK VAMPIRE:
'Betty Church is a wonderful creation... Had me laughing out loud' GOODREADS.

'I loved this... A cast of crazy characters, with a gruesome murder or two thrown in for good measure' GOODREADS.

'Loved Betty Church! No nonsense, in control with quirky crazy cast makes this a new series I can't wait to read more of' GOODREADS.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Head of Zeus
• Release date: Jul 12, 2018
• ISBN: 9781784978129

M.R.C. Kasasian

M.R.C. Kasasian was raised in Lancashire. He has had careers as varied as factory hand, wine waiter, veterinary assistant, fairground worker and dentist. He lives with his wife in Suffolk in the summer and in a village in Malta in the winter. He is the author of two previous historical mystery series, published by Head of Zeus, including the bestselling Gower Street Detective series.

Reviews for Betty Church and the Suffolk Vampire

[kevincannon-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the first title I've read by this author and is the first novel in a spin off series from their Gower Street Detective Series.Betty Church is invalided out to the sleepy village of Sackwater where she grew up following an incident in which she lost her hand whilst on a case with the Metropolitan police.The village is populated with a collection of eccentric and comical characters which includes the various members of the Suffolk constabulary.The book reminds me of the style used in the Lestrade novels by M.J.Trow which I read many years ago and compares very favourably.If you like quirky characters and puns then this is the ideal book to keep you entertained. The whodunit keeps you guessing right to the very end and it is written in a flowing style that allows you to lose yourself in the storyAll in all this was a very entertaining humorous murder mystery

[wyvernfriend · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is the second M. R. C. Kasasian book and I'm pretty much done.This is everything I dislike in "comedy" shows and nothing I enjoy. If you're a fan of unpleasant people being obnoxious and showing up other people who are more obnoxious then this is for you. Betty herself is not a bad character and some of the people she holds close are interesting, however the twins and Dodo are unpleasant at best and I held a hope that they were either (minor spoiler)the Murderers or going to be murdered, but alas, noThis is set just as World War II is breaking out and I'm also not sure how long the events were going on for and by the end I really didn't care.I'm not going to yuck on someone elses yum but this isn't my thing, not my yum and I'm going to leave this author for others.

[ablachly_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Inspector Betty Church is one of the first female police officers, who returns to work in her small hometown after losing an arm while working in London. Now she's investigating a series of murders, while dealing with a crazy cast of characters--sexist coworkers, unappreciative parents, and an ex-boyfriend's family who seems more like family than her own.The book is delightful and quirky (in a Jasper Fforde kind of way--which is to say, good).

[vesper1931 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Betty Church in 1939 has been sent to Sackwater in Suffolk with a promotion to Inspector. Where she meets her motley crew of police officers but this is also the place where she grew up. It doesn't take long before she discovers her first body.
Unfortunately I just didn't get the humour of the book, I expect it would be enjoyed by most people but humour is subjectivec and I just found it tedious and trying.
So overall this new series is not for me.
A NetGalley Book