Agatha Raisin and the Case of the Curious Curate — M.C. Beaton

Wretched after being dumped by her husband, bored with pottering about Carsely, and wishing every man would sod off, including her neighbor John Armitage, Agatha Raisin is unmoved by news of the captivating new curate. But when she meets the golden-haired, blue-eyed Tristan Delon, she is swept off her feet...along with nearly every other female in the village. Wrapped in brightly coloured dreams of the curate (never mind that he's a tad odd), Agatha is as ecstatic as a girl when he invites her to dine. But his cold body is found the next day, and Carsely is whisked from time-warp monotony to a hotbed of murder and intrigue-and a clear-headed Agatha Raisin is back on track, this time with John. As the corpses multiply, ever-obstinate Agatha trails clues from Lilac Lane to London, unmindful that someone wicked is arranging that Mrs. Raisin's cats never again hear their mistress' footfall on the path...