Dear Great Book Guru, This coming weekend my friends and I are attending the sold out, first ever event: the Sea Cliff Civic Association’s “Dinner & THE DEAD “ a dramatization  of James Joyce’s iconic short story followed by a sumptuous dinner Joyce so wonderfully described.  Talking about the dead, I just read one of my favorite mystery writers M.C. Beaton died this week.  Have you enjoyed her works as much as I have?  Mystery Maven

Dear Mystery Maven, I had just finished her latest: BEATING ABOUT THE BUSH - the 30^th in the series - when M.C. Beaton’s death was announced.  Over the years my feelings for her Agatha Raisin series have varied.  The early books were wonderful, but then there were some that were mediocre. However, I truly enjoyed this last adventure. Agatha Raisin is the antithetical Agatha Christie detective - brash, politically incorrect, self-absorbed, insecure, jealous of her friends and colleagues, but oh so very clever!  After selling her successful public relations firm in London on her 53^rd birthday, Agatha fulfills a longstanding dream of moving to a small village in the Cotswolds.  She quickly develops a reputation for attracting trouble - a poisoned quiche she accidentally enters in the local pie contest is her first foray into village life.   All her novels are filled with humor, local color, and outrageous coincidences. In BEATING ABOUT THE BUSH, she is hired to investigate an industrial espionage incident. Soon murder and mayhem follow.  A light, clever series that is a perfect antidote for long dark winter months…. M.C. Beaton will be missed.  Recommended!