Suspicions run rife!

Searcher of the Dead (A Bess Ellyott Mystery #1) 
by Nancy Herriman   

Set in Elizabethan England, the customs of the times dictate that a suicide leaves those behind not only emotionally bereft, but they are stripped of all their worldly goods. Widowed herbalist  Bess Ellyott's sister's husband is found hanging from a tree and is deemed a suicide by the authorities. Bess is determined to prove his death is murder.

Her search opens herself and others up to close scrutiny by the small village community. In these times of unrest and papist plots, such close observation is not welcome. 

Hints of a troubled past for Bess Ellyott, her having to flee London, and the fear of being found keeps being alluded to but we are given very few clues as to what that is about. I am sure all will be revealed as the series progresses.

I found the constable Christopher Harwoode (Kit) an interesting character, as Bess appears to also.

The plot is strewn with red herrings, papist fears and very few clues. Bess' niece Margery seems totally unaware of her danger and the danger she puts her family in. I found that somewhat irritating. 

A pleasant enough read but the action was protracted and hence my reading of the novel became so.

I will likely want to read more in the series to see what mystery hangs over Bess's head, and to see more of Kit.

A NetGalley ARC

***