‘Murder on the Farm’ by Kate Wells.

Published by Boldwood Books,
4 September 2023.
ISBN: 978-1-78513415-9 (PB)

Jude Gray lives in a small Malvern village, now widowed following the death of her husband Adam who had spent most of his life running a working farm full-time. Now Jude has taken over the reins assisted by her farmworker Noah, her shepherd, who was the third-generation shepherd to have been employed by Malvern farm.  After a rather gruelling lambing season, she is looking forward to some time off. 

After setting the new lambs, Jude heads off to the wedding of her friend Ben, one of Adam’s closet friends who is marrying Tilda, who Jude is aware seems not to like her.  Sitting in the church next to her friend Sarah she is shocked to notice how tired and stressed she looked. Sarah and Ben had, had an on off relationship for a year, but Sarah is now seeing Nate Sanchez, who had appeared on the scene a couple of weeks after Ben announced his engagement to Tilda.

 Charlie, Ben, Sarah and Adam had been a tight group of friends ever since they attended Malvern End Primary School together. And following Adam’s untimely death the friends had rallied around Jude. 

The following day doing the field rounds with the feed pellets and forage, Jude finds the body of her friend Sarah still dressed in her wedding outfit.

Detective Sergeant Binita Khatri steered Jude away from Sarah’s body and led her back through the fields to the farmhouse, to ask her some questions. Jude told her that she had just discovered that Sarah had huge debts.  She had also lost a lot of weight.  Jude became aware that the questions that Sergeant Binita was asking were heading in the direction of a suicide verdict. Jude felt strongly that it wasn’t suicide. Jude decides to investigate herself

The arrival of her half sister Lucy, and her baby son, brings further problems when Lucy says that Jude must not tell their father that she is staying with her. Why? 

But before she has got her head around the death of Sarah, Jude discovers another body. 

The situation escalates as Jude discovers that Sarah had many secrets. 

Full of twists and turns, this book made my head spin as I tried to work out just who was doing the killing and why? A real page turner.
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Reviewer: Lizzie Sirett

Kate Wells is the author of the Malvern Farm Mystery series. She began her adult life training as a nurse at Great Ormond Street Hospital and then moved to Reading where she took a teaching degree. When she took a career break to have her two daughters, she began creating stories and hasn't stopped writing since. Having spent time living and working on farms she developed a love of the rural life and often dreamt of running a sheep farm, especially when she married the son of a farmer. It wasn't to be though, so, she lives out her farming dreams through researching and writing her books. These days she lives in Malvern with her family and is often found out on the common talking to the free-grazing sheep and cattle or walking her collie-cross up on the hills. As Kate Poels she writes books for children.