‘The Importance of Being Murdered’ by Debbie Young

Published by Boldwood Books,
26 March 2026.
ISBN: 978-1-83518581-O (PB)

The chances of persuading a well-known actor to take part in a production by a village dramatic society are remote to say the least – but Bertram Manchester retired (or possibly was retired) from his long-running TV show some time ago, and work has been thin on the ground ever since. So, when he's offered the opportunity to play the lead in the Bunbury Players' production of The Importance of Being Ernest, he can't resist, even though he's pushing seventy and the character is a young late-Victorian blade. 

The rest of the cast aren't exactly ecstatic. Evan Bevan the gamekeeper, usually the leading man, resents being demoted to the role of butler. Rose Truffle isn't looking forward to being Bertram's love interest. Geoffrey Bunch the director nurses bitter memories of past encounters. Even Millicent Peach the wardrobe mistress and village shopkeeper is disappointed that his groceries are delivered from Fortnum and Mason instead of boosting her ailing bank balance.   

When Bertram's body is found in his dressing room shortly before curtain-up on the first night, Detective Inspector Whistler and his subordinate (his word) DC Windermere are presented with a stage full of suspects, all with solid alibis and ample motive. The question is, who hated Bertram enough to do the dastardly deed?  

This is cosy crime at its cosiest: a Marple-esque village replete with quirky characters, an old-school detective who can't even remember the suspects' names, his bright young sidekick keen to make her mark. Geoffrey Bunch is an old pro fallen on hard times; the Truffle sisters are giggly and flighty; Tristram Shaw the vicar carries a torch for the oblivious shopkeeper; the gamekeeper and the vet are in a constant state of good-natured feuding.  

In the end, of course, the murderer could be anyone. So, will DC Windermere solve the crime before exasperation with her comically dimwitted boss drives someone to make a confession? Will the play go ahead without its new star? Would he have been up to the job in any case? And most important of all, will the shop, the centre of village life, survive to tell the tale? That would be telling!
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Reviewer: Lynne Patrick 

 

Debbie Young was born and raised in Sidcup, Kent. When she was 14, her family relocated to Germany for her father’s job. Debbie spent four years at Frankfurt International School, broadening her outlook as well as gaining the then brand new IB (International Baccalaureate). She returned to the UK to earn her BA (Hons) in English and Related Literature at the University of York, then lived and worked for a while in London and the West of England as a journalist and PR consultant.  In 1991 she moved to the Cotswolds. In 2002, she married a Scot named Gordon whom she met in Swindon – and not, as village rumour once had it, a Swede named Scottie.  She has written four series. Her most recent one is Cotswold Curiosity Shop Mysteries. Death at the Village Christmas Fair, is the fifth book in this series. 

https://authordebbieyoung.com  

Lynne Patrick has been a writer ever since she could pick up a pen, and has enjoyed success with short stories, reviews and feature journalism, but never, alas, with a novel. She crossed to the dark side to become a publisher for a few years and is proud to have launched several careers which are now burgeoning. She lives in Oxfordshire in a house groaning with books, about half of them crime fiction.