The Biscuit Barrel Murder by Geoffrey Start

12 January 2023

The Biscuit Barrel Murder by Geoffrey Start. Set in the 1920s between Norfolk, Kent, Wiltshire, London, the Peak District and Boulogne, the story features an enigmatic, aristocratic detective.

The Biscuit Barrel Murders

Wispy Fescue runs a detective agency with his colleagues, Strangely Drye and Miss Wanda Cushway. They’ve had a few unlikely successes, but recently there’s been a conspicuous lack of telegrams looking for their services. If they’re ever to make a name for themselves, they need a high-profile case – and soon.

Wispy’s chance presents itself with the conviction of Miss Josephine Leighton, the prospective parliamentary candidate for Lewisham West, who is found guilty of murdering her fiancé in a preposterous miscarriage of justice. He and his colleagues are tasked with finding crucial evidence to overturn the conviction. Their mission takes them from Norfolk across England and over the Channel, and they take every opportunity to indulge in the local gastronomy on their travels.

With only thirteen days until the sentencing, can Wispy find the real killer and save Josephine from the hangman’s noose?

Geoffrey Start’s early childhood was spent in rural North Norfolk before he moved to South West London. His mother was a domestic science teacher and a great cook, and she encouraged him to understand and appreciate food from an early age. This is Geoffrey’s debut novel, which reflects his sense of humour, a penchant for eccentric characters and a love of good eating.

Geoffrey says, “I’m a keen golfer and one of my friends whilst out playing kept on about how fescue grass would improve the look of the course. Fescue grass when blown in the wind can be described as wispy, hence I developed the character Sir William (Wispy) Fescue, the main protagonist. At the same time I invented his friend and sidekick Strangely Drye along with a foil for both of them, the highly intelligent Oxford graduate, Miss Wanda Cushway. I knew I wanted to write these characters into a period cosy crime novel. Their quintessentially English character cried out to be set in post first war Britain of the 1920’s. So I sat down in January 2020 with a rough plot in the back of my mind, and started to write The Biscuit Barrel Murder, my first novel.”

FemaleFirst Says: The book has lightness and subtle humour, a somewhat gentle stylish crime mystery set in the 1920s and typical of the period. The main characters are aristocratic and run a detective agency, which has so far only tracked down missing livestock and the occasional items of stolen art, but there is promise of more to come for our team.

The novel is reminiscent of a Sunday evening murder/mystery drama along the lines Poirot as the evidence is carefully garnered, sorted, and analysed by the main characters. (Interestingly investigations are often interrupted by the characters stopping to eat). This is not a book that will give you sleepless nights or scare the wits out of you, there is no evil threat or shocking terror, it is a romp that takes you across England over to France and then back to England again. You get the feeling this is a case that will be solved with a good and civilised outcome.

Overall a very enjoyable read with a fascinating plot, highly recommended, and as I said earlier ‘with a promise of more to come’