Aunt Dimity and the Family Tree (Aunt Dimity Series #16)

by Nancy Atherton

Overview

The gentle spirit's sixteenth adventure is a New York Times bestseller and as "cozy and charming as a cup of Earl Grey" (Bookpage.com). And watch out for Nancy Atherton's latest, Aunt Dimity and the King's Ransom, coming in July 2018 from Viking! 

After a dizzying time Down Under, Lori Shepherd returns to Finch and finds that her wealthy father-in-law, William Willis, Sr., has just purchased a splendid ten-acre estate nearby. While William fends off local ladies intent on romance, Lori oversees the painstaking restoration of a peculiar painting found during renovations. It's nothing Lori can't handle-until moving furniture, strange sounds, and the theft of the painting prompt her to call on Aunt Dimity for help uncovering the estate's shadowy past.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781101475720
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	02/17/2011
Series:	Aunt Dimity Series , #16
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	332,229
File size:	435 KB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Nancy Atherton is the bestselling author of twenty-two Aunt Dimity Mysteries. The first book in the series, Aunt Dimity's Death, was voted "One of the Century's 100 Favorite Mysteries" by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association. She lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Editorial Reviews

After touring New Zealand in 2010's Aunt Dimity Down Under, amateur sleuth Lori Shepard returns to Finch, her Cotswolds village, in Atherton's entertaining 16th paranormal mystery. Lori's Boston Brahmin father-in-law, T. William Arthur Willis Sr., who's retired as head of the family law firm, has relocated to Fairworth House, an old estate, to be near his grandchildren and son and daughter-in-law. After much renovation, Lori helps her father-in-law to hire a live-in couple to cook and look after the grounds and to host a welcome party for the locals. When odd things begin to happen at Fairworth, including moving furniture and strange sounds, Lori turns to ghostly Aunt Dimity for assistance. Some readers may find the lack of murder and mayhem disappointing, but series fans will delight in the antics of familiar characters, in particular Finch's single ladies, and the charming portrayal of English village life. 5-city author tour. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Nancy Atherton and the Aunt Dimity series

"Atherton smoothly blends history, village life, and the otherworldly."—Publishers Weekly

"Every scene is superbly crafted to perfection. Even if you have not read all the books in this series, I have not, you can enjoy and immerse yourself in this cozy mystery.” —Open Book Society

"I love the graceful style... the sense of tight-knit community, characters who aren’t afraid to be themselves, and, the unique paranormal element...I only wish I had learned about this series earlier." —Gotta Write Network

"In the realm of the cozy mystery, there are few series that can hold a candle to Atherton's Aunt Dimity series." —everydayebook.com
 
"Atherton is a superb writer who brings a lot of charm and wit to her story." —Suspense Magazine

"Always a charming read, the Aunt Dimity series is just right for when life gets too hectic and you need to slow down a bit." —Deadly Pleasures Magazine

"Let Nancy Atherton and Aunt Dimity remind you of the reason you got hooked on books in the first place. I promise you will be scouring bookstores for more of the series after you give it a taste." —CrimeCritics.com

From the Publisher

More cozy complications beset Lori Shepherd when her father-in-law buys a run-down estate in the quiet Cotswold village of Finch.

Once William Willis Sr.'s brought Fairworth House nearly up to his high standards, all he needs are the perfect servants. His housewarming party is almost ruined by a catering disaster, but the villagers come to the rescue by pitching in to provide the food, and the party is a great success. That night, the two perfect servants, Deirdre and Declan Donovan, arrive just as village baker Sally Pyne is facing a crisis. Sally had won a trip to Mexico, where she met the handsome Henrique Cocinero. In an effort to impress him, she had claimed she was Lady Sarah and Fairworth House was her residence. In an elaborate scheme to prevent the villagers from discovering her lies, William agrees to lend her Fairworth for the short time Henrique plans to visit. Spiriting Sally into the house is easy; preventing the snooping villagers from seeing her there not so easy. Lori thinks the perfect servants are too perfect and suspects them when one of William's treasures is stolen. Naturally she turns for advice to Aunt Dimity, who proves her usual helpful, astral self in resolving Lori's problems.

Although no more intent on mystery than usual (Aunt Dimity Down Under, 2010, etc.), Atherton paints a charming, lighthearted portrait of English village life.

Kirkus Reviews