It's Christmas, and things are looking good at the Slocombe house. Thea's daughter Jessica has come to stay, much to her stepdaughter Stephanie's delight. But then things take a turn for the worse. A local family, the Frowses, find themselves increasingly harassed by an aggressive landlord. When Beverley Frowse goes missing, Thea and Stephanie both feel they should do their best to help her husband and son to solve the mystery.Christmas Day arrives. There are presents, a turkey, and general goodwill, despite Thea's suppressed hankering to be involved in events at the Frowses' house, where a dead man has been discovered ...

A brand-new collection of twelve short stories, featuring the popular characters from Rebecca Tope's Cotswold mystery novels. A suspicious funeral, a fatal encounter at a garden centre of all places, and a country walk marred by the discovery of a hidden corpse, are just some of the perplexing situations with which Thea Osborne, her friends and a further cast of characters must contend. In this expanded view of the world of her popular books, Tope reminds us that death and crime will visit even the most idyllic country villages.

Autumn clouds are drawing in over the village of Askham, at the edge of the picturesque Lake District, and mourners, including Simmy Henderson, are heading to the funeral of Humphrey Craig. Taking a quiet moment later to visit the grave and admire the flowers with her florist's eye, Simmy meets two women: academic Lindsay Wilson and ninety-year-old matriarch Pauline Parsons. Just twenty-four hours later, Mrs Parsons is found dead on Askham Fell, and Simmy faces questioning at Penrith police station. An accusation has been made, but if Simmy is to avoid arrest for a murder she did not commit, she will have to uncover the killer herself.

Winter has arrived in the town of Windermere, and has bought with it the death of Frances Henderson, the best friend of Persimmon 'Simmy' Brown's mother. Having known the Henderson family all of her life, Simmy must cope with the loss of an important figure from her childhood, as well as the confusion at being bequeathed something in Frances's will. When Frances's husband is violently murdered in his home, Simmy must face the fact that the family she was once so close to as a child, holds some dark and sinister secrets.

Thea Osborne hopes to spend a quiet Christmas house sitting for the Shepherds in the picturesque Cotswold village of Stanton. Walks in the local countryside with the dogs and perhaps a meal in the pub are all the excitement she wants. When her arrival at the village coincides with the funeral of local businessman Douglas Callendar found electrocuted in his bath, Thea's interest is piqued. When another villager is discovered brutally murdered the following day, Thea is thrust into the middle of yet another police investigation.

When Thea Osborne agrees at the last minute to house-sit for Oliver Meadows as a favour to her mother, she expects a few days of peace with her spaniel, Hepzie. Uncomfortable with the news of her mother's sudden involvement with an old flame, and Thea herself unsure of how to deal with her feelings for Drew Slocombe, she hopes that some time alone in the historic town of Winchcombe will help to clear her head. But, as usual, Thea quickly finds herself at the centre of a dark mystery when she discovers a dead body in the gardens of the house.

Summer has come to the Lake District town of Windermere, where Persimmon 'Simmy' Brown runs her own florist shop. But there's no time for her to stop and smell the roses with the shop struggling for money, so a contract to provide floral displays for a hotel in Hawkshead couldn't have arrived at a better moment. However, Simmy's association with the hotel soon turns sinister when she finds a body in the lake. To make matters worse, her friend, Ben Harkness - responsible for calling and alerting her of the discovered body - is now missing and thought to be kidnapped. Caught up in both a murder and kidnapping investigation, Simmy begins chasing clues left by the missing Ben. With many suspicious characters bustling in and out of the hotel, while simultaneously trying to cope with her father's encroaching dementia, solving the puzzle seems a grueling challenge, but Simmy is compelled to uncover the truth...