Murder at the Willows

A quiet coastal town. A beloved artist found dead in her garden. Most people see a peaceful passing. But actor-turned-innkeeper Rina Martin hears a faint, insistent wrongness: a missing walking stick, cushions placed with care, and a strange, crushed flower that doesn’t grow anywhere on the property. When the studio is stripped bare and two of Jean Hammond’s paintings vanish, Rina’s friend DI Sebastian McGregor starts to listen. What follows is a steadily tightening braid of mystery: the reappearance of a long-buried photo featuring art critic Miles Cunningham—the man who pleaded guilty to the savage murders of his wife, children, and a lodger back in 1980—two recent deaths with the same quiet calling card, and a sealed box of diaries that suggest the lodger may have had the mind of a child. As an old circle of friends reunites and the town rallies under gathering storm clouds, Jean’s final act—a recording she made moments before her death—forces everyone to confront an unbearable truth. This is a gentle, human mystery with real weight: about what we owe to vulnerable people, the lies we tell to stay upright, and the cost of leaving the past untouched.

• Fans of cozy, character-rich British mysteries with real emotional stakes
• Listeners who enjoy cold cases that connect past and present
• Anyone who loves found-family dynamics and resilient heroines

Jane Adams is a British crime writer best known for her thoughtful, character-led mysteries. Her novels explore how the past haunts the present, blending compassionate psychology with satisfying puzzle-plotting. She is the author of the long-running Rina Martin series and other acclaimed crime series published by Joffe Books.