I Died at Fallow Hall

By: Bonnie Burke-Patel

Narrated by: Aysha Kala

Anna Deerin moves to a remote Cotswold cottage to become a gardener, trying to strip away everything she’s spent all her life as a woman striving for, craving the anonymity and privacy her new off-grid life provides. But when she clears the last vegetable bed and digs up not twigs but bones, the outside world is readmitted. With it comes Detective Inspector Hitesh Mistry, who has his own reasons for a new start in the village of Upper Magna.

Drawn in spite of herself to this unknown woman from another time, Anna is determined to uncover her identity and gain recognition for her, if not justice. As threats to Anna and her new life grow closer, she and DI MIstry will find that this murder is inextricably bound up with issues of gender, family, community, race and British identity itself – all as relevant in decades past as they are to Anna today.

©2024 Bonnie Burke-Patel (P)2024 Bedford Square Publishers

Integrity Over All

The writing is delightfully conversational and honest, and the narrator delivers it flawlessly. The mystery develops believably, engaging the reader’s attention. The characters of Anna and Hitesh are well drawn and likable, as well as being fully endowed with interests that give them true dimensions. They even have a degree of self-doubt that is very human. The minister and his dog David show a softer side of Hitesh by befriending him. The keeper of the Hall is determined that its reputation is upheld, and he believes Anna will work to that end when she is hired to live in the cottage and care for the grounds. Anna’s ballet training has given her the discipline to work tirelessly for Fallow Hall’s upkeep. Her warm demeanor helps her make friends with ease, and wins over Hitesh from the start.

Overall, this story was cleverly written to develop Anna’s wish to honor the life of the victim whose remains were unearthed in the garden. I enjoyed it and recommend it.