Hurrah for the parcel box – a humble everyday item that plays a crucial part in my latest novel, Death at the Village Garden Party.
My husband, who is a very good handyman, built a wooden parcel box for our Cotswold cottage during lockdown, so that we could receive deliveries while social distancing.
Why I Love My Parcel Box
Living in the rural Cotswolds, we’re a long way from shops, apart from our village shop and village post office. I try to support physical shops as much as I can, but there are some things I can only find online, such as cartridges for my specific model of printer.
My latest online order was for a set of replacement letters for my computer keyboard. I’m still perplexed as to why C was the first letter to wear out, rather than the more commonly used vowels*.
In the post-Covid era, we’re often out when deliveries are due. When delivery services ask us for ‘safe place’, in case we’re not home when they call, we put ‘green wooden parcel box beside front door’. Our wonderful postman also puts a card through the door to flag up that he’s left a package there.
Alice Carroll’s Parcel Box
In Death at the Village Garden Party, Robert Praed kindly makes a parcel box for Alice Carroll as a farewell gift before his business trip to the Far East. Impressed by his handiwork and touched by his thoughtfulness, Alice places the parcel box beside the front door of the Cotswold Curiosity Shop.
She remembers the makeshift parcel box her ex used to receive his obsessive eBay purchases when they lived in the middle of town. They had to abandon that one, not only because people stole their parcels, but because they’d also dump unwanted rubbish in there in passing.
Now settled in the small rural village of Little Pride, she’s confident it will be used here only for its designated purpose. But before long, she starts to find more pleasant surprises inside it – donations for her to sell in her shop. Little does she realise that she will also find clues there to help her solve another local murder mystery.
What are those clues? You’ll have to read the book to find out!
Fun Fact: C is the twelfth most common letter in the English alphabet – click here for an article on Wikipedia for more about frequency of each letter of the alphabet if you’d like to go down that rabbit hole.
What I’m Writing Now
The Cotswold Curiosity Shop series has been selling so well that my publisher, Boldwood Books, has asked me to write a fifth adventure for Alice Carroll and friends.
The title, Death at the Village Knitting Circle, gives you an immediate clue as to what will be at the heart of this book! As a keen knitter since I was a small child, I’m really looking forward to weaving a plot around such a favourite hobby, and introducing a colourful new character whose arrival in the village causes mayhem, mystery, and, you guessed it, murder!
This story will be launched in February 2027, but you can already pre-order it online from Amazon here to ensure the ebook lands on your Kindle on publication day.
Your Invitation to My Next Events
Meanwhile, I’m looking forward to two bookish events in the next few weeks. If you’re within reach of either or both of them, I’d love to see you there!
Hawkesbury Horticultural Show (Saturday 29th August 2026)
The Hawkesbury Horticultural Show will take place on Saturday 29th August in my home village of Hawkesbury Upton in the Cotswolds. It’s a brilliant example of a traditional village show, and it’s the longest continually running village show in the country. Our local community is very proud of this claim to fame. I served on the Village Show Committee for 13 years, stepping down some time ago.
As usual, I’ll be running a stall at the Show to promote the Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival, the village lit fest that I founded 11 years ago. (More on that in a moment.) Of course I’ll be glad to sell and sign copies of my books there, and I’ll be accompanied by other author friends, including historical novelist Lucienne Boyce, author of the brilliant Dan Foster mystery series. Visit the Show’s website for more information.
The Hawkesbury Horticultural Show was the inspiration for my debut novel, Best Murder in Show, the start of the nine-book Sophie Sayers cosy mystery series, and a fun summery read!
Visit the Hawkesbury Show’s website for more information.
Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival: Mysterious Ways Event (Saturday 26th September 2026)
For each Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival event, I choose a specific theme and create a quick-fire programme of related talks, discussions, and readings. This September, the theme will be “Mysterious Ways”. With the help of a dozen guest authors and poets, I’ll be exploring everything from true-life historical mysteries to fictitious crimewriting, from the wonders of nature to the allure of spiritualism and life after death.
A £10 ticket gives you access to all of the many events from 11am to 4pm, plus copious tea, coffee and cake, and a £2 book voucher valid on the day. You’ll also have the chance to meet and chat informally with all of the guest speakers during breaks in the programme, and afterwards.
Visit our box office at Eventbrite to see the full programme and to book your tickets here: HULFMysteriousWays.eventbrite.co.uk.