Just Desserts

Penny Plain Mysteries #2

by Jan Jones

When Penny and Leo visit a terrible pub with fantastic ice cream, it is the start of a convoluted mystery involving a missing 1950s test plane, the Salthaven WI Show, unlikely development on the Enterprise Park and Penny’s eldest daughter behaving decidedly out of character.

Set in the English Lake District, this 32K novella is the second in the Penny Plain mystery series.

99 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 25, 2014

About the author

A maths graduate, former computer programmer and erstwhile playgroup leader, Jan Jones writes contemporary romantic comedy, Regency romances, romantic suspense (often with a paranormal twist), cosy quirky mysteries, serials for women's magazines, short stories and poems. She won the RNA’s Joan Hessayon Award in 2005 with her debut novel Stage by Stage which came about through her experience of chaperoning her daughter during a touring production of Joseph and his Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat. When in Georgette Heyer territory, she uses her fascination with history to write a series of Newmarket Regencies (The Kydd Inheritance, Fair Deception, Fortunate Wager etc) set 200 years ago in her nearest town. As with all writers, elements of her life also inspire her many short stories for women’s magazines (one of which won the RNA Elizabeth Goudge award in 2002). This could be why she gets funny looks whenever she takes out her notebook during conversations in the bar. Jan organises the annual RNA conference and is firmly of the opinion that the Romantic Novelists' Association is the friendliest, most supportive organisation around.

Reviews

[Allison Kohn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written mystery

Like the first Penny Plain story, this was pure pleasure to read. The well developed characters are nice to get acquainted with and the history is well done and interesting.

[Krystyna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secret labs and the WI

Wonderful. A warm mix of a secret underground laboratory mixed with a crashed aircraft and sprinkled with a dose of the WI. Great characters, nice to see how both of our main characters are changing. She's becoming more adventurous whilst he has settled into small town life.
When Leo asks her for her help in looking into an aircraft that crashed years ago, she didn't expect it to lead to searching for a secret underground installation or gaining the attention of a government department. Why has no debris been found from the plane? Why does a small town business have trucks going in and out and seem to be under surveillance? As if that wasn't enough now she has worries that her eldest daughter's marriage is falling apart, the WI wants her to write down their history, Leo still can't get his ex-wife to give him more access to his son and her relationship with him is changing. Will she find any tidbits that will bring the history of the WI alive? Can she do anything to give Leo more time with his son? Is her daughter's marriage really in trouble? Watch and see as the two dig through the past and come up with some spectacular observations.

[Jan Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author review - this is an expanded edition of the original second book in the Penny Plain Mystery series. More words, extra plot, same Penny and Leo

[Pers · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet tale!