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Josie Welford #2
The Chinese Takeout
It’s morning service in a quiet village church. Josie Welford, wealthy widow of one of the country’s most wanted criminals and now licensee of the White Hart gastro-pub, is daydreaming during Father Tim Martin’s sermon. Suddenly the peace is shattered when a filthy Chinese youth flings himself into the church and demands sanctuary.
Should the Church accede to the request for protection that no longer has legal standing? Or should it hand Tang over to the authorities? Josie supports Tim’s decision to protect Tang, but not all the congregation agree, taking their grievances to the Church hierarchy. But Josie’s friend and long-term lodger, the Food Standards Agency inspector Nick Thomas, fears for the boy’s life. Tang is almost certainly an illegal immigrant whose gang-masters would rather have dead than able to betray them. It’s not long before the media are involved, the subsequent publicity bringing fatal results, not just to the priest and the refugee, but to St Jude’s itself.
Should the Church accede to the request for protection that no longer has legal standing? Or should it hand Tang over to the authorities? Josie supports Tim’s decision to protect Tang, but not all the congregation agree, taking their grievances to the Church hierarchy. But Josie’s friend and long-term lodger, the Food Standards Agency inspector Nick Thomas, fears for the boy’s life. Tang is almost certainly an illegal immigrant whose gang-masters would rather have dead than able to betray them. It’s not long before the media are involved, the subsequent publicity bringing fatal results, not just to the priest and the refugee, but to St Jude’s itself.
- GenresCrime
446 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
5 people are currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Judith Cutler
88 books94 followersJudith Cutler was born and bred in the Midlands, and revels in using her birthplace, with its rich cultural life, as a background for her novels. After a long stint as an English lecturer at a run-down college of further education, Judith, a prize-winning short-story writer, has taught Creative Writing at Birmingham University, has run occasional writing course elsewhere (from a maximum security prison to an idyltic Greek island) and ministered to needy colleagues in her role as Secretary of the Crime Writers' Association.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
March 20, 2017
I would have given this book four stars if it hadn't ended so abruptly. (Although, in retrospect, the entire story consists of slightly off-putting twists and turns, and I'm not entirely sure that all the loose ends were tied together by the final page.)
The book is called The Chinese Takeout, but other than the nationality of the asylum-seeker who opens the action, there is very little connection with anything or anyone Chinese. In fact, most of the book is Josie Welford being an unbelievable Mary Sue -- looking after a family of orphans, rescuing a woman with preeclampsia who can't support her household, paying for this and that whenever people need things. Also, fending off suitors and bad guys left, right, and centre, sometimes in a helicopter (yes, she has a helicopter license!). All while flawlessly running a pub with organic local fare and gluten-free, nut-free, and dairy-free options almost every night.
And yet, she is also very judgy about stupid things. Like constantly remarking to herself that a young, thirty-something police inspector -- a capable woman working an important case -- would one day regret her facial expressions (because, you know, lines and wrinkles!). That was tedious.
But in spite of all my nitpicking, and the slight disappointment of an abbreviated ending, the book kept me interested enough to read in its entirety. It's certainly not worth seeking out for its own sake, but it passed the time pleasantly enough.
The book is called The Chinese Takeout, but other than the nationality of the asylum-seeker who opens the action, there is very little connection with anything or anyone Chinese. In fact, most of the book is Josie Welford being an unbelievable Mary Sue -- looking after a family of orphans, rescuing a woman with preeclampsia who can't support her household, paying for this and that whenever people need things. Also, fending off suitors and bad guys left, right, and centre, sometimes in a helicopter (yes, she has a helicopter license!). All while flawlessly running a pub with organic local fare and gluten-free, nut-free, and dairy-free options almost every night.
And yet, she is also very judgy about stupid things. Like constantly remarking to herself that a young, thirty-something police inspector -- a capable woman working an important case -- would one day regret her facial expressions (because, you know, lines and wrinkles!). That was tedious.
But in spite of all my nitpicking, and the slight disappointment of an abbreviated ending, the book kept me interested enough to read in its entirety. It's certainly not worth seeking out for its own sake, but it passed the time pleasantly enough.
June 7, 2019
Took this off my shelves to re-read to see if I should give it to the book fair. No way!
Writing is very good, the story is full of action and keeps one guessing, characters are well-drawn with the good ones likable, the nasty ones not and plenty in between.
Murder, fire, assault, threats, business rivalries. A thoroughly good book.
Between Judith Cutler and husband Edward Marston these two provide great reading in the crime genres.
Writing is very good, the story is full of action and keeps one guessing, characters are well-drawn with the good ones likable, the nasty ones not and plenty in between.
Murder, fire, assault, threats, business rivalries. A thoroughly good book.
Between Judith Cutler and husband Edward Marston these two provide great reading in the crime genres.
July 9, 2020
Maybe I'd have enjoyed it more if I were English and understood all the colloquial sayings. As it is, it's a fun read, good mystery on a not overworked subject, though the reveal of Tim's paternity at the end felt forced. I also thought it a bit rich for Josie to question the age difference in another couple, that made no sense for such an otherwise thoughtful character. If I were older I'm sure I'd enjoy the book more, too.
October 7, 2014
This is not finished BUT I'm marking it as read and placing it in my 'not finished' pile of books on here. I just can't get into this book at all. I was drawn to it because of the cover and I like to read things to do with Chinese culture/people.
But 50 or so pages in and they will still farting about in the Church...And I understand when stories start off slow...But this was just TOO slow for my likes. I couldn't see it picking up any sort of pace TBH. Not to mention I usually like mystery novels but I learnt more about ways to describe a man's adams apple than the mystery on hand about Tang.
I'm currently on a path to try and minimise my collection of physical books and this was one of them. I'm not going to throw it away but it'll go into a pile that I'll come back to when I have nothing else to read...
But 50 or so pages in and they will still farting about in the Church...And I understand when stories start off slow...But this was just TOO slow for my likes. I couldn't see it picking up any sort of pace TBH. Not to mention I usually like mystery novels but I learnt more about ways to describe a man's adams apple than the mystery on hand about Tang.
I'm currently on a path to try and minimise my collection of physical books and this was one of them. I'm not going to throw it away but it'll go into a pile that I'll come back to when I have nothing else to read...
July 31, 2015
I've read several books by Judith Cutler from three other series, so I'm a fan. This is the second in the series and it appears that that's all there is to this series (The Food Detective is the first.) It took a while for me to get into the story, but eventually it became a "page turner." The story wrapped up too quickly for a satisfactory ending, as if Cutler was near the page limit and needed to close. If there were to be more in the series, I would read them.
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February 7, 2012I read the first two Josie Welford books back to back (The Food Detective is the first book). Josie is a great addition to Judith Cutler's strong female characters, and I hope there are more books coming.
September 30, 2013
Interesting story, relatably written, with a - speaking for myself - completely unrelatable, a bit too much larger than life main character, nothing I care to be too excited for. It was a nice read and a bit of a waste of time.
April 13, 2010
Josie Welford # 2
April 22, 2011
2nd Josie Welford book - very good characters. An up-to-date plot about illegal immigrants & unsafe food processing, in a rural setting.
July 30, 2013
Gaat wel.
April 6, 2016
I haven't read any of the previous novels in the series but found the tone of this mystery pleasantly engaging.
September 8, 2012
Quick and good read. Josie is a very likeable heroine.
October 11, 2015
enjoyed this book very much looking forward to more by this author.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews