In Murder Among Us, Ann Granger presents Bamford as a typical English village, but one on the verge of losing both its history and its social cohesion. As might be expected, different people react in different ways. Detective Chief Inspector Markby is dismayed that the village is expanding, that new people are moving in and that crime is on the rise due to both those social forces; adding to his consternation and frustration is that the higher-ups are pressuring him to accept a promotion that would not only force him to spend more time behind a desk but take him away from his beloved village and all the people he knows. A foreigner has taken over the local manor hall, which has raised the ire of the local historical society -- not only is he remodeling the the structure (never mind that it was falling to pieces) but he is turning it into a high-end hotel. The change in ownership also endangers a rest home for horses, a charity hanging on by a thread.As change causes stress in peoples' lives, secrets which people thought long buried rise to the surface. The deeper and darker the secret, the more intense the reaction as it threatens to rise to the surface. Sometimes making sure a secret stays buried means murder. On the opening day of the new hotel, the historical society protests, a knife is stolen from the kitchen, a suitor is rebuffed, an amply endowed woman streaks (to the trauma of all), a man watches a young girl from hiding, a woman is murdered, and the deepest and darkest of secrets is kept.It falls to DCI Markby to sort out all the lies and lives in search of the truth, even as he tries to keep from being promoted, all the while balancing his professional life and personal life, represented by his perceptive and long-suffering girlfriend, diplomat Meredith Mitchell, who find herself drawn into the investigation by virtue of having been at the hotel during opening day ceremonies with Markby. Working independently of each other, sometimes seemingly in opposition, they find themselves arriving at the same destination (the truth) by different paths.Author Ann Granger creates in this book a set of genuinely interesting and engaging characters beset by problems with which the reader can sympathize, in an attractive English setting. She also engages in the sort of "fair play" writing which used to mark so many English mysteries, letting the reader in on the investigation to the point where the reader feels he has just as good a chance of solving the mystery as Markby and Mitchell. This book will certainly appeal to anyone who enjoys classic English mysteries, especially the sub-genre known as the village cozy.
