Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Once I got in the rhythm of the writing style of these books, I really enjoyed them. Miss Seeton (Miss Ess!) was a delight and I loved reading about all her adventures and interactions with the other characters. The author really painted the picture quite nicely. ( )

This is my second attempt at reading one of the Miss Seeton books, this time I did get as far as 72% before I had to give up. I just don't like the writing style. ( )

Miss Emily Seeton is a retired art teacher who seems to magically thwart criminals and evil-doers armed only with a trusty umbrella, grace under pressure, and her drawing talents. She is naive yet incredibly observant and astute. Miss Seeton definitely reminds me of Miss Marple, with innocent, unintentional humorous antics added. I absolutely adore her!

Picture Miss Seeton is the first in the 22-book series. The book was originally published in 1968 by Heron Carvic, who wrote the first 5 Miss Seeton books. The remaining books were authored by Hampton Charles (pen name used by Roy Peter Martin) and Hamilton Crane (pen name of Sarah J. Mason). I had never heard of the Miss Seeton books before the re-release of the series by Farrago. The first 3 books are available separately, or can be purchased together as an ebook set.

In this introduction to the series, Miss Seeton attends the opera. After the performance while still lamenting over Carmen's tragic end, she comes across a young man being rough with a woman. Rapping him with her umbrella, she intends to tell him off about his behavior -- young men just shouldn't accost women in the street, after all! But, as he knocks her to the ground, Miss Seeton discovers he did more than just smack the girl around a bit. As police officers and others gather to help her up, they find that the girl is dead. She's been stabbed to death. The perpetrator runs away into the night. The police are concerned about Miss Seeton's safety as the crook made off with her purse containing her address and keys, until they learn she is moving from London to a nearby village the very next day. As will happen in villages, word gets around about the heroic actions (or possibly her villainous intentions and nefarious criminal past, depending on which person is telling the story) of Miss Seeton. It might all have ended there if the village vicar didn't get tongue tied and blurt out Miss Seeton's location to the media. The criminal element follows Miss Seeton to her new home, and more run ins with evil creeps follow. She is spied upon, nearly shot, kidnapped, gassed, and almost drowned before it's all over! The police can't help but laugh as Miss Seeton miraculously uses her umbrella, laundry soap and her unfailing luck and wits to escape all attempts to do her in.


This book is just a delightfully fun story! At 224 pages, it's a relatively quick read. I love Miss Seeton as a sweetly clueless amateur sleuth, who just seems to come upon the facts without even realizing it. The supporting characters, especially the police, are left following behind, often laughing, at the miraculous ways Miss Seeton dispatches justice.

From murdering teenagers to shady lawyers, Miss Seeton rises to the occasion and triumphs in often hilarious ways. Thanks to Farrago, I have the next two books waiting on my Kindle. I can't wait to see what Miss Seeton gets herself involved in next!

Off to start reading book 2, Miss Seeton Draws The Line. :)

**I voluntarily read an advance readers copy of this book from Farrago via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.** ( )

This is number one in the 22-book series. How did I not know until now about this quirky, umbrella-wielding spinster art teacher and the escapades she gets herself into (and out of)? This is a British cozy where the naive Miss Seeton inadvertently misunderstands motives, is overly concerned with good manners, and uses her always handy umbrella to get herself out of all manner of predicaments. The writing style is entertaining with an easy-to-follow plot, the characters are comically predictable, and Miss Seeton somehow always manages to land on her feet. This lighthearted mystery takes place in a small British village in the mid-1960's, but Miss Seeton is timeless! If you're looking for a delightful, charming read with clever plot twists, let me introduce you to Miss Seeton.

Thanks to publisher Farrago Books and NetGalley for a digital reader's copy. All comments and opinions are my own. ( )

Having been recommended by someone whose opinion I trust, I was in the mood for something light and decided to try the first book in the Miss Seeton cozy series. I had no idea what I was getting myself into!

Delightful, charming, and hilarious are words that I seldom use, let alone throw around with abandon as I am doing now, but... I can't believe how much I enjoyed this book! If I didn't have any self-control, I'd be reading all the books in this series one right after the other like potato chips or cookies.

Miss Seeton is Miss Marple on laughing gas. She's a spryer Miss Marple, too, and you'll never believe the adventures she and her umbrella get into. To Scotland Yard's credit, Detective Chief Superintendent Delphick (known as The Oracle) knows that Miss Seeton's ability to identify the killer means her life could be in danger-- especially since they know who they're looking for: "...he had a nasty feeling that when she'd stuck her brolly into César Lebel, she'd stuck it into a hornet's nest." Fortunately for Miss Seeton, Delphick sees her for the astute person she is. Unfortunately, Detective Sergeant Ranger has the typical youth's opinion that she's merely a dotty old woman carrying a lethal umbrella-- but that opinion may change as the two police officers try their best to keep her alive.

Miss Seeton is about to retire, and she's inherited a nice little cottage down in a village in Kent. Wanting to try country life on for size, she moves in for a few weeks-- and she takes Delphick's murder investigation with her, little knowing how much difficulty the villagers are going to add. The people of Plummergen are a riot, even "the Nuts," Miss Nuttel and Mrs. Blaine, horrible gossips who are "the parish substitute for a Hollywood scandal sheet." As broad as the comedy may be, I'm from a small village and I recognized many of Plummergen's characters. (My village had its own version of the Nuts, among others.)

The killer tries time and again to do away with Miss Seeton. If you have a hard time understanding how murder attempts on a poor little old lady could be hilarious, all you have to do is read Picture Miss Seeton. I spent most of this book either smiling or laughing out loud. This book is light and fun and addictive. It's just what I needed, and I've decided: I. Need. More. ( )