The Body on the Beach by Simon Brett

Carole Seddon likes her life. More or less. Her little house in Fethering is perfect for this widow and her dog. She gets to walk him on the beach every day and usually sees the same people every day as well. Not much changes. Well, until the day there's a hooded figure on the beach. Then she finds a body. Do the local police believe her? No. They treat her as a doddering old fool, especially once they go back and the body isn't there. 

There is another annoyance in Carole's life, her new neighbor Jude. Who exactly is this woman? She seems far too bohemian to enjoy being in Fethering. But she believes Carole and the two start to investigate what is going on. And they uncover a lot. 

This book is very much of the time it was written in. The series is still going (when I'm writing this in 2026) and I'm interested to read the books in between to see how these two characters evolve.  

Three and a half stars

Fethering #1

Followed by Death on the Downs

Borrowed as audiobook from Audible Plus

Opinions are my own