The Ham-Hill Murder Mysteries Books in Order

The Ham-Hill Murder Mysteries shift the action inland to Lower Hembrow, a small Somerset village tucked beneath the ancient earthworks of Ham Hill. On the surface it is all stone cottages, pub gardens and country lanes, but the series quickly shows how much tension can sit behind neat hedges and neighbourly smiles.

The first book, A Village Murder, introduces two central characters who are both starting over. Imogen Bishop is a landscape gardener who comes home after her father's death to take over his slightly faded Georgian hotel. Across the road, Adam Hennessy, a retired police officer, has bought the Plough, a traditional village inn, hoping for a peaceful life pulling pints and painting in his spare time.

Peace does not last long. On the day of Imogen's father's funeral, she and Adam discover the body of her estranged husband in the hotel grounds. The shock forces Imogen to revisit a disastrous school night she has tried to forget for thirty years, and draws Adam back into the habits of investigation. With the help of Harley, a boisterous stray dog, they begin unpicking layers of old secrets, village politics and buried grievances.

As the series goes on, Imogen and Adam are joined by their old classmates, journalist Steph and artist Dan, forming an informal team of middle-aged amateur sleuths. In A Racing Murder, the focus moves to the world of horse racing. A young owner's grey mare wins at Wincanton before losing the race in the stewards' room, and soon afterwards the rival owner is found dead. The friends delve into stables, training yards and owners' enclosures, where pride, money and reputation are all on the line.

A Harvest Murder returns to Lower Hembrow at autumn, when the village is getting ready for fairs and harvest suppers. Local farmer Joe Trevillion disappears and another villager vanishes soon after. What looks at first like a personal crisis begins to resemble a campaign of malice, as poison-pen gossip and long-held grudges bubble to the surface. Adam and his friends have to read between the lines of what neighbours say, and what they carefully avoid saying, to prevent tragedy.

Across the Ham-Hill books, the crimes are firmly rooted in community life. Old school friendships, messy divorces, local business rivalries and council decisions can all become part of the motive. The tone stays warm and readable, with plenty of pub meals, hotel dramas and glimpses of the beautiful countryside, but there is always a sense that the past is waiting just out of sight.

Readers who enjoy village mysteries will find familiar pleasures here, from busy parish events to the clash between incomers and long-term residents. At the same time, the series gives space to characters in midlife who are working out what comes next after children, careers or marriages change. The ongoing relationships between Imogen, Adam and their friends are as important as the puzzle in each book, so following the series in order lets you watch their lives, and Lower Hembrow itself, quietly evolve.