THE PIE & MASH DETECTIVE AGENCY

Neophyte South London detectives Jane Pye and Simon Mash take on a cold case that’s begging for a solution.

In order to earn a certificate for the three-week private investigation class they’ve enrolled in, Jane and Simon must submit coursework and solve a case on their own. Jane, unemployed since losing her job as a back-end developer, is serious about the course and hopes it will lead to a job she’d enjoy. Simon sees it as more of a lark. Most of the cases private eye Gavin Smith, who teaches the course, hands out to students are those he’s solved in the past. But Jane and Simon get the very special case of Nellie Thorne. Since the 1970s, every decade or so a woman named Nellie Thorne has been reported missing in different places around Kent. The police have never solved the mystery; some people think it’s a hoax, others think she’s a ghost. Now, a man named Dev Hooper has reported his girlfriend, Nellie Thorne, missing. Is he sincere, or is he a scammer? Since his story doesn’t go down well with the police, Dev tries to hire Gavin, who passes him on to Jane and Simon. They learn that Dev didn’t know much about Nellie except that she wanted children, liked crafts, and was born in Kent. A search of Dev’s home turns up clothes that might be from Nellie’s online sales business, some tarnished jewelry, a partially burned candle, and eventually the remains of a positive pregnancy test. As Jane and Simon bumble their way from one clue to another, it becomes clear that they’re both rather clever, and some of the clues lead to answers in a case that’s baffled the professionals for years.

A highly amusing debut featuring millennial romance and danger for a couple less clueless than they seem.