NO ONE WOULD DO WHAT THE LAMBERTS HAVE DONE

A mysterious manuscript tells the story of a vendetta leading to a perplexing crime culminating in unexplained deaths.

Detective Conner Chantree sheepishly brings his superior officer a pieced-together bundle of papers he claims may indicate that a murder was committed in a case that was recently closed. Nearly the rest of the novel offers the contents of this manuscript, which purports to tell the tale of a feud between the Lamberts and the Gaveys, two families in the village of Swaffham Tilney, England. The narrative reveals that the two families are already enemies due to bad blood over a house as well as accusations of bullying between the two teenage daughters, but it leans sympathetic to the Lambert side as it describes how things get really nasty when daughter Tess Gavey reports to the police that she has been bitten by Champ Lambert, the other family’s Welsh terrier. Mother Sally Lambert will do anything to save her Champy, especially as she still mourns the unfortunate death of their first dog, Furbert, after he ate a peach pit. So she teams up with Corinne Sullivan, a wealthy eccentric who previously caused great friction in Swaffham Tilney due to the Agatha Christie Book Club War. Together with Sally’s eager kids, her reluctant husband, and the loyal Champy, the women set out to prove him innocent—or else go on the lam. There is a great deal of charm here; Sally in particular, and the way she relates to her children both furry and otherwise, is the epitome of a fierce maternal love that grounds the more ridiculous moments of the story. While Parts 2 and 3, which comment somewhat self-consciously on the rest of the novel, feel like a satirical bridge just a little too far, Hannah has surely written a true original—not an easy feat. “Quirky” might be a generous—or possibly reductive—description, but readers who love this book will love it.

An absolutely absurdist romp for dog-loving mystery fans.