Murder at the Mousetrap by Helena Marchmont
Yes, I picked up Murder at the Mousetrap because of the Agatha Christie and Oscar Wilde references, and that it was on the shorter side. I was pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable it was.
Alfie McAlister has retreated from London to the cottage in Bunburry he has inherited from an aunt he barely remembers. We get to meet all the townsfolk along with Alfie, and they are a nicely varied lot. He also gets recruited by the AA, Agatha's Amateurs, who put on The Mousetrap every year. The problem this year is their director is dead, and the death maybe was an accident, since this is a mystery, it's clearly murder. Alfie and two elderly neighbors, Liz and Marge, start investigating, asking questions, visiting people. The dead man was not very nice though, so we've got lots of people with motives, even if the reasons don't seem quite strong enough to lead to murder.
It's a fun read. I enjoyed the...