Welcome to Aberfal Boys High School. Independent jewel of academic and sporting excellence in the South-west — until the headmaster is murdered in his study. And now the Year Seven School Mums’ WhatsApp Group really do have something to talk about…
Clare Withoutani: OMG have you heard about Newhall?!!!
Becky Rupertsmum: Helen-Louise just texted. Can’t believe it.
Asha: Not heard anything. What’s happened?
Pam Geoffreysmum: What’s he done this time? They’re going co-ed, aren’t they? I knew this would happen.
Clare Withoutani: Can’t believe it, Becky. I’m in shock.
Pam Geoffreysmum: Are we going co-ed?
Becky Rupertsmum: No, Pam. Newhall died.
Pam Geoffreysmum: Oh GOD. Seriously??!! Can’t believe it. So sad. He’ll be such a loss to the school. The boys will be devastated. Will the school be offering grief counselling?
Rose Oliversmum: Anyone know what pages they’re meant to do for chemistry? Ollie’s homework diary says ‘do questions 1-4’ but no page numbers!
As the resulting police investigation reveals more and more of Aberfal’s long-hidden secrets the list of suspects who wanted the headmaster dead grows by the day. And far from being a glittering jewel of exclusivity and excellence, it would appear Aberfal Boys High School is rotten to its core…
School motto: Secrets. Envy. Revenge
Book Info: Print length: 357 pages. Publisher: Constable. Publication Date: 19th September 2024
My Thoughts:
Sometimes it’s nice to take a step back from the grisly, gruesome crime fiction and indulge in a little light-hearted, cosy murder mystery and that is exactly what One Bad Apple was for me.
Set in a Cornish village, One Bad Apple centres around Aberfal Boys High School, a private school known for it’s academic and sporting excellence. The parents are all “yummy mummies”, who pride themselves on being part of this elite, affluent and influential school.
When Asha Demetriou moves into this cliquey village with her son Cass, having had to flee her home for reasons unknown, she has no intention of enrolling her son at this overly privileged and expensive school. However the headteacher Jerry Newhall can be very persuasive and against her gut feelings she accepts a bursary for Cass which propels both mother and son into an exclusive and entitled world she doesn’t understand.
Obviously with any cosy murder we have to have a victim, and headteacher Jerry Newhall is our man. He is found dead in his office during an important cricket match with his head bashed in. Who would want this much loved headteacher dead? How could he have been killed when no-one was seen near his office and what secrets are the parents covering?
At first I was concerned that this book has a huge cast of characters and I would struggle to keep up with who was who, but within a few chapters this really wasn’t an issue at all. I absolutely devoured this book, I loved all the characters, the secrets, the back stories, the humour, the relationships, the WhatsApp messages between the parents and most of all I loved Asha.
This is an easy 5 star for me and I was delighted to see that Jo Jakeman, who is a new author to me, has 5 other books which I shall be buying now.
