Hi, I’m Abigail Palmer, thirty-something, Aries, IT consultant, mildly interested in Sherlock Holmes—
“You must be joking?!”
I apologise for the interruption, that was my best friend, Hannah, she’s sitting next to me—
“Abigail, you’re not ‘mildly interested in Sherlock Holmes’,” she says, “you’re completely obsessed!”
“Don’t tell them that, they’ll think I’m nuts, just like all the people I work with.”
Hannah frowns. “They don’t think that anymore, do they? After all, you did find out who had done away with your boss, while the police were so far on the wrong trail they were in a different country.”
That might be a slight exaggeration. Anyway, you were asking me about a typical day? Well, I was an IT consultant, travelling from project to project, and only seeing my flat (and my cat, Jasper) from very late Thursday nights to so-early on Monday mornings you could call it Sunday night.
About four months ago, everything changed, because the new IT project HR sent me to was in Winburyton, my hometown! I couldn’t believe my luck, this sort of thing never happens. I was going to be sleeping in my own bed every night, and cuddle with Jasper every morning, and hang out with Hannah over good bread and fantastic cheeses whenever we felt like it (if you’re ever in Winburyton, you have to go to Black’s. Frank is an amazing cheesemonger, not to mention kind and down-to-earth), and maybe most of all, not having to have dinner with colleagues three nights a week.
Well, the reality turned out a bit differently… for one thing, the work people discovered Giuseppe’s amazing pizzas (my fault, brain-to-mouth filter failure), and they made my favourite pizzeria their regular dinner spot.
Then there was the little matter of being blackmailed by my boss, the project manager, into helping her discover who was threatening her, all without telling the police, or I’d get fired. So when she disappeared, and Jeff, the big boss, gave me her job—
“The police seriously thought you’d disappeared her to get her job.”
Hannah’s right, unfortunately… that wasn’t a fun week.
But honestly, I actually thought I’d be good at being a detective. After all, I can usually deduce a lot of things just by observing something or someone carefully. Don’t ask me about their thoughts though, I’m hopeless with people – which is why I asked Hannah to sit in with me. She’ll tell me if I’m doing or saying something that you might perceive as being rude. I’m direct, sure, but for some reason people get offended a lot when I open my mouth. By the way, I see that your shirt looks a bit tight, did you put on weight?
“Abigail!”
Oops. Sorry, I was just curious.
A SLICE OF MYSTERY
Series: An Abigail Palmer Mystery, Book 1
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release: April 2026
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org
When you’re lucky enough to land on a project in your hometown, nothing can ruin it—right? That is, until your boss disappears and you’re given her job, the police suspect you, and the cheesemonger runs out of your favourite Gouda.
When socially-awkward IT consultant Abigail Palmer is sent to work on a local factory’s new computer systems, she’s looking forward to daily get-togethers with best friend Hannah and cozy nights with Jasper the cat—not being blackmailed by boss Lynn into investigating a threatening note.
Between managing the IT project, untangling lies, and trying to decode a cute colleague’s attentions, Abigail’s plate is full—though there’s always room for Giuseppe’s insanely delicious pizzas.
Perfect for fans of cozy mysteries and awkward heroines with a side of tech. Warning: may cause cravings for artisan cheese and late-night pizza.
Meet the author
Sophie Maddon is a neurodivergent author who has always been tagged as weird (but why be normal when you can be weird?) and universally acknowledged as a troublemaker.
She’s currently living in the UK and is owned by a cat (half-panther if you ask the vet).