Hello Everyone 👋🏻
The book that I have read this week is called Game, Set & Murder by author Judy Murray. It was released as a hardback in the United Kingdom on the 3rd of July, 2025 by Orion. This is Judy Murray’s third book. The first was a memoir called Knowing the Score. The second was a novel called Wildcard. So, this is her third book and second novel.
Book Details
| Name | Game, Set & Murder |
| Author | Judy Murray |
| Published | 3rd July, 2025 |
| Genres | Fiction |
| Length | 336 pages |
Book Theme
It will not come as too much of a surprise that Judy Murray, a professional tennis coach and mother to two professional tennis players, has written a book with a tennis theme. But that should not detract from the fact that this is a cozy crime murder mystery. It stands alone on that merit. So, if you are not a tennis fan, do not let that put you off. It is still worth a read on its own merit.
Setting and Context
The book is set in the Royal Oaks Tennis and Country Club in the home counties. It was bought by Edward and Tamara Chapel many years ago. It was a bit rundown, and they worked very hard to make it a quality establishment. The club is on the rise, and its players are doing well. The book opens with people getting ready for a celebration day. The ladies’ team has won the Southeast District League. The four ladies involved are called Kristen, Vanessa, Haley, and Beatrice, also known as BB. Kristen and Vanessa are the Chapel sisters, Edward and Tamara’s children. Their friends Haley and BB are also part of the team. They are about to receive an award because they have won the league.
Plot Overview
It is a very busy day. Everybody is getting ready for a great celebration. The lady who runs the club, Ellena, hears somebody at the door and wonders what is going on, as she has enough to do today. It is a man delivering a cake from a company called Cake Isisimo. She asks who it is from, and he says it does not say. She opens the cake, and it is a tennis court with miniature tennis figures. She thinks it is very intricate. Someone has gone to a lot of trouble because the four figures definitely reflect the four ladies who have won the league. One can be identified by the hairstyle, and another, BB, always wears gold earrings. She decides it must be all right and places it with the rest.
The afternoon celebration begins, and everything is going well. Everyone is pleased, giving the girls great credit for winning the league. They wonder where their coach Jeremy is. Jeremy is Kristen’s husband and the coach of the ladies’ team. He is not the quiet, shy, retiring type. They wonder where he is, and he arrives a bit late. They think he will want to share in the limelight. Ellena, who is organizing the event, notices him eyeing the food and thinking about taking some. He takes a bit of a cupcake, and she decides to put it aside. Then he sees the big celebration cake with the figures and decides to have some of that as well. Very soon, he collapses and dies. Suddenly, the celebration turns into a murder scene, or at least a death by misadventure. Was it an accidental poisoning, or was it murder? Thus, the tale unfolds.
Characters and Narrative Structure
The story is told through the four women in the team: Kristen, Vanessa, Haley, and BB. There is a retrospective narrative, going back five or six weeks before. Each of the four women has secrets they are hiding. Most of the men involved do not come across well. BB’s husband, Garrett, is known for doing slightly dodgy deals. Jeremy, while a respected coach, had his tennis career cut short. Many thought he was naturally talented but unwilling to put in the work. There were also rumors that he threw games for money. Certainly, many of the men in this book do not come out well.
The mystery is told through the four girls in the team and Ellena, the lady who runs the club. Things from the past are revealed, and all of them have secrets. Quite a few have reasons to harm Jeremy. It is not as innocuous as it first seems. The story is a cozy crime novel. If you like fast and furious crime with lots of action, this is not for you. The actual story is only 292 pages. The four main characters, the girls in the tennis team, have secrets that unfold as the book progresses. The reader is left guessing until the end about how and why Jeremy met his demise.
It is a good cozy crime mystery. If I am being picky, one thing that struck me is that normally in a thriller, there is a police lead or law enforcement presence. While law enforcement is mentioned here, they are always in the background. There is no strong police lead. I felt the book would have been slightly better with a focus on the police officers running the inquiry, as it would have been interesting to know their thoughts about these posh people at a posh tennis club in this mysterious circumstance. Also, as I mentioned, the men in this book do not come out well, but that is being a bit picky.
Recommendation
I would say this is a great summer read. It is a tidy little whodunit. It is an easy read, less than 300 pages, so take it on holiday and enjoy it. A nice cozy crime mystery.
All Image Source
