As the Pig Turns is book #22 in the Agatha Raisin cozy mystery series by M.C. Beaton. This is my #1 all-time favorite cozy mystery series.
Eager to get home to the small village of Carsely after Christmas break, Agatha Raisin is frustrated when she finds herself stuck in a traffic jam in freezing temperatures. While sitting in her car and waiting for traffic to start moving, a policeman gives disgruntled Agatha a ticket for taking her hands off the wheel. A few days later, Agatha attends a local winter festival and realizes that the roasted pig prepped for the spit is actually the torso of the unruly policeman, complete with a sewn-on pig’s head.
Agatha runs her own private detective business now, so she jumps right into figuring out who chopped up the cop. While all this is going on, Agatha’s bright, young protégé Toni dates a snobbish older man to keep herself occupied, thanks to Agatha convincing Toni’s other boyfriend to join the military months earlier. After meeting Toni’s new boyfriend, Agatha instantly feels guilty for having stuck her nose where it didn’t belong, and tries making it up to Toni in various random ways.
For the last few Agatha Raisin books I’ve read, I’ve been more into the drama between the main characters than the actual mystery itself. I enjoyed all the extra stuff going on in this one and paid so little attention to the mystery.
I love the sense of community in M.C. Beaton’s novels. Agatha Raisin is a cranky old bat most days, but she still does good by her small town and brings all those small-town criminals to justice.
There are 36 books in the Agatha Raisin series by M.C. Beaton. Wow!
I’ve also read and reviewed Busy Body and A Spoonful of Poison.
Last Updated on November 24, 2025 by Sarah Ann
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