THE RETIRED ASSASSIN’S GUIDE TO ORCHID HUNTING

By Naomi Kuttner (Inkblot Publishing, £11.99)

RATING: ****

“HELLO, my name is Dante, and I am an assassin.” It’s a memorable introduction to the former MI6 black ops hitman who’s trying to kick his lethal habit at the weekly meeting of Assassins Anonymous.

And it’s working – it’s been more than six months since he last killed anyone. Holed up in the small town of Te Kohe on New Zealand’s scenic seaside, he is trying to, quite literally, turn over a new leaf.

Because Dante has reluctantly got into gardening, a hobby encouraged by newfound friends who include Charlie (a gardener who can converse with the dead) and Eleanor (a dodgy dealer in illegal artworks). Well, it is New Zealand.

Not your usual cosy murder mystery then, although I suspect Dante would get on famously with former spook Elizabeth, the driving force of Richard Osman’s phenomenally successful Thursday Murder Club.

The reformed hitman is keeping a low profile when an orchid convention comes to town, attracting renowned plant hunters from Italy, South America and England who’d kill to find a rare Ghost Orchid. Again, quite literally.

When a local orchid expert keels over after an apparent heart attack during the event, psychic Charlie rapidly realises there’s more to the tragedy than might initially appear.

Dante and his friends find themselves on the hunt for a killer – tough on an assassin who’s trying to balance the books. Oh, and yes, he’s caught up with cat issues, a woman from his past and something even more terrifying – a first date with the local vet.

Much of the humour in the second book in Naomi Kuttner’s trilogy derives from Dante’s lamentable lack of social graces and the killer instincts that inform his every move. Everyday encounters run more like health and safety risk assessments.

The mystery is satisfying enough but there’s no room for complacency because there are more red herrings here than in the former Soviet trawler fleet. A clever misdirection towards the end had me doubting everything I’d deduced to that point.

Kuttner writes in short paragraphs, many just a sentence long, and tends to open a new chapter every four pages, making this an easy read with a killer cast of characters, lots of fun and some spirited forays into the paranormal.

I look forward to meeting them all again in the next book, The Retired Assassin’s Guide to Amateur Theatrics, in which the Te Kohe locals decide to put on a production of Macbeth. What could possibly go wrong …?

I received a copy of The Retired Assassin’s Guide To Orchid Hunting in exchange for an independent and honest review as a member of the Love Books Tours team of influencers. Learn more about the programme here.

To discover more about the many attractions of New Zealand, one of my favourite places on the planet, head to newzealand.com