Books: The Agatha Raisin series by M. C. Beaton

You know how most fictional lead characters are inherently likable? Oh, they may have a Lovable Irascibility or a Mischievous Sense Of Humor, or Low Self Esteem Covering A Lion's Heart, or they may drink rather too much, or demonstrate a little social snobbery, but in general, they tend to be sure, solid, likable people.

Agatha Raisin? Not so much.

She's vain. Passive-aggressive. Egotistical. Needy. Grumpy. Selfish. Bad-tempered. A braggart. A snob and a reverse snob, simultaneously. Addicted to lousy relationships with men. She's a thoroughly dysfunctional person, not in a fascinating and high-flown psychiatrically-diagnosable way, but in a very irrational, everyday, prosaic sort of way. Her only non-dysfunctional relationship is with her cats.

Cats are selfish. Self-centered. Egotistical. Hedonistic. Completely lacking in any desire to please. And a delight to watch and to know.  Maybe this explains my otherwise inexplicable liking for Agatha.

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