This book is the latest installment in the China Bayles
mystery series. China used to be an attorney, but she's
abandoned that life for very different one. She is now the
proprietor of Thyme and Seasons, an herb shop located in
Texas that sells everything from the herbs themselves to
books explaining the herbs. In addition to her son, she and
her husband McQuaid, now have custody of Caitlin (her niece)
who has lost her parents in a tragic turn of events covered
earlier in the series.
At the beginning of this book, China is quite taken by a
local newspaper intern, Jessica; she seems intelligent and
ambitious, but she thinks that Jessica may be hiding
something. As an intern, Jessica covers smaller stories,
but she is determined to get a bigger story as soon as
possible. She gets her wish when China discovers a trailer
outside of town that is ablaze, and it explodes with a woman
inside it. As she calls the fire in, she can hear the woman
inside calling for help. But before China can get to her,
the trailer explodes, killing the woman inside.
Jessica gets assigned to do a human interest story on China
and her discovery of the trailer fire. China soon discovers
in the course of the interview that Jessica's "secret" is
that her family (including her twin sister) was killed in a
fire while Jessica was out of town several years ago.
Because of this, Jessica soon turns her human interest
assignment into more of an investigative one, despite
China's warnings about getting too close to her subject and
staying objective.
However, China soon wishes Jessica had listened to her
warning because Jessica turns up missing. At first,
Jessica's boss at the paper thinks it's just a matter of
today's youth being irresponsible. But China has a hunch
that something more sinister is afoot, and she begins to
follow the trail Jessica was on.
I really liked the herbal information that kicked off each
chapter, and I liked the way the author integrated
information about herbs in the book without making the book
read as a boring textbook. I'll admit that I'm not one for
aromatherapy or herbal healing, but I loved learning about
it here because of the way it was presented. The mystery
itself was fun and interesting, and I found myself trying to
solve it along with China (although she solved it first). I
really enjoyed watching China interact with Caitlin and
acclimating to her role as a mother to a daughter. The
author has a knack for writing great dialogue, although I
would preferred that the characters weren't referred to by
nicknames so often (Smart Cookie, Blackie, etc.).
I can easily imagine myself becoming immersed in the world
of China Bayles much more often, as well as becoming more
interested in herbs as a result of this series.
Another herbal treat from national bestselling author Susan
Wittig Albert. While Pecan Springs bustles back to life in
the warmth of spring, one woman's life is tragically brought
to an end. China Bayles happens upon a burning house trailer
and hears a woman screaming for help. The evidence leaves no
doubt that it's arson homicide. Jessica Nelson, an
intern-reporter at the local paper, is assigned to cover the
story. But she's gotten herself too deeply involved. When
Jessica disappears, China is determined to find her, before
she becomes headlines herself.
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