The second in the Berry
Basket Mystery series is set on
the east coast of Lake Michigan. Our central character
Marlee Jacob is known as the Berry Girl for her shop in
the
town of Oriole Point. She's using social media to
advertise
The Berry Basket, and making posters for a local road
rally
.
As BLACKBERRY BURIAL explains, Marlee used to produce a TV
cooking show in New York, until one of the chefs decided
to
murder her co-chef husband. The resultant bad publicity
made Marlee up stakes and come home. I had not read the
first book so it was good to get the brief backstory. Some
of the premises here have histories too; a farm is
rumoured
to be haunted. Marlee's Aunt Vicki runs an animal rescue
centre and gifted Marlee's friend Piper with a Great
Dane,
while saddle horses and dairy cows also enter the picture.
I like a setting with space to move.
Unexpectedly the Great Dane digs up a skull, and a police
investigation is under way. Yes, it's on the haunted
Sanderling farm, which even hosted UFO rumours years ago
and was intended to be the setting for part of the rally.
The loneliness of an unmarked grave, in a copse tangled
with blackberries, weighs on Marlee's mind. Gordon
Sanderling, a plumbing store baron, arrives as the police
are still asking questions at the scene. More concerned
with adverse publicity than the tragic nature of the
scene,
he bans the rally from entering and orders Marlee and
Piper
off the land.
I absolutely love the setting in the fruit orchard
district. Visitors drive miles to pick their own cherries,
apples and peaches, later pumpkins, while the farm kitchen
shop sells preserves and pies. The gorgeous lakeshore
makes
a beautiful backdrop for yoga classes, boating and
vacations. Any number of outsiders could drive here -- and
some never leave. I also enjoyed the red, white and blue
themed desserts for Fourth of July, whether frosting or
berries and cream. Smoothies, decorated ceramics and
beauty
goods are on sale in The Berry Basket. I want to stop by
that shop! Some mouth-watering recipes are at the end.
BLACKBERRY BURIAL is a cold case story, which engages our
sympathy by concluding the heartbreaking search for
Sienna,
a girl student who went missing twenty years ago. This
aspect appeals to our sense of justice far more than the
usual death of an unpopular man or woman. I really wanted
to uncover the truth and bring her family some justice.
Sharon Farrow has definitely hit her stride with this
vigorous and tasty amateur sleuth story. I'll be looking
out for more.
Between a booming art scene and elaborate Independence Day festivities, July in lakeshore Oriole Point, Michigan, is always a blast. Especially when an explosive murder case crashes the fun… As owner of The Berry Basket, Marlee Jacob has learned a thing or two about surviving the summer tourist season in Oriole Point. So she gladly agrees to help run the annual road rally in honor of the local Blackberry Art School’s centenary celebration. While alumni arrive from around the country, Marlee hopes the expansive Sanderling farm will make an appropriate starting point for the race—despite rumors that the land is cursed… But when Marlee surveys the property, she stumbles upon a long-dead body hidden in the bramble. It’s a horrifying mystery to everyone except her baker, who’s convinced the skeletal remains belong to a former student who had gone missing twenty years earlier. As the Fourth of July activities heat up, Marlee must rush to catch an elusive murderer—before the next ‘blackberry victim’ is ripe for the picking!
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