Blossom Valley, West Virginia, is playing host to many Civil War reenactors among other excitements in this autumnal cider craft mystery. Winona Mae Montgomery has opened a barn shop to revitalise her Granny Smythe's orchard, as we saw in two previous adventures. THE CIDER SHOP RULES as far as its customers are concerned, while another attraction is making the most of Halloween nearby.
Winona takes time out from her cider shop to visit Jacob Potter's pumpkin farm and creepy corn maze. She’s collecting goods. But someone has the audacity to murder a man despite the crowds and stashes the body in the back of Winnie's elderly pickup truck under a tarp. I don’t understand why Winnie didn’t check the loaded goods herself--I would, to save driving the distance again--but she has driven a ways to town before the dreadful deed becomes clear.
THE CIDER SHOP RULES, the third installment in the Cider Shop Mystery series by Julie Anne Lindsey, involves many characters already met in earlier books, such as Sheriff Colton Wise, but also introduces his brother, Blake, similarly a good-looking lawman. The men banter and try to protect our heroine, but danger is also arriving on the double. Not only is the pumpkin patch killer on the loose and threatened by Winnie’s determined investigations, but a felon from elsewhere has slipped custody and was last seen heading towards Blossom Valley. We start to wonder which of them will succeed in silencing Winnie for ever.
Julie Anne Lindsey has once more crafted a detail-laden, busy book of successes and personal failures, with everything from cinnamon spiced hot cider, to corporate lackey Hank, Winnie’s ex-boyfriend, turning up again. I actually felt invested in the cider recipe contest the farm entered in the previous book, so I was hoping for the result to be announced. You’ll have to read this book to find out. Winnie’s had a busy year; you can say that again. And every step of the way through the re-enactment and fall harvest, someone is stalking or hassling her. That’s no way to prepare for Thanksgiving with wise Grannie.
THE CIDER SHOP RULES is a splendid continuation and could be read as a standalone – but you wouldn’t want to miss out on the earlier adventures of this amateur sleuth in beautiful West Virginia. Treat yourself to a glass of cider or apple juice and make fast friends with this series.
Autumn in Blossom Valley means pumpkin patches are ripe and Winona Mae Montgomery and her Granny Smythe’s cider shop is flourishing. But with this season comes . . .
A FATAL HARVEST
The Fall Festival is in full swing. Civil War reenactors from three counties are partaking in Blossom Valley’s tribute to John Brown. Blue Ridge Mountain foliage is in full bloom. And best of all is Jacob Potter’s pumpkin farm where his hay rides, piglet races, pumpkin picking and corn maze are time-honored draws for locals and tourists alike. That’s why it’s such a shock when Mr. Potter is found dead, hidden under a tarp in the back of Winnie’s pickup truck. This certainly betrays Potter’s reputation as one of the town’s most popular citizens. Fortunately, when it comes to solving a murder, no one has a patch on Winnie. Now, all eyes are on her to do it. Unfortunately, that includes those of the killer who’ll do anything to keep an orchard full of secrets buried.
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