I came fresh to this Booktown Mystery series at instalment number 19, which is definitely not a great idea. A PERILOUS PLOT continues what seems to be a series-long family dispute. At this point, matters are serious enough that Tricia Miles and her sister, Angelica Miles, don’t know anything about their parents’ lives. Their mother, Sheila, appears in town one day and passes over an urn, with the sad news that the girls’ father has died. She doesn’t say anything about the funeral, just departs.

Puzzled and saddened, the sisters bring the urn to the local undertaker, who performs a cursory inspection and indicates that no human remains are inside; there is, however, a wrapped luxury watch.

Booktown seems to be a busy place, but each sister runs a few small businesses, and they have boyfriends on the hop. The gossip mill is about as fast as you’d expect in a place where everyone knows the locals, but again it’s odd that many of the people claim they don’t have real friends. Like a society lady, Becca Dickson-Chandler, who confidently asks Tricia to be her matron of honour at her wedding. They are on polite terms, but that’s all.  

What’s the perilous plot, you may ask? Well, it has much to do with whether Mr. John Miles is alive or dead. If he is dead, is something happening, like a will or insurance payout? If he is alive, where is he and what is he up to? The sisters don’t even know if they ought to tell the police chief, who is a friend. Their loyalties are mixed, since their dad has in the past been a con artist. Another lady in town blithely claims that she used to have an affair with John Miles. There is no end to the confusion, bitterness and lies.

Tricia runs the Haven’t Got A Clue mystery bookshop, and her sister is trying to buy the local diner at the start of the story. All the local businesses seem to have book-themed names, which is a fun idea, but it does make it harder to remember which is an actual bookstore.

Lorna Barrett has created a complicated, drama-filled tale, which will probably suit fans of the series just fine. A PERILOUS PLOT carries some good messages about cherishing friends and behaving with honesty.