Genre: Mystery
Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #: 9781496725264
Kensington Publishing
336 Pages
$8.99; $6.99 Amazon
June 29, 2021
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Appalachian artist and local guide Miranda Trent opens a new murder investigation after her Paint & Shine tour group discovers the remains of a missing hiker along an ancient trail...
For her latest excursion, Miranda is thrilled to take a close-knit group of rock climbers, the Risky Business Adventurers, up the challenging Battleship Rock Trail to paint and sample moonshine. But the outing is cut short when they discover a skeleton near the trailhead. Even more startling, the bones belong to Howard Cable, Miranda's cousin...and a former classmate of the Risky Business group.
The sheriff chalks it up to a hiking accident, but Miranda isn't convinced that Howard, an experienced woodsman, died within sight of a well-marked trail. So, with the help of Ranger Austin Morgan, Miranda sets out on her own investigation and discovers that the Risky Business group is keeping plenty of secrets. But is one of them hiding the truth about Howard's death?
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Artist Miranda Trent returned home from New York after her Uncle Gene died and left her his farmhouse and moonshine distillery, which isn't able to be used until she installs new equipment. Unfortunately, if she doesn't have it all up and running by New Year's, she'll lose everything. So while trying to get that in order, she also needs an income, which she does by leading groups of people up the mountain to paint scenes of their surroundings.
Luckily, she's taking an experienced group who has been here before - The Risky Business Group - and they want to paint the scene where they first traveled. But unfortunately, it ends early when one of the group trips and injures herself, then Miranda discovers that it's the bones of a human which caused the accident. When the sheriff is called by Ranger Morgan, Miranda fears that the bones belong to her cousin Howard who disappeared five years ago.
When Howard's mother, her Aunt Ora, asks her to investigate, she can't say no, especially when her own mother Dorothy, who's visiting Miranda, agrees. Now Miranda is in the middle of yet another murder investigation, this one albeit closer to home. But someone doesn't want her investigating, and they'll go to great lengths to snuff her out...
This is the second book in the series, and I enjoyed it much more than the first (although I did think that telling us three times how she turned her uncle's bedroom into an office was a bit much). I do like the addition of her mother, who isn't a nag, isn't pressuring her to marry and give her grandchildren, and actually loves her daughter and wants to help. It's refreshing and reminds me so much about my own mom, who was a terrific cook and taught me how to cook -- and I love it. Memories are best when they're shared with others and bring out memories in them (smile).
The mystery itself is well-drawn (see what I did there?) giving us more of a glimpse into Miranda's life and what her future is turning out to be. She doesn't attack people when she questions them; nor does she accuse them of being the murderer. She gleans information and turns it over to the sheriff right away. I do like the fact that the almost-boyfriend isn't a cop this time, but a forest ranger, who's actually a likable person himself.
Miranda is trying her best to get her distillery up and running, but also needs to give her aunt closure, which is the reason for her questions. When the climax comes and we discover who the murderer is, the motive is as old as time, but the ending is a bit of a surprise, which is nice. I really enjoyed reading this book and look forward to the next in the series. Highly recommended.
More on Cheryl Hollon's Books: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/h/cheryl-hollon/
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