Review: Enjoyable Cozy Mystery with a Ghost!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 26, 2013
I received a complimentary copy of this book as a part of a book tour in exchange for a fair and honest review.A murder mystery, a budding romance and an opinionated partner, who’s a ghost, all play a part in Sharon Pape’s Sketcher in the Rye, the newest addition to her Portrait in Crime series. The fourth book in the series, and the first book of Ms. Pape’s I’ve read, is well written, filled with interesting characters and a touch of comedy. If you’re looking for a cozy mystery series to check out, add this one to your list.Asked to investigate how top secret information at Harper Farms is being leaked to the completion, Rory McCain becomes involved in another murder investigation when she discovers a dead body in the middle of the farm’s corn maze. The dead body is none other than Matthew, a long time friend of owner Gil Harper, and an employee of Harper Farms. Determined to uncover the truth, Rory and her secret partner, the ghost of Old West marshal Zeke Drummond, find themselves pushed to investigate everyone in Gil’s family since he no longer knows who he can trust.Ms. Pape does a good job developing both Rory and Zeke’s characters throughout the book and their engaging dialogue is very entertaining. Their interesting relationships is definitely an appealing part of the book as are Zeke’s observations and reactions to the people involved in Rory’s life. His eactions to her new romance and her continued friendship with Eloise, the next door neighbor having visions about Zeke’s past, were highly entertaining. I also enjoyed reading about Rory’s escapades with Hobo, her dog, and his interspecies attraction to one of the piglets at Harper Farms.Will Rory and Zeke be able to uncover who’s leaking secrets before anybody else gets hurt? Will Rory get Zeke to tell her more about the secrets in his past? You’ll have to read Sketcher in the Rye to find out. I enjoyed it and intend to read the previous books in this series.