Between minding a pair of rambunctious goats, meetings with her quilting circle, and matchmaking, Millie Fisher has plenty to keep her busy through her golden years. But the witty widow always makes time to solve the odd murder . . .
Some Amish men don’t know what’s good for them. That’s what Millie Fisher told herself when young Ben Baughman set his heart on marrying Tess Lieb. With Tess’s father refusing to give his blessing and Tess’s ex-boyfriend being a wet blanket, the hapless couple was bound to butt heads more than Millie’s Boer goats. But when Ben tragically dies in a mysterious fire, Millie wonders if someone in her hometown of Harvest, Ohio, wanted Ben out of the wedding picture altogether . . .
With the help of her quilting buddies, and her outspoken Englischer friend Lois, Millie is determined to patch together all the clues without even dropping a stitch. She only hopes it won’t be the death of her . .
Release Date: Dec 1, 2020
Series: An Amish Matchmaker Mystery
Book: 2
Publisher: Kensington
Price: $7.99
Millie Fisher loves helping the members of her Amish community find their perfect match. Ben Baughman, who is like a nephew to Millie, wants her help in convincing Tess Lieb’s stern father that he would make a suitable husband for Tess. Millie agrees to speak with Tobias Lieb, but before she is able to make any ground in her talks with him, tragedy strikes. Now the “Amish Marple” and her Englisch best friend Lois Henry are determined to find out the truth behind the suspicious death in Harvest, Ohio’s Amish country before anyone else becomes a victim.
This is the second book in this series and it also includes crossover characters from the author’s Amish Candy Shop series. Those who read that series will love seeing Deputy Aiden Brody lead the investigation, but it’s not necessary to read those books to be able to enjoy this one. I read the prior book in the Amish Matchmaker series, but I would have been able to catch up on the characters even if I hadn’t.
The best part of the book is the unusual and loving friendship between Millie and Lois. The two women are very different but their love and respect for each other is obvious. I love how the outspoken Lois speaks out against people who are disrespectful to Millie when Millie would feel uncomfortable doing that herself. The downside of the book is the abundance of unlikable side characters. You expect a couple in a story like this, but except for the main characters, rude and judgemental people seem to be the rule instead of the exception. This takes away from the light mood of the book and even the antics of Millie’s rambunctious goats Phillip and Peter can’t make up for it.
The plot of the book is interesting and there are more suspects than you would expect in a devout Amish community. When Millie is able to uncover the truth, I was very surprised by the final revelation. There is also an ongoing subplot involving Millie’s childhood friend Uriah Schrock. Uriah didn’t play a large part in this book, but it looks like the author was setting up a future storyline in a subsequent book and I hope Millie opens herself up to the possibility of romance. I like this author and really enjoy the interesting duo of Millie and Lois. I think this book will appeal to fans of any of the author’s other series written under either Amanda Flower or Isabella Alan or fans of Laura Bradford.
~ Christine
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