Former editor of the Cabot Cove Gazette, Evelyn Phillips is back in Cabot Cove. Evelyn tells Jessica and Seth that she got a couple of really weird notes from Bertha Mae Cormier so she’s come back to town to check on her old friend. She demands that Jessica come with her to see Bertha Mae, who is a bit dithery but no more so than Jessica remembers her being in recent years.
Jessica does become somewhat concerned when Bertha Mae starts to talk about her new neighbor, Martin Terranova. He is quite charming and very health conscious and he teaches yoga and meditation in his pool house. Maureen Metzger says that she and Bertha Mae became friends in Terranova’s class and mentions how solicitous he is to his older clients.
Jessica attends one of his classes and does notice that Terranova is flirtatious with several elderly clients, especially Bertha Mae. Evelyn is becoming convinced that Bertha Mae is being mesmerized by Terranova and that he is after Bertha Mae’s money. A short while late, Martin turns up dead in his weight room. What at first blush seems to be an accident, soon proves to be murder and Jessica must put her investigative skills to the test when Evelyn becomes the prime suspect.
Release Date: Jan 23, 2024
Series: Murder She Wrote
Book: 57
Publisher:Â Penguin Group
Imprint:Â BerkleyÂ
Price: $14.99
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Author Jessica Fletcher has started writing her latest mystery novel and the research is going well until a real-life mystery begins interrupting her work. The former editor of Cabot Cove’s newspaper is back in town because she’s concerned about a friend and wants Jessica’s assistance. Evelyn is afraid Bertha Mae’s memory may be failing and that fitness guru, Martin Terranova, may be taking advantage of that to charm the older woman out of her money. When Martin is found murdered in his own weight room, Evelyn becomes the prime suspect and needs Jessica’s help more than ever to find the real killer.
I like watching the Murder, She Wrote television program, but you don’t need to be a fan of the show to enjoy this series of books. There have been a couple different authors, but Terrie Farley Moran does a great job of portraying these beloved characters. It’s nice spending time with Jessica, Mort, Dr. Seth Hazlitt, and the other Cabot Cove residents. Jessica and Seth’s banter is amusing and the author captures the right notes of joking and affection between them. Jessica is always willing to help a friend and she can’t resist an intriguing mystery, so she is willing to put her writing aside to help investigate Martin’s murder. I like that Cabot Cove Sheriff Mort Metger respects Jessica’s sleuthing skills and takes any clues she finds seriously.
Evelyn can be an annoying character, but nobody deserves to go to prison for a crime they didn’t commit, so it’s good she has Jessica in her corner. Jessica goes above and beyond to find out more about Martin and who had a motive to kill him, as well as making sure Bertha Mae is doing okay. In addition to helping the former newspaper editor, Jessica also helps the current editor, Dan Andrews, look into a possible case of embezzlement. Jessica has a lot going on in this book, but it keeps the story moving and the reader engaged. I like the way all of the loose ends come together for a satisfying ending to the case and the book.
~ Christine
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