Brenda H. (booksinvt) -
Pumpkin Picking with Murder is the second installment in the Otter Lake mystery series. Erica Bloom has taken a vacation from her job in Chicago and come for a visit to Otter Lake. Her main goal is to spend time with Sheriff Grady Forrester to see if there can be a relationship between the two.
Erica and her BFF, Freddie Ng are strolling the fairgrounds at the annual Fall Festival as Freddie has decided to start his own business, Otter Lake Security. The new company is a result of their adventures a few months ago that landed them in a murder investigation. Freddie is determined to show that he can do a better job protecting the town than Sheriff Grady. Things quickly go downhill when a swan boat emerges from the Tunnel of Love carrying the dead body of Mr. Masterson and Erica's pseudo Aunt Tweety.
Despite the objections of Tweety and her twin sister Kit-Kat, Grady and Erica's mother Summer, the duo of Erica and Freddie set out to find the killer and clear Tweety's name. The twosome finds themselves in the midst of one misadventure after another and soon discover there are things in the past that someone is trying hard to keep hidden.
Plenty of suspects, hijinks that involve a high speed boat and a cumbersome backhoe, guests at the Bloom retreat that are partaking in a vow of Silence and can offer no help other than via charades, and a love triangle. While the killer is uncovered at the end, there are still questions left unanswered that will keep readers tuned in for the next installment.
I haven't read the first in the series, "Skinny Dipping with Murder" and think perhaps I would have liked this one better if I'd had a better understanding of the characters and their histories. Plenty of laughs but it took a while to get through because I couldn't really seem to connect with the characters. I received an advanced copy of the book from NetGalley via St. Martin's Press. While not required to write a review I am more than happy to offer my honest opinion.
Erica and her BFF, Freddie Ng are strolling the fairgrounds at the annual Fall Festival as Freddie has decided to start his own business, Otter Lake Security. The new company is a result of their adventures a few months ago that landed them in a murder investigation. Freddie is determined to show that he can do a better job protecting the town than Sheriff Grady. Things quickly go downhill when a swan boat emerges from the Tunnel of Love carrying the dead body of Mr. Masterson and Erica's pseudo Aunt Tweety.
Despite the objections of Tweety and her twin sister Kit-Kat, Grady and Erica's mother Summer, the duo of Erica and Freddie set out to find the killer and clear Tweety's name. The twosome finds themselves in the midst of one misadventure after another and soon discover there are things in the past that someone is trying hard to keep hidden.
Plenty of suspects, hijinks that involve a high speed boat and a cumbersome backhoe, guests at the Bloom retreat that are partaking in a vow of Silence and can offer no help other than via charades, and a love triangle. While the killer is uncovered at the end, there are still questions left unanswered that will keep readers tuned in for the next installment.
I haven't read the first in the series, "Skinny Dipping with Murder" and think perhaps I would have liked this one better if I'd had a better understanding of the characters and their histories. Plenty of laughs but it took a while to get through because I couldn't really seem to connect with the characters. I received an advanced copy of the book from NetGalley via St. Martin's Press. While not required to write a review I am more than happy to offer my honest opinion.
