Sentenced to Death (A Booktown Mystery #5) by Lorna Barrett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
A Booktown Mystery is probably one of my favorite series, and so when I was able to get my hands on book number 5, Sentenced to Death, of course I was all over reading it!
It;s Founder's Day, a celebration that Bob Kelly had cooked up to drive more tourist traffic into town and promote the town. Of course Bob couldn't be bothered to do the leg work or give the opening speech, so Tricia's good friend, Deborah Black is doing it all. There is a plane pulling a banner behind it that is circling all around the town square, some loops are pretty low, and it has Tricia worried. Then Deborah climbs into the gazebo to give her opening speech, but she has to stop three time for the noise of the low flying plane to move out before she can go on. As she is talking Tricia notices the plane looks to be nose-diving the gazebo, and there isn't any sound, the engine is dead, and before anyone can say or do anything, the plane crashes into the gazebo. The pilot and Deborah are both gone in the blink of an eye.
As the days pass on, and Deborah's husband David sells his wife's store even before she is buried, refuses any help from his wife's family aside from leaving his young son with his wife's mother and never having a thing to do with him, then plans a funeral within days of getting his wife's body only for people to show up and realize there is no service, just a mingle time. Tricia has had enough, and she proceeds to give David a piece of her mind about his behavior, then she decides that something is wrong with this picture. She begins to investigate, and it takes her on a multi level trip through the lives of the pilot and his wife, Deborah and David, and the daycare center were little Davey broke his arm just a couple weeks prior.
Another in the series of well-written and enjoyable books by Lorna Barrett. I find myself wanting to be in a town like Stoneham, to be a part of the lives of the people around there. It just draws you in and makes you want to read and enjoy the books. looking forward to the next book in the series.
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I enjoyed hearing a bit more from Bob, but he's so "pale" and wishy washy, I would like to see him become a bit more "intelligent".
I found the "cause of death", the airplane crash, to be pretty far fetched, the clues didn't add up, the murderer had no part in the story until the end, it was odd.
The relationship between Tricia and Angelica is great. If you have a sister you understand the dynamics of loyalty, love, jealousy, anger, etc.
In this book the main character, Tricia, is sort of stuck, she feels. She doesn't feel fullfilled or challenged, she is feeling lonely, maybe "left behind" a bit.
Because I'm endeared to this series, this town and the people, I'm forgiving the weird plot and plot holes assuming the focus was more on the characters, getting us, the readers, ready for some big changes in upcoming books.
Looking forward to the next one!!
Not one of her best, but worth a read. Hopefully the author improves the attitude of the character in the next installment.
The entire town of Stoneham, New Hampshire, has been gearing up for the big Founder's Day celebration, but everything literally goes up in smoke when a freak accident kills one of Tricia Miles' friends right before her eyes.
The Sheriff's Department chalks the entire thing up as an accident, but as Tricia learns bits and pieces of information, she starts thinking that there's a lot more to the story, and sets out to prove her point with potentially fatal results.
This is one of my favorite cozy mystery series, and although I did enjoy this book, it is enjoyment with reservations. I found it to be less satisfying than the others in the Booktown series. The plot and the identity of the murderer felt a bit convoluted and over the top. The main character, Tricia, seems rudderless and looking for a change. Her ex-husband is making overtures, and she can't make up her mind between showing him the Welcome mat or a restraining order.
I hope that Barrett is setting us up for something new and exciting in the next book in the series. I don't think I'm the only one who doesn't care for indecisive main characters.
