Lighthouse Inn mystery series

Murder has come again to the Hatteras West Inn, set in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.

Alex Winston, innkeeper, has given his friend, Shantara Robinson, permission to hold the Golden Days Fair on the Inn's grounds. Shantara is organizing the Fair in the hopes that holding the Fair will bring in profits to save her mortgaged country store.

Before the Fair opens, Jefferson Lee, one of the Fair's blacksmiths, is found skewered in the chest with the shaft of cold black iron which has Bill Yadkin's distinctive trademark. Yadkin hated Lee, accusing him of trying to steal his business.

Alex is drawn into the investigation, determined to find the murderer and avert the closing of the Fair and also to protect the reputation of the Inn.

In his efforts to solve the murder he is without his housekeeper, Elise Danton, whose absence he sorely feels. He finds that Yadkin is not alone in his hatred of Lee. There are many at the Fair who have reason to wish Lee's death. It becomes urgent that Alex discover the murderer before more deaths occur.

This is a delightful quick read. The action is well-paced; the story well-plotted. We are reacquainted with the�characters from INNKEEPING WITH MURDER,each of whom holds the reader's interest; the weaver, the potters, the town handyman, the jewel miner, even the temporary resident at the Inn who has a phobia about iced tea. The reader becomes personally involved with the town and its occupants. The author has successfully evoked the atmosphere of the Blue ridge Mountains and this Inn.

Let us make a reservation for the next visit to the Lighthouse Inn, even though the Inn seems to be the divining rod for murder.

Reviewed by Lelia Taylor
Creatures 'n Crooks Bookshoppe
http://www.cncbooks.com
[email protected]
[email protected]

Proprietor of the The Hatteras West Inn, Alex Winston would just as soon not get involved with another murder. Unfortunately, some people just aren't very considerate and blacksmith Jefferson Lee has been literally skewered to a timber of Alex's new building, hoist on his own petard, so to speak. The Golden Days Fair, showcasing old-fashioned artisans and crafters, is about to open on the inn's grounds and there are way too many potential suspects. If Alex is going to prevent more bad publicity, he's going to have to do some snooping of his own...

Author Tim Myers brings back a delightful cast of small-town characters in this sequel to Agatha-nominated "Innkeeping With Murder" and introduces us to a few more we'll hope to meet again. Alex's sleuthing, hindered somewhat by an old girlfriend's amorous hints and the dislike that nearly everyone felt for the murdered man, is not especially appreciated by the local sheriff but Alex is convinced the sheriff is heading in the wrong direction. In the meantime, his housekeeper and friend, Ellie, has left town and gossip has it she's not coming back. So what else can go wrong?

"Reservations for Murder" and it's predecessor, "Innkeeping With Murder", are highly recommended for everyone who loves a true cozy mystery.