Dead Set: A Cozy Mystery (Agatha's Amish B&B Book 3) by Vannetta Chapman

Book Description:

It was supposed to be a simple remodel.

She didn’t plan on finding buried treasure…or looking down the barrel of a gun.

Agatha Lapp is elated when Channel 4 News decides to run a feature story on Amish businesses. The extra publicity should guarantee even more success for her Plain and Simple B&B, especially after she’s finished with the remodel. The cameras are rolling live when Agatha raises the rubber mallet and punches the first hole in her living room wall. That’s when things get complicated…

Hidden inside the wall is a diamond-studded belt buckle stolen twenty years earlier. The police return the buckle to the owners and refuse to re-open the case. The public is convinced more stolen goods are hidden at Agatha’s. When overzealous treasure hunters break into the B&B and a dead body is found half a mile down the road, Agatha knows she needs to take this investigation into her own hands.

With the help of a retired detective and her best friend, Agatha sets out to solve the mystery of the Lost Texas Treasures and find a killer. Their chase leads them through the Texas Hill Country to the famed YO Ranch where Agatha finds herself looking down the barrel of a gun. Suddenly, she’s no longer worried about a remodel. She just wants to live through this showdown.

About the Author:  Vannetta Chapman

Vannetta Chapman is a USA Today and PW Bestselling author of over 30 books. She has written for Abingdon Press and Harvest House Publishers, and she currently writes for Harper Collins Christian Publishing and Harlequin/Love Inspired. She's received numerous awards including the ACFW Carol Award for best mystery (Falling to Pieces), and she was a Christy Award finalist (Anna's Healing). She recently signed a contract for an additional six books with Harlequin/Love Inspired.

Chapman has a BA and MA in English literature from the University of Texas at Arlington. She has taught for numerous writing groups and speaks around the country on writing, how to publish, and steps to finding an agent and landing a publishing contract. Chapman’s releases include Amish romance, cozy mystery, novellas, romantic suspense, and dystopian.

For more information, visit her at
webpage -- www.VannettaChapman.com
blog -- http://vannettachapman.com/blog/
facebook -- www.facebook.com/VannettaChapmanBooks
pinterest -- http://pinterest.com/vannettachapman
instagram -- https://instagram.com/vannettachapman
twitter -- https://twitter.com/VannettaChapman

My Thoughts:  A Delightful Story

Agatha is at it again. As usual, not by choice, but as a victim of circumstance.  Who would think that a renovation project would open the door to another mystery? Clearly Agatha and her friends did not, but that's exactly what happened..And on hand to help Agatha solve the mystery are her good friend and employee, the gun toting Gina, and her neighbor, "friend," and retired police officer, Tony.  

The story draws you in from the start and moves on from there as it takes twists and turns that keep you guessing almost to the very end. Woven into the mystery and intrigue are tender moments, moments that had me laughing out loud, and others that had me holding my breath wondering what would happen next. The characters are delightful and engaging, and the setting had me wishing there was a real Agatha's Amish B&B in Texas Hill Country that I could go visit. The story moves along at a good pace offering details to help you try to fit all of the pieces together in order to figure out who done it. 

Although Dead Set is the third installment in Agatha's Amish B&B series, it can be read as a stand alone. I highly recommend that you don't miss out on this delightful story, and while you're at it, go ahead and read the rest of the series. You won't be disappointed.

 

A Season on the Wind by Suzanne Woods Fisher

Book Description:

Ben Zook had only two loves in his life: books and birds. In a stroke of good fortune, he'd stumbled onto a way to cobble together those two loves into a career, writing books about rare birds. He was as free as a bird--until a chase for a rare White-winged Tern takes him to the one place on earth he planned to never return: his Amish home in Stoney Ridge.

Desperate for photographs of the elusive tern, Ben hires a local field guide, Micah Weaver, and boards at Micah's farm, planning to "bag the bird" and leave Stoney Ridge before anyone recognizes him. But he neglected to plan for Micah's sister, Penny. One long-ago summer, Penny had introduced Ben to birding, even sharing with him a hidden eagle aerie. That eagle became his spark bird--the one that inspired his lifelong love.

Ben. He was Penny's spark bird. That was when she knew true love. She'd always hoped Ben would come back to Stoney Ridge. Back to his Amish roots. Back to her. The only problem? Ben has absolutely no memory of Penny.

Bestselling author Suzanne Woods Fisher welcomes her readers to the Amish community at Stoney Ridge in this engaging story of discovering just who the rare birds are in life.

About the Author:  Suzanne Woods Fisher

Suzanne Woods Fisher loves stories worth telling about people worth remembering. With over a million copies of her book sold worldwide, this bestselling, award-winning author of more than 30 books is always on the lookout for the unsung hero with an untold story.

Readers are invited to stop by Suzanne's website at: www.suzannewoodsfisher.com

My Thoughts: 

I really don't even know where to start. There is so much I want to say about this book, but I fear I will accidentally give away too much information. And that would be a shame, because you really just have to read it for yourself. 

This book was absolutely wonderful and inspiring, and I was drawn in from the very start. I love bird watching, so the theme of birds definitely piqued my interest. However, I was even more drawn in by the characters, especially the main characters, Ben Zook and Penny Weaver.

Ben and a Penny's story grabbed my interest from the very first pages. I was intrigues by Ben's deep desire to find a rare White-winged Tern and how that desire brought him back to his childhood home of Stoney Ridge. Ben had met Penny during his childhood, and she had actually introduced him to birding. The problem? Ben has no memory of Penny or that event.

The story does not move along at a fast pace, but it totally kept my interest as the pacing was just perfect for getting to know the primary and secondary characters, the development of their relationships, and how they all fit into the story. The book kept me turning pages as I was captured by the element of intrigue, which was accompanied by elements of faith, trust, forgiveness, friendships, relationship with God, and love. The author flawlessly wove these themes throughout the story, and nothing felt overdone or overwhelming. Everything fit just right. 

There is so much more I could say about this book, but suffice it to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it as one that you definitely won't want to miss. 

***I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley.  All comments and opinions are strictly my own.