A Killer Crop (An Orchard Mystery Book 4) by Sheila Connolly

"A KILLER CROP is Title #4 in Shelia Connolly’s Orchard Mystery series. I like reading about genealogy, house restoration and issues, local history, agriculture and orchard management. I like the characters, their development and everyday activities in Granford, their small New England town. I do like puzzles and mysteries, although this one was a bit weak. The death reminded me a lot of the death of Sam in RED DELICIOUS DEATH. The cause of death ‘may’ have been due to a natural cause, but the whys and the wheres and the hows are unknown. I find the fact that Meg’s mother, Elizabeth, drove all the way to Granford and visited with an old ‘flame’ and didn’t mention her arrival to either her daughter or husband seems odd and out of character...." "This cozy series is a winner. It may be that I am partial to the setting, but the stories evoke the sights, sounds, flavors and way of life that is quite real and comforting and recognizible. There is also a nice degree of accurate information about apple orchards, small scale agriculture, history, and the operation of a little town. The main character, a single woman who has been "downsized " from a finance job in Boston, is believable in her quest to find a new direction in her life and cope with the unpredictability of running a heritage orchard in a small town and rehabilitate a 200 year old house and outbuildings. She is slow to commit to this new life and the possible new relationship..."

"이전의 작품들과 큰 변화가 없는 이야기 전개다. 다만 여주인공의 가족이 본격적으로 등장하는다는 점은 좀 다르다. 이 시리즈는 처음부터 읽는 것이 좋은 거 같다. 작품들이 연결되는 부분들이 많은 거 같다. 원활한 내용 이해를 위해서는 1권부터 읽는 것이 좋다. 본격적인 사과수확의 바쁜 시기에 부모의 지인이 죽음을 당하고 그 이후로 이상한 일들이 발생한다. 주인공 가족의 본격적인 조사와 사소한 가족 간의 이야기들이 이 작품의 중심을 이루는 좀 밋밋한 작품이다. 이런 점이 이 작가의 매력이지만... 문장은 몇 군데 외에는 평이해서 읽기에 편하다. 핵심어는 genealogy 이다.