Tilling the Truth

When Lilly Jayne's friend Harmon Dane dies suddenly, Lilly learns she has been named executor of his estate. In Tilling the Truth by Julia Henry, Lilly believes there will be unpleasantness with his relatives and she is correct. (Tilling the Truth will be released by Kensington Publishers on August 27.)

Braden and Miranda are only anxious to know what Harmon left for them in his will. When they learn the bulk of his estate is to be left to a bird sanctuary on his property, they are haranguing her for some of the money earmarked for the sanctuary.

Since Harmon's death there have been a series of explainable events in Goosebush, Massachusetts. Harmon's house was one of three built on a small cliff overlooking the beach and the water. An agreement made when the houses were built required that nothing could be done to one that wasn't done to all three and that they would all stay the same size. Harmon's neighbors Alex Marston and Gladys Preston were both exploring ways to break the agreement.

For her part, real estate agent Tamara O'Connor has been trying to hold open houses to sell Harmon's but they all have been sabotaged through various methods - garbage strewn around the house, dead fish hidden in places and other awful pranks. She thinks it might be Gertrude or the new go-getter realtor in town, Regan Holland.

When one of them winds up dead and Tamara is found standing over her, Lilly and her Garden Squad leap into action to solve the crime and restore peace to lovely Goosebush.

The energy and community spirit shown by the characters in the Garden Squad Mysteries is a marvel and I wish there were more people throwing themselves into community beautification. We'd all benefit from it.




Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley