Kristina A. reviewed on 7/6/2017 + 1528 more book reviews

Sowed to Death by Peg Cochran is the second book in A Farmer's Daughter Mystery series. Shelby McDonald lives in Lovett, Michigan where she manages Love Blossom Farm, the family farm. Shelby and the kids (Billy and Amelia) are heading to Lovett County Fair for the day. There is some excitement when one of the judges has a reaction to Jenny Hubbard's award-winning lemon meringue pie. For the first time in five years, Jenny does not win. Billy and Shelby are watching the Jaws of Life demonstration. Jake Taylor gets the car open and extricates the dummy from the driver's seat. Shelby notices that there is blood on the head of the dummy and realizes that it is a real person. The body belongs to Zeke Barnstable. Unfortunately, Jake had a contentious relationship with Zeke which puts him at the top of the suspect list. In between taking care of the kids, canning and doing farm chores, Shelby digs into Zeke's life. One night Amelia goes to a bonfire and ends up finding a skeleton in Zeke's yard (Amelia lied about a few particulars regarding the bonfire). Could the skeleton be Zeke's missing wife? Shelby is happy to have suspicion removed from Jake (since she is attracted to him and he is their neighbor). Shelby wonders if Zeke's murder had anything to do with his wife's death. Shelby weeds through the clues to find the killer. What happens, though, when the murderer finds Shelby first?

Sowed to Death is well-written, has relatable characters, a lovely setting, light humor and a good pace. I like the writer's descriptive writing style and the way she draws the reader into the story. The book has a good flow (for a smooth reading experience). I would get involved in the book and not realize how much time had passed. The characters in Sowed to Death are nicely developed and feel real (they could easily be my neighbors). I appreciate that the author has given us a mature main character (instead of a woman in her 20s or early 30s). It will be entertaining to watch Shelby as she begins dating (she has three men interested in her). I like how Peg Cochran mixed the mystery in with Shelby's life. In Sowed to Death there is two women are fighting over the widowed Reverend Mather, Shelby has her first date since her husband's death, Amelia with her teenage angst and antics, Billy and his riding lessons, Bert helping Shelby with canning, the county fair and so much more. I especially delighted in Shelby's blog posts. They contain some interesting information and are fun to read. I give Sowed to Death 5 out of 5 stars. The mystery is complex and most readers will be surprised by the killer's identity. Shelby's style of investigating is pleasant and very welcome. She asks subtle questions, listens to conversation, catches up on local gossip, and, sometimes, Shelby happens to be in the right place at the right time. Sowed to Death is the second book in the series, but it is easily a stand-alone novel (No Farm, No Foul is just as delightful as Sowed to Death). There are a couple of recipes at the end of the book. My only negative is I now must wait months for another A Farmer's Daughter Mystery.

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