Part of Blue Ridge Library Mysteries
First published 2020
Amy Webber runs the Taylorsford Public Library and wants to help her friend Sunny Fields win the mayoral race. Then workers discover human remains buried on the organic farm where Sunny's grandparents operated a commune during the 1960s. Police arrest the elderly couple when forensic tests prove the death was murder. Amy puts her wedding plans on hold to research the case and save her friend's family from criminal charges. The former commune members are all suspects, but they start dying one by one before Amy can question them. She teams up with Richard, Aunt Lydia, and Hugh Chen to track down leads and interview survivors from the flower power era. Amy discovers the hippie commune harbored dangerous secrets beneath its peaceful exterior. She must identify the killer among the aging former residents before the murderer eliminates all witnesses to the decades-old crime and targets Amy herself.
Genres: mystery, crime, contemporary, adult-fiction, thriller, amateur-sleuth
Vibes: atmospheric, engaging, intriguing, page-turning, suspenseful
Tropes: amateur-detective, found-family, multiple-suspects, secrets-revealed
Setting: Taylorsford Public Library, Taylorsford, organic farm
Period: 1960s, contemporary
320 pages · Paperback · Crooked Lane Books
Content warnings: death, murder