Series: An Amish Seamstress Mystery #1
Publication Date: 05th Dec 2023
Genre: Amish Cozy Mystery
4 Stars
One Liner: A solid start to a series
Petunia Yoder is the youngest old maid of the Amish community in Blueberry, Pennsylvania. She is 22 and too independent (straightforward, nosy, and opinionated) to find an Amish husband. However, Petunia isn’t worried. She is a seamstress (among other things) and has enough income of her own. Her widowed father runs a tourist agency, and the two have a comfy life.
One day, Petunia goes to Ike Smoker’s place for ice only to find him dead and murdered. Eden Beiler, her friend and Ike’s girlfriend, is the prime suspect. Petunia knows Eden is not the murderer. When Homicide Detective Asher Nate, a newcomer in the region, asks for her help to interpret the Amish nuances, Petunia agrees to help. After all, she needs to clear her friend’s name.
Soon, she discovers there’s a lot she didn’t know, and her life could be in danger even if sleuthing is fun. Can Petunia and Asher solve the murder before there’s another death?
The story comes in the third-person POV of Petunia Yoder.
My Thoughts:
My first introduction to the Amish community was through the Criminal Case game on Facebook. So when I saw this book, I wanted to re-live the experience in another format (and I’m always looking for new cozy mysteries). Let’s say this was a fun ride.
I don’t know anything about the Amish, so I can’t say how authentic the portrayal is. A few words from Pennsylvanian Dutch are used but are easy enough to understand.
Petunia sounds and acts older than 22. She has some girly traits but is balanced enough when required. Even Asher, the English detective, though 27, seems stable and reliable. Quite surprising, but nice, too.
There are bits of humor scattered throughout the book. Be it Petunia’s cooking (no guarantees there) or her father’s confidence that she will enjoy sleuthing way too much. He is a great character. He is protective but also someone who knows his daughter well and gives her the freedom she craves (something the Amish girls don’t always seem to have).
There are a variety of characters, each doing their part and bringing something to the plot. Some make a stronger impact, and I hope to see them in future books.
The mystery is well done. Ike Smoker is disliked by just about everyone in the Blueberry Amish community. In fact, he hardly seems to have any Amish traits. This increases the list of suspects, but the plot progression is well done. The reveal comes out with a bit of a surprise yet ties up everything with satisfaction.
Though the cover looks ordinary at first glance, it is cleverly done. I wish the colors popped out a bit more (or are they deliberately muted to suit the simple Amish lifestyle?).
At just 272 pages, the pacing is a bit uneven, but that’s expected in the first book of a series. However, there’s no dull moment. The book ends on a hopeful note with a clear indication that Petunia will continue to solve crimes in Blueberry.
To summarize, Murder of an Amish Bridegroom is a good entertainer and a great start to a new series. It sets the right tone and expectations for the coming books. There will be romance too, and I’m curious to see how it will be handled.
Thank you, NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books, for the eARC.
#NetGalley #MurderofanAmish Bridegroom
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