Omens, Witches, and Mediums

Review of Trick or Treachery

            Dogs seem to be barking at the same time, clothes are stolen from outside clotheslines, and every phone conversation is plagued by static. All these occurrences at Cabot Cove are making people believe that Dr. Tremaine may be onto something. Dr. Tremaine claims to be a medium between the real world and the spirit one. He thinks these are evil omens for future happenings at Cabot Cove. His claims become more plausible with the murder of Matilda Swift who many townspeople believe is a witch. Mystery author and amateur sleuth, Jessica Fletcher, does not believe in such nonsense. She helps the Sheriff discover the truth and as a side project, she works on exposing Dr. Tremaine as a fraud.

            I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I felt as though I had uncovered a lost episode of Murder, She Wrote. It even had the performative revelation Jessica does at the end to uncover the murder as people see in the television series. The very end, though, had a nice Halloween twist that is a perfect setting for today’s holiday.

            As you know, by reading this blog, I primarily read Christian historical fiction. Years ago, I tried to read cozy mysteries, but they always seemed to have the same plotline—20-30 year old young woman moves from the big city to a Cabot Cove-like small town where she becomes wrapped up in a murder and finds a young man in the town (sometimes he is in law enforcement or just a friendly neighbor in town) attractive. No matter what cozy mystery I tried to read, I found the mystery predictable and the main character shallow. I do not find this to be the case for the Murder, She Wrote novels. Jessica is a much more appealing person who is wise, and the mysteries are more interesting. I will continue to read one novel in this series once a month, in addition to the other novels I review for this blog. For November, I will be reviewing the installment A Fatal Feast, which is about Thanksgiving.

            Over the next few weeks, I will be reading early copies of novels coming out in January. These reviews will not be published until January, so I will not be able to share those reviews for awhile. After I finish reading these novels, my next novel will be Stephanie Barron’s Jane and the Wandering Eye (Jane Austen Mystery #3).

            Lastly, I hope everyone has a Happy Halloween!