Laura Bradford is a favorite author at Windsor Locks Library! This is the second in her Claire Weatherly Amish series, which takes place in quaint (yet murder-prone) Heavenly, Pennsylvania. Claire relocated to Heavenly after her divorce, moving into her Aunt Diane's B&B, Sleep Heavenly, and opening up her own gift shop, Heavenly Treasures. In the first of the series, Hearse & Buggy, the body of her shop's former owner is discovered in the alley outside of Claire's shop and she begins to develop friendships with two local men: Benjamin, and Amish widower, and Jakob, a formerly Amish detective recently returned to his hometown. And, of course, she gets involved in solving the murder!
In Assaulted Pretzel, Heavenly is abuzz at the arrival of toy manufacturer Rob Karble, who is in town to discuss working with the Amish to manufacture a line of Amish toys that promises to boost the local economy by creating new jobs for the Amish (since farmland is becoming scarce, many Amish are forced to find occupations other than working the family farm). After the locals circulate a letter stating Rob's intention to manufacture the Amish-designed toys in his own plant, Rob's dead body body is discovered behind a booth at the local Amish festival and suspicion naturally falls on the Amish. Bradford keeps the reader guessing the identity of the killer until the very end. Along the way we are treated to the further development of the Jakob-Claire-Benjamin triangle and more insight into the working of the Amish community.
Laura Bradford does her research well, making frequent trips to the Lancaster, PA area to help create the authentic characters and ambiance for her series. If you are looking for a relaxing cozy with an interesting mystery and fascinating glimpse of the Amish culture, choose this one!
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