Description (from cover):'Claire Weatherly found the simple life she always wanted when she opened a gift shop in Heavenly, Pennsylvania--a small town in the heart of Amish country. But when murder disrupts her Heavenly home, it's up to Claire and Detective Jakob Fisher to find the not-so-simple truth.
The quiet town of Heavenly is buzzing with excitement over the latest guests at the local inn, Sleep Heavenly. Toy manufacturer Rob Karble is in town to meet the members of the Amish community who will soon be crafting a new toy line for his company. But when word gets out that Rob intends to use the Amish designs without employing the Amish to make them, someone sends the interloper to his final reward.
No one wants to believe anyone from the Amish community could commit such an act, but as Clare and Detective Fisher have learned, no one is above sin--or suspicion.'
My thoughts:
Hearse and Buggy, the first one in this series, was one of my favorite reads last year. You can find my review here. There's something about the Amish that I find so interesting. I have to say that the past year has introduced me to some good Amish books that have been teaching me so much about a group of people that are normally ignored by the rest of the world. Taking things back to the basics and learning to love and embracing peace, the Amish core values, make the chaotic real world that surround us seems so daunting. I really enjoy reading about the Amish people and their culture because it is so foreign to me and yet it seems so interesting at the same time.
Laura Bradford has done her research on this one. The way she details the Amish and their ways of life is truly amazing and I appreciate all the hard work and research that she must have put into this book. The mystery is so-so. There are some things that could have been worked on to make the story a little better. There were some twists and turns, but nothing too unpredictable. The one thing that bothers me about this one is that at the end of a cozy mystery, more than likely, the main character gets in some sort of conflict with the murderer and they fear for their life. It's pretty standard cozy mystery formulation. However, this one was wrapped up neatly by the police picking up the murder suspect and the story ends there. A little disappointing as I wanted the main character to literally fight for her life and to learn the details that only the murderer reveals to the main character at this time. I have to say that this was a major let down for me.
Still the Amish atmosphere and the somewhat simple mystery, made for some interesting reading. Definitely not of the same caliber as Hearse and Buggy and I would just have to say that this book was an okay read. The debut in this series came out kicking, but this one was just lacks the brilliance of its predecessor. A great read to pass the time on a rainy Saturday, but nothing that will keep you on the edge of your seat in suspense.
Overall Rating: 2.5
Title: Assaulted Pretzel
Author: Laura Bradford
Series: Amish Mystery #2
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: March 5, 2013
Pages: 288
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Get It: Amazon; Barnes & Noble
Disclaimer: This book was selected from the library by myself and I reviewed this book without compensation of any kind. All thoughts and opinions are solely mine.
