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The Funeral Ladies of Ellerie County
The Funeral Ladies of Ellerie County
By Claire Swinarski
What an odd title for a novel! But as soon as you start reading, you will realize that it is very appropriate. Some of the main characters in the book are members of the funeral committee at St. Anne’s Catholic Church. When there is a death, they quickly move into action to provide the expected luncheon for attendees at the funeral “knowing they couldn’t fix broken hearts but might as well feed them.” Any food left over is packaged up and sent home with the bereaved so they don’t have to worry about food for the following difficult days.
As you get to know Esther, you will also meet her family and witness their love for each other. Esther is one of the kindest people you will ever meet. She is a widow, and she is frustrated with the process of growing old. Her generosity and empathy for Hazel, a young single pregnant woman she befriends on a Catholic website leads her into financial danger, but Esther’s family and friends gather round to support her. Unfortunately, Esther’s background and community stress the importance of pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps. The situation she is in is shameful to Esther, but it would also be shameful to accept help.
Esther’s granddaughter Iris comes to the rescue in a different way when Annabelle, a childhood resident of Ellerie County, passes away. Her family arrives for the funeral but find their reservations are a problem. Iris has a house almost ready for use as an Airbnb and lets them stay there. The grateful family includes a celebrity chef and his daughter. Cooper, his son from a previous marriage, is part of the dysfunctional family group. Cooper’s own mother is less a mother to him than Annabelle had been. A former EMT, he also suffers from PTSD.
The characters and their situations drive the plot and engage the reader. I felt immersed in the friends and family groups in the small town and could even feel the cold during the winter. The author of The Funeral Ladies of Ellerie County excelled in physical and emotional descriptions. Without a Hallmark kind of ending, she still manages to provide a hopeful conclusion to her story.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Fiction, Women’s Fiction, New Adult
Publication: March 12, 2024—Harper Collins
Memorable Lines:
Esther was from an age where loving your neighbor meant loving your actual neighbor, not just adding an emoji to your Twitter name in times of crisis. She helped people just because they were standing in front of her.
…why couldn’t she just lie? It was the Catholic in her. The guilt clung to you like powdered sugar. You’d find the stuff in your hair days later.
They all thought you had to be in love to commit. They didn’t realize it was the other way around: that love came from commitment. Nobody ever tells you when you get married how many days you’ll wake up in the morning and want to strangle the other person. No, to them it was all Pinterest boards and buttercream flowers.
In Farm’s Way–the heart of the farm
In Farm’s Way
by Amanda Flower
There is a lot going on in Cherry Glen, Michigan, land of cherry orchards, snow, and ice fishing. Shiloh Bellamy left her L.A. producer job to return to Cherry Glen to save the family farm by reinventing it as an organic farm.
In the brief time since she returned to her home town, she has gained a reputation as someone who is nosy and can solve crimes. She helps her aging father as much as he will allow, but their bonds have never been strong as her father could not step up to the plate emotionally after Shiloh’s mother passed away. Along the way, they have both developed a relationship with the exuberant Hazel who loves to help on the farm. Hazel’s father Quinn, an EMT, was Shiloh’s deceased fiancé’s best friend. Complicated, right?
When Shiloh discovers a body under the ice at an ice fishing competition, and her friend Kristi’s husband is a prime suspect, Shiloh is asked to investigate. Woven into her sleuthing are topics like ice fishing, birding, beer brewing, and organic farming. Shiloh continues her search for something her beloved grandmother left for her at the “heart of the farm.” There is also a potential romance or two that mainly produces tension, but also ends the book with a cliff-hanger.
As with most mysteries you will meet some interesting characters along the way. there are two sheriffs who become a little territorial, a widow who doesn’t seem at all sad, and an organic beer brewing association with internal politics. Jesse’s Place is the cafe to go to if you want to pick up the latest local gossip, and Jesse herself is civic minded and kind hearted. Shiloh’s older cousin Stacey is fulfilling a personal dream by reviving the town theater using money she got from the sale of her half of the family farm. I mustn’t forget Shiloh’s animals. Her adorable pug is Huckleberry. He goes almost everywhere with her. She also has a Siamese cat who rules over the barn cats and Diva who rules in the hen house. Shiloh anthropomorphizes her animals and that adds humor to the story.
I have read most of Amanda Flower’s cozy mystery series and have enjoyed all of them. Her characters are interesting, and the plots are well conceived with lots of threads. In Farm’s Way continues her stellar reputation for good cozy mysteries.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Mystery
Notes: 1. #3 in the Farm to Table Mystery Series, but can be read as a standalone. Amanda Flower excels at providing background information as needed for the reader, so don’t be afraid to jump in with In Farm’s Way.
2. Includes tips and a recipe for suet for feeding birds in the winter.
Publication: February 21, 2023—Poisoned Pen Press (Source Books)
Memorable Lines:
I wasn’t one for the crowds, at least not crowds in Cherry Glen. I hadn’t really minded them in LA because they had anonymity. However, in my hometown, everyone knew who I was, what I was a doing. Gossip was a town pastime.
The Siamese looked over her shoulder at me and gave a very slow blink. I had read that a slow blink from a cat meant she was saying, “I love you.” However, when it came to Esmeralda, I was certain it meant, “I am your queen. Sit down, peasant.”
Huckleberry looked at me with wide pug eyes in alarm. To be honest, pugs looked alarmed the majority of the time. When they didn’t, they were asleep.
Uneasy Prey–preying on the elderly
Uneasy Prey
by Annette Dashofy
Zoe Chambers is an EMT whose first call after being on medical leave for eight weeks is to the home of a ninety-two year old found lying at the bottom of the basement stairs. She says someone pushed her. Zoe involves her boyfriend Pete, who is police chief of Vance. The plot gets more involved as the police try to track down a white truck with no windows, Pete has to situate his father in an assisted living facility and Zoe has to find a new home for her horses.
Who wants to prey on elderly residents of small town Vance, Pennsylvania? They are frightened, losing their valuable possessions and potentially their lives. Uneasy Prey by Annette Dashofy is a cozy mystery that tries to answer this question, but opens the door to many more. This is a good read with several surprising twists as Zoe, Pete, and a cast of characters solve crimes and help others.
I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Henery Press for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 5/5
Category: General Fiction (Adult), Mystery
Notes: #6 in the Zoe Chambers Mystery Series, but works well as a standalone
Publication: March 27, 2018—Henery Press
Memorable Lines:
“No, he’s not okay. He’s got Alzheimer’s. He’s never okay.”
…the resolve and underlying anger in Marcus’ eyes made Pete think there was more going on here than a simple brawl between two testosterone-driven teens with anger-management issues.
A familiar mop of short blonde hair…a flash of crimson…sent his heart plummeting. All he could hear was the echo of stillness inside his head and his chest.
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