July 13, 2015
In bestseller Meier’s busy 22nd Lucy Stone mystery (after 2014’s French Pastry Murder), the Tinker’s Cove, Maine, newspaper reporter is covering the town’s first ever Giant Pumpkin Fest when someone starts bumping off the competition for the Giant Pumpkin Weigh-In. The pumpkin-themed scenes along the town common are also vandalized, but the dead body at the Pumpkin Catapult contest clearly means some sicko wants to stop the festival. And with Lucy’s husband, Bill, as the number-one suspect, there’s no way she’ll leave the detecting to the professionals. Meanwhile, Country Cousins, a megabusiness headquartered in Tinker’s Cove, has its own problems with the return of Buck Miller, the prodigal son of CEO Tom Miller, who doesn’t like Buck’s newfangled ideas and is vehemently opposed to the use of Jonah’s Pond for an underwater pumpkin carving contest. Too many rabbit trails keep this whodunit from living up to Meier’s best, but series fans should be satisfied. Agent: Meg Ruley, Jane Rotrosen Agency.