Marilyn's Mystery Reads

It’s Christmas time in Northshire, a picture-perfect village in Vermont that’s home to Mercy Carr; her husband Troy Warner, a game warden for the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department; and their infant daughter Felicity.  The entire town is celebrating the Solstice Soirée with food stalls, carols, and, of course, Santa Claus.  But this year’s event is different because not one but two Santas are killed in the midst of the gala.

Mercy and Felicity are almost at the front of the line, waiting for Mercy’s “Uncle Laz,” a last minute substitute Santa, to greet them.  Laz is Northshire’s acting mayor, a position he is much better suited for than portraying the man who lives in the North Pole.

However, there’s no one else available at short notice, so a reluctant Laz is pressed into duty.  Then his cell phone rings, and he jumps off his red velvet chair and heads for the woods.  Everyone is stunned, and Mercy hands Felicity to a nearby friend behind her in line and with her trusty Malinois shepherd she runs after Laz.  Minutes later she finds him, dead under a burning Yule log.

At the same time, Troy is also out in the woods, following the tracks of a poacher who is killing animals on posted privately owned land.  After a nearly twenty-four hour stakeout, he captures the man with the help of his friend Gil Guerrette of the Green Mountain Forest Service.  Then the fight suddenly goes out of the poacher, and he falls to the ground.  As Troy moves closer to the man, he sees what so alarmed him–almost buried in debris from the forest surrounding it is a human skull covered with antlers, with a bullet hole right between where his eyes would have been.

The following day the Solstice Soirée continues with a replacement Santa, a local whom everyone calls The Singing Plumber but whose real name is Tim Carter.  As the end of the concert nears, Tim readies for his final song but then simply stands voiceless in front of the choir.  He makes a painful face and falls down dead.

The Snow Lies Deep is the seventh mystery featuring Mercy Carr and the people in her life.  In addition to her husband, there are her mother and father; her friend Amy and her young daughter Helena who are living in the guesthouse on Mercy and Troy’s property; Mercy’s teenage cousin Tandie; and various members of the community.

Paula Munier has written another intriguing mystery featuring Mercy Carr.  The characters are realistic, the dialogue is true-to-life, and the setting is perfect for this time of year.  You can read more about the author at this website.

Check out the complete Marilyn’s Mystery Reads at her website.  In addition to book review posts, there are sections featuring Golden Oldies, Past Masters and Mistresses, and an About Marilyn column that features her opinions about everything to do with mystery novels.

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