Author: Amanda Flower
Publisher: B&H Publishing Group
About the Book: The people of Appleseed Creek in the heart of Ohio's Amish Country are under attack. Soon after the dust has settled on a buggy accident that turned out to be murder, an unknown assailant begins cutting off the long hair of Amish women and the beards of Amish men.
New to the area, computer specialist Chloe Humphrey may not share their customs, but she is certainly alarmed over these crimes against the Amish and worries how such events will impact her growing number of friends who are more connected to that way of life.
In this small community, when Chloe discovers the body of an Amish businessman who was stabbed in the back and whose beard was cut off, she knows that finding the murderer and restoring peace to Appleseed Creek is as much her responsibility as anyone else's.
My thoughts: This is book 2 in the Appleseed Creek Mystery Series but it reads well as a stand alone. They give you some information from the first book, so if you don't like spoilers, I would recommend that you read them in order.
Chloe is very likable as a young woman trying to find her place in the community. Being new, she has made a few friends, many of them Amish, or Amish who have left the Church. Actually, her roommate Becky is one of the "formerly" Amish as is Becky's brother Timothy. Chloe is sweet on Timothy and suspects he feels the same way, but the differences in their backgrounds has left Chloe wondering how, or even if, to pursue him.
The three of them had been in the center of the buggy accident from the summer before and they once again find themselves in the center of the mystery surrounding who is cutting the Amishs' hair and beards. Curt and Brock, the two who had been sent to prison for the accident have been released and they are back to harrassing Chloe. So far they haven't crossed any lines, but Chloe wonders if they are involved in the recent crimes.
When she doesn't think her life can get any more messed up, she finds that the house she and Becky are renting has a new landlord. He is intent on restoring it to it's original style and doesn't seem to care that it might disrupt Chloe and Becky's lives.
I liked the chemistry between Timothy and Chloe and look forward to seeing how that develops in future books.
~I received a complimentary ecopy of this book from B&H Publishing via Net Galley in exchange for my unbiased review.~
About the author: Amanda Flower is an academic librarian for a small college in Ohio and grew up visiting the state's Amish Country with her family. An avid traveler, she has taken trips to Slovakia, Ireland, Israel, and Great Britain. Her 2010 debut, Maid of Murder, received an Agatha Award nomination for Best First Novel.
Previous books reviewed by Amanda Flowers - Maid of Murder.
Purchase Links
A Plain Scandal
Publisher/Publication Date: B&H Publishing, Feb 2013
ISBN: 9781433676987
336 pages
