Or unexpected ally? Plunged into the dangerous world of royal intrigue and ancient grudges, Aliza and Alastair soon realize it will take more than steel and dragonfire to save their kingdom, for the silence of Els hides a secret that could shake House Daired to its foundations.And silence, it seems, is about to be broken.
Perfect for fans of B. B. Haywood and Peg Cochran, Ellie B. White's whimsical series debut is full of farm fun, complete with a helpful baby pig. Reluctant farmer Charlotte Finn needs the help of the livestock to sleuth a mysterious death. Charlotte Finn never wanted to inherit the family's produce farm--much less plow a heap of money into it. Her plan is to hammer a great big FOR SALE sign into the farm's fallow furrows--but Charlotte's sunny hopes of a quick sale succumb to a killing frost when she finds a dead body entwined supine in the tomato vines. The poor man, it seems, was run through...with a pitchfork? Now, Charlotte is stuck with running the farm in the midst of a murder investigation. Charlotte's knowledge of farming is smaller than her bank balance, so she relies on caretakers Joe and Alice Wong and their farmhands. Can she trust them? She doesn't know them. There's also farmer Samuel Brown, who still carries a childhood grudge. But the case gets personal when Charlotte learns that the victim might have been her own kin--and seeds of suspicion grow into a fertile field of suspects. Charlotte turns to the farm's pig to help root out the killer. Soon, the goats, geese, and horse join in, but will Charlotte harvest a murderer--or buy the farm?
In Elle B. White's engaging second Finn Family Farm mystery, farmer Charlotte Finn and her sleuthing baby pig find themselves amidst strawberries and crime. Things are finally looking up at the Finn Family Farm, where Charlotte, aided by caretakers Joe and Alice Wong and farmer Samuel Brown, is settling in. However, trouble brews as a blight threatens the berry plants, and a mysterious death rocks Little Acorn. The victim, Linc Pierce, the only local farmer with a successful strawberry crop, is discovered hanging from a rafter, initially deemed a suicide. But the discovery of a half-eaten sandwich raises questions—who eats before taking their own life? Chief Goodacre suspects foul play and zeroes in on Beau, who had a heated exchange with Linc earlier. Meanwhile, tensions rise among the farmers, recalling Linc's claims of sabotage. As Charlotte investigates to clear Beau's name, she uncovers a clue on Linc's workbench that could explain both the survival of his strawberry plants and the reason for his demise. With the clock ticking, Charlotte and her insatiably curious pig, Horse, must solve the mystery before they, too, become victims.