A Garland of Bones
PI Sarah Booth has traded in hosting this Christmas season for a road trip with her besties. Each little Delta town has a unique Christmas activity, and Sarah Booth’s BFF and detective partner, Tinkie, has arranged to rent a limo for the gang for a drive to Columbus, MS, to stay in a B&B. Visions of Christmas shopping, parade floats, and romantic rendezvous are already dancing in their heads.
But Christmas cheer soon turns to Christmas fear when, at one event after another, people keep getting hurt. Christmas karaoke gets ugly when one singer’s microphone gives her an electric shock. A party during a historic home tour ends with a fall down the stairs for one of Columbus’s most disreputable “players.” And when the woman who hires Sarah and Tinkie’s PI firm to find the villain behind the so-called accidents is nearly killed with an arrow during a holiday mumming, Sarah knows something more sinister is at work.
The Christmas bells are ringing hauntingly in Columbus this year, and Sarah and Tinkie, with a little help from hunky Sheriff Coleman Peters, of course, are determined to catch the wrong-doers and ensure they receive nothing but coal in their stockings.
Series: A Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery – Book #22
Author: Carolyn Haines
Genre: Cozy Mystery/Holiday/PI
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Page Count: 336
Rating: 
Sarah Booth is one of those unforgettable characters in a cozy series. As a PI, she has a way of stepping into trouble, even when she isn’t working a case. This Christmas, she is determined to just enough herself with no cases and time with her man. Of course, things don’t work out that way; they never do. A wonderful holiday trip with Tinkie and all of their friends turns into a who-done-it fit for the season.
The characters in this series, and in particular in A Garland of Bones, keep readers smiling and merry. There are some detailed descriptions of Columbus, MS, which is a lovely southern town and the home of Tennesse Williams. I love that this mystery is set in a location with so much history. Having a PI or two running around all over town during Christmas brings to mind happy holidays of the past, filled with sights, sounds, and inspiration for decorating or travel.
Throughout the book, there are plenty of secrets that aren’t so secret, suspects, and motives. Sarah and Tinkie may not be familiar with Columbus’ social circles, but they know how small towns work. Gossip filters through quickly, and everyone has a story to share. It doesn’t take long for the PI’s to find out the latest tidbits of who did what to whom or who is sleeping with whose spouse. Christmas doesn’t seem to stop the scuttlebutt regarding the victim(s) activities, real or imagined. It takes Sarah Booth and Tinkie several days, but they find the culprit, and justice is done, in more ways than one.
I am happy to recommend A Garland of Bones this Christmas holiday to readers who love southern colloquialisms; PI’s who may not be as professional as they think they are, are easy to love, laugh with, and always know how to solve a crime with fanfare.
Readers may enjoy these wonderful cozies Caroline Fardig’s PI series “A Java Jive Mystery” or Maya Corrigan’s holiday entry in the “A Five-Ingredient Mystery “.
About the Author:
Born and raised in Mississippi, Carolyn now lives in Alabama on a farm with more dogs, cats, and horses than she can possibly keep track of! She has been an animal advocate and activist her whole life and urges all pet owners to please spay and neuter.
Carolyn Haines is the USA Today bestselling author of over eighty novels in several genres, including the acclaimed Sarah Booth Delaney mystery series, the Pluto’s Snitch mystery series, and the Familiar Legacy romantic mystery series. She was most recently awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Mississippi Writers Guild. She is the 4th recipient of the prestigious award.
Contact Carolyn: carolyn@carolynhaines.com
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