Simple Secrets

April 19, 2010
Cozy mystery author Mehl (In the Dead of Winter
) offers fans a new tale turning on the age-old collision of ultraconservative religion and contemporary grace-driven faith. Gracie Temple (city girl) and Sam Goodrich (smalltown fruit farmer) find themselves thrown together after Gracie inherits her deceased uncle's home in a Mennonite community. From the get-go, Gracie has some negative vibes about the whole situation since her uncle shunned her parents years earlier, when they left the community. Still, Gracie travels to her inheritance and soon discovers a cryptic letter from her uncle making a claim that leaves Gracie's mind and heart spinning. In the days that follow, Gracie and Sam become close allies in the search for truth, and this alliance comes with no little cost. As Gracie notes, all around are friendly, nice people—one of whom is a killer. Mehl's dialogue reads smoothly enough throughout, but even this vital narrative element isn't enough to overcome the all-too-predictable story line.