Trick or Treat Murder

October 2, 1996
The serenity of Tinker's Cove, Maine, is shattered when an arsonist creates havoc and sends amateur sleuth Lucy Stone, introduced in How to Murder the Man of Your Dreams, on her second adventure. After several historic buildings are damaged or destroyed by fire, the stakes escalate when the body of socialite Monica Mayes is found inside the charred wreckage of her summer home. Lucy, mother of four, including new baby Zoe, casts a suspicious eye on Roland Mayes, Monica's unfaithful husband, and decides to do a little investigating of her own. Lucy's husband, Bill, a restoration carpenter, has reluctantly joined the local historic commission, which has recently denied the plans submitted by unsavory Randy Lenk to remodel his gas station. Another suspicious fire coincides with Halloween trickery and leads to a red hot finale. Although the plot is thin, the charming setting and likable cast, including crotchety old Miss Tilley, former librarian and head of the historic council, and Lucy herself, juggling motherhood and murder, make for enjoyable reading.