FARMED AND DANGEROUS, Edith Maxwell: Third "Local Foods Mystery"

Packing and stacking: that's the way to enter summer. Packing a beach bag with books you've waited for months to have time to open ... and stacking more of them next to the deck chair, hammock, or (fan above it, of course) summery lounging spot inside, for those buggy or rainy moments best endured with iced tea and a good mystery.

FARMED AND DANGEROUS could go into the bag or onto the stack -- but since it's being released May 26 as a hardcover (yay, Kensington Books!), I suggest the stack. Then put the two earlier titles in Edith Maxwell's Massachusetts adventure series into the beach bag, as a compromise. You can catch up on 'Til Dirt Do Us Part and A Tine to Live, a Tine to Die in between plunges into the water, right?

But it's not necessary -- or even important -- to read these in order. Market garden farmer Cameron Flaherty took over her farm recently from her great-uncle, Albert St. Pierre. She's built up steady clients in spite of the crimes that have struck her acreage (ah, these "amateur sleuths" always have a problem justifying the way murder seems to follow them around!). And the customers for her year-round veggie subscription, in the mode called CSA (community-supported agriculture), have also become friends, sometimes assistants, and most importantly her advisors on what to grow and sell. As this third book opens, Cam's hoping she can enlist the assisted living home where her great-uncle now lives, to purchase her produce on a regular basis. And because it's "New England spring" -- the kind where snow keeps coming back at you -- she's resorting to padding out her CSA baskets for customers with other locally grown and harvested treats, like heritage apple varieties and cheeses.

Maxwell's made a clever choice in bringing along, from the earlier two books, some startling characters. One of them, the very unfriendly Bev Montgomery, is a recent addition to Great-Uncle Albert's assisted living home at Moran Manor. And Bev is still accusing Cam of stealing chickens, and more. "I'm going to kill that woman," one of the staff aides declares, and Cam knows just what he means.

Still, it's a shock when actual death stalks the halls of the assisted living facility. Did it arrive because Cam's spending time here? What's the threat level to her great-uncle ... and is it her fault? What if something were to happen to trap her within the residence with the seniors and, most likely, a killer? Cam already knows enough to be scared. Very scared.

Maxwell proves again that a "cozy mystery" with an amateur sleuth can have edge and taut suspense, and a highly believable set of plot twists (although up here in Vermont, we're less likely to allow a snowstorm to keep us in one place, hmm?). Deft touches of potential romance and stress between the local police investigator and the hard-working farmer add to the fun of the book, and make it an even better "beach read." Cam urges her boyfriend to let her help solve the case:

"Tell me what you found at Moran." Cam reached a hand across the table to him. When he kept his arms folded, she pulled hers back, stung.

"She was murdered," he said.

"That's awful. How?"

The expression on his face changed from fatigue to steel. "I'm afraid you've become a person of interest."

And that, of course, nails it -- now Cam's got to step in and solve this crime, if only to prove that her boyfriend has the wrong direction in his sleuthing. Not to mention protecting Great-Uncle Albert. And oh yes, to keep her local farm in business!

Community Mystery, Amateur Sleuth: 'TIL DIRT DO US PART, Edith Maxwell

Summer reading -- what a great season to indulge in mysteries that balance plot and character and an intense sense of location ... in this case, Massachusetts, not far from the coast. Hmm, that puts me in a summer vacation mood, just thinking about it! Skip the traffic jams by heading out early with your own selection of books for the beach or the mountain cabin. Here's another good one:

In the second of her "Local Foods Mystery" series, Edith Maxwell proves she's on for the long haul -- writing mysteries that tap into her own New England vegetable gardening "roots," and her tech systems know-how. But most of all, Maxwell works from on two well-polished strengths: a fine sense of how to pace the plot of a traditional mystery, and an Agatha Christie-like understanding of how people come to threaten and sometimes actually do bad things.

Market gardener Cam Flaherty kept her mostly organic farm on target through Maxwell's first in the series, A Tine to Live, a Tine to Die. At the opening of 'TIL DIRT DO US PART, she's hosting a dinner to celebrate the achievements of her first farm season. A pair of long tables with white cloths on them, a menu of local tasty offerings,  a professional chef preparing the dishes -- even this is one of Cam's great results, as Jake, the chef, is her current flame and clearly appreciates her.

But there's trouble afoot on the first page, as wealthy and irritable customer Irene Burr challenges Cam and then proves she can get into an argument with almost anyone at the dinner, from her own son to a local hog farmer. By the end of the first chapter, Irene's clearly in hot water of her own making. Even the energetic young woman mechanic attending the dinner on the arm of carpenter Bobby Burr -- Irene's son, and another of Cam's flirtable interests -- seems caught up in the whirlwind of nastiness that Irene creates. Cam witnsesses this final flurry:

"Listen, Mrs. Burr." Sim's voice boiled. ... "Your Jaguar runs like a real wildcat, and it's all my doing."

"You're not a Jaguar-trained technician is my only point." Irene raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms. ...

"It's an engine. A foreign engine. I speak its language. That's all I need to know. Oh, and by the way? Ever hear of computers? Anything I don't know, I have at my fingertips." Sim planted her feet in a wide stance and folded her arms. "If you don't like my work, feel free to drive twenty miles down to the dealership and let them take your money."

Bobby pulled at Sim's sleeve. "We gotta run. Good night, everybody."

Irene nodded and turned away. Sim stared after Irene. Her face was so red, Cam thought she could see flames coming from her ears.

"I'm going to get her, one way or the other," Sim muttered.

As Wes walked by, he snorted. "Take a number, honey."

So it's not really a surprise when the next chapter reveals Irene's been killed. (I won't say how; it could put you off your breakfast.) As police attention veers from one of Cam's customers to the next and the next, Cam can't help trying to find out the truth: If everyone had a reason to dislike Irene Burr, was there one person with "means, opportunity, and motive" to invoke the worst reaction?

Of course, trying to solve a crime while keeping a fragile community-centered business going and while trying to sort out one's love life gets complicated quickly. Especially when the police interest in Cam appears to turn personal (triple complicated!). And threats multiply. Cam's got to solve the case or risk everything.

Maxwell's clever blend of farm and garden knowledge with crisp scene-after-scene pacing makes a great update to the classic village mystery style. Her deft portraits of community members like Irene and Alexandra, Cam's most particular customer, remind me of the reason village mysteries have always appealed: We love the insight and the revelation that a thoughtful person, well motivated, can bring to her community. Count on Maxwell to continue the series, too; even if Cam solves this murder, she's sure to have threads still dangling from her life as a single woman with her own creative labor and the energy of her relationships.

Speaking of Cam's relationships -- Maxwell adds at the end of the book a pair of recipes from Chef Jake's exquisite preparation of Cam's veggies. What else is heating up besides dinner? Cam needs to make some decisions!

Check in with Edith Maxwell at her author website, http://www.edithmaxwell.com, where the events schedule shows she won't be tied down to her own garden too much this summer -- hope you can make it to one of these, to ask her how she balances writing with all the rest!