Grave New World: A Jane Ladling Mystery

There was a new sheriff in town. Jane Eleanor Ladling, self-deputized and on the job.

In addition to the new murder board, Conrad provided a stack of photo IDs and access to clips of security footage, plus yarn and file folders in various colors, a map of the town square and magnets.

Her friends resumed the party, pretending to eat Tiffany’s food while tossing it in the garbage, so the widow’s feelings never got hurt and there were few leftovers.

Jane listed each suspect on the board, their location before, during and after the murder, and considered every possible partnership pairing, all while scrutinizing motives. And yes, okay, on the backside of the board, she adjusted her book outline as thoughts occurred to her. She now hated all the characters for some reason. Though the ghost berserker and his tragic backstory were her favorite part, they didn’t fit the narrative. And Beau was right. The talking tree needed a logical explanation to be there. On top of that, she still had no ending.