A Review
Rev. Hope Taylor had arrived for her first day at her new parish where she had been assigned as Pastor of Pastoral Care at Faith Chapel Episcopal Church. She learned two things that first day. First, she learned that it would be difficult as a woman to serve as a pastor at the small church located an hour east of Sacramento. Second, she would learn that there was a dead body in the small worship center located off the main sanctuary - a dead body that was not supposed to be there and who was still laying in his own blood.
I was surprised that a more liberal church would have the same kinds of problems with a female pastor as the conservative churches I am familiar with - people walking out when she started to preach, having doors closed in her face when visiting parishioners, or being accused of Stanley King’s murder by church members.
Nobody was terribly upset that Stan had died, he was not a likable man; but none of the many suspects would confess to his murder either.
Matters got worse when a skeleton was dug up by Bogie, Hope’s dog, in her backyard. Things were going from bad to worse for the new pastor.
The church had its normal mix of jealousies, secrets, and control issues. I felt at home. At the same time we get a glimpse of God’s grace at work as Hope and her new friends zone in on solving, not one, but two murders. With a combination of honesty, humor, and history, the author has crafted a delightful weekend’s reading. Music from the 60s and 70s and black and white movies added color to the book. I give the book five-stars.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions are mine alone.
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