A Plain Scandal, Appleseed Creek Mystery Series #2
4.6
5
16
16
Hate Crimes, The Amish and A Murder
Amanda Flower in her new book, "A Plain Scandal" Book Two in the Appleseed Creek Mystery Series published by B&H Publishing Group reunites us with Chloe Humphrey and Appleseed Creek, Ohio.
From the Back Cover: The people of Appleseed Creek in the heart of Ohio's Amish Country are under attack. Soon after the dust has settled on a buggy accident that turned out to be murder, an unknown assailant begins cutting off the long hair of Amish women and the beards of Amish men.
New to the area, computer specialist Chloe Humphrey may not share their customs, but she is certainly alarmed over these crimes against the Amish and worries how such events will impact her growing number of friends who are more connected to that way of life.
In this small community, when Chloe discovers the body of an Amish businessman who was stabbed in the back and whose beard was cut off, she knows that finding the murderer and restoring peace to Appleseed Creek is as much her responsibility as anyone else's.
At the end of a hard day I like to sit down with a good murder mystery. It takes my mind of the events of the day and I enter into a new environment, in this case Appleseed Creek, Ohio. Amish women never cut their hair and only Amish married men wear beards, that is part of the Amish religious beliefs. So by cutting off the men's beards and the women's hair the attacker has made it a hate crime. Then he also commits murder. Chloe is having a hard time gathering evidence against this person because the new Bishop wants to shun her. Chloe is in for a real hard time trying to stop the attacks and another murder. Ms. Flower has crafted a real puzzler of a mystery. "A Plain Scandal" keeps you guessing and I defy you to figure out who really did it. Add to the pot a cast of characters that are just wonderful, some good, some bad and Ms. Flower has given us a great setting Appleseed Creek with Appleseed Creek. If you enjoy a good murder mystery like I do then this book is for you. I enjoyed this book a lot and am looking forward to the next one.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book for free from The Suspense Zone for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
May 11, 2013
A Plain Scandal
Englisher Chloe Humphrey was determined to discover who was committing crimes against the Amish in Appleseed Creek. She had several friends in the Amish community and wanted to help. Someone was cutting off beards of Amish men and hair off the Amish women.
Chloe worked at the local college in the computer department. But during her free time she played amateur detective, finding clues to the recent crime spree. She had the help of her friends, Ex-Amish brother and sister, Becky and Timothy. These three main characters were introduced in the beginning, and then the characters kept coming. In the beginning I had a little trouble keeping everyone straight. It was also hard to tell at first, who was Amish, Mennonite, or English. I didnâÂÂt read A Plain Death, the first book in this series, which may have helped with my confusion.
I was about three quarters of the way finished and I still couldnâÂÂt figure out who committed the crimes. I was surprised to discover the culprit although I did figure out part of the mystery. This is a fast moving story, beginning to end. I read it in a day. I look forward to reading the next book in this series. I may even read the first book to see all the goings on from it that are mentioned in A Plain Scandal.
Other story lines that were interconnected to each other were happening while Chloe was looking for the perpetrator. This is what made it hard to figure out who was committing the crimes. Just when I thought it was one person, I began to question if it might be someone else. Amanda did a good job of keeping me guessing. One unbelievable part of the story was that the police told Chloe details of the crimes. I donâÂÂt see that really happening. Overall, I enjoyed reading the story. It kept my interest more than enough to get through it one day and want to read the rest of the books in the series. I would have given it 4 1/2 stars if I could.
Appleseed Creek Mystery Series
A Plain Death
A Plain Scandal
A Plain Disappearance (to be released in September 2013)
I received a free copy of this book from the Christian Manifesto and B & H Publishing in exchange for my honest review
May 1, 2013
The mystery continues . . .
A Plain Scandal (An Appleseed Mystery, 2) / Amanda Flower
Adult Rating: 5
Amanda Flowers presents her second novel in the Appleseed Mystery series, featuring Chloe Humphrey, a young single computer professional, living in Amish country.
In A Plain Scandal, Chloe finds herself once again involved in a mystery as the Amish are victims of an unknown assailant. Cutting off menâÂÂs beards and cutting the womenâÂÂs long hair is a scandal to the Amish. A local businessman is killed and his beard is cut off, and four young women are attacked and their hair cut short. Chloe is concerned for her neighbors and friends. Even Grandfather Zook (Becky and TimothyâÂÂs grandfather) is a victim when his beard cut off during an attack. Becky and Timothy, former Amish with family still living in the area, help her to look for the murderer before he strikes again. Although the police are on the trail, they value ChloeâÂÂs input due to her relationships within the Amish community.
Meanwhile, one of ChloeâÂÂs colleagues at the college where she works, becomes her new landlord, causing problems for Becky and Chloe as he tries renovating their house. Chloe discovers that another one of her colleagues is connected to the attacks. ChloeâÂÂs friendship with Timothy begins to develop into something more, but it moves at a slow rate as the book unfolds.
Flower engages the readers with cosy mystery and her interesting (and likeable) characters, making it the perfect book to read for sheer enjoyment. A Plain Scandal is both plot and characterâÂÂdriven. There are several twists and turns, as one would expect from a good mystery. The author introduces bits and pieces of Amish culture without letting it overpower the story.
Disclaimer: Book reviews are my opinion of books I either purchased or received free of cost from the publisher in exchange for a honest review.
April 10, 2013
Awesome!!!!! A MUST READ
A PLAIN SCANDAL is a book once you start you will not want to put it down until the very last page then you are going to want more, Amanda makes you feel like you are right there in the book, I recommend this book to everyone, it is a Amish Mystery and you will love it
March 22, 2013
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