Thursday, August 6, 2020

Disney World, No Cemeteries

When I was growing up, my family went on road trips each summer. We didn't drive off to visit Mickey at Disneyland or Disney World. We didn't drive off to go camping or a cruise. No, our family vacations all centered around cemeteries, courthouses, and libraries. We would go to the states in which my ancestors were buried, or where my dad could locate information about them. You see, my dad was "searching for his old dead grandfathers". He has been a genealogist for over 60 years.

I learned to read wills, deeds, birth and death certificates as a teenager, but I have to say books were actually my favorites. So, you see why I was drawn to S. C. Perkins's Ancestry Detective series, it brings those two together perfectly.


I was immediately drawn to Murder Once Removed (2019) by the cover when I was browsing the Pop Reads section of the Mary Couts Burnett Library at Texas Christian University - one of my favorite places to read. I sat down with this cozy mystery and read through half of the book before it was time to go home. I was intrigued by how this Texas girl (like me) could solve mysteries in the past and the present - with no time travel involved. Well, leave it to a genealogist to find out a family's deepest and darkest secrets, through research. Lucy Lancaster, the Ancestry Detective, helps her clients by solving their family mysteries. If she happens to solve a local mystery along the way, so much better for her Yelp review.

Murder Once Removed is centered around an Austin billionaire and the murder of his grandfather in 1849. With the discovery of an old daguerreotype and a journal, Lucy is able to narrow the killer down to two suspects. While working the case and trying to protect the evidence, another murder takes place. Lucy is tasked with trying to solve both murders simultaneously. Remember, Lucy is not a detective. She is a genealogist who was hired to research the family history of Gus Halloran. It is through her skills as a genealogist she is able to solve the murders.

Lineage Most Lethal has Lucy searching for the lineage of hotel heiress, Pippa Sutton. Again this book is set in Austin around Lady Bird Lake. I am not from Austin but have visited many times. I could picture a few of the places referenced in the book, but the Sutton Hotel is a fictional location. I won't give away any of the plots, but I will say, Lucy once again is involved in solving a murder.

I recommend these books for those who love cozy mysteries and those who enjoy searching for their family's story. You can only hope your story does not include a murder or two.

Lineage Most Lethal and Murder Once Removed are both now available for sale.

*To comply with guidelines set forth by the Federal Trade Commission, Minotaur Books has provided a complimentary digital edition of Lineage Most Lethal for review purposes. This review is my opinion and is in no way influenced by the author or publisher.

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