Murder at the Courthouse by A.H. Gabhart

Aunt Melinda, who raised Michael after his parents were killed in a car accident 10 years before The pace of Hidden Springs, not to mention being with all the people he loved, was more his style. The main character (Michael) is a male deputy, recently returned to the town of his birth after spending time as a big city Cincinnati cop. But this was a mystery, unlike Mitford books. Fun characters, small town atmosphere and small town pride. The setting reminded me of Jan Karon's little town of Mitford, but this book is based in Hidden Springs. Murder at the Courthouse is a bit different from her Shaker books. This lead us to visiting a Shaker compound in Ohio. I had no real knowledge of the religion, so I picked up The Outsider. My first exposure to this talented writer was years ago when she was writing a number of books about Shakers. I'm sure there's an audience for it - just not me! I'll probably pass on the rest of the series, but don't let me steer you in the wrong direction. It's not an awful book, but it will take a non-traditional cozy reader who wants to just hear the same things over and over again to stick with it. And the connections between all the stories was a nice culmination. On the positive side, the story had some merit and new plot lines. overall, it fell a bit disorganized and should have been at least 60 pages shorter. Too much talk about prayer saving the town (not that I don't believe, but it was just hammered into the text way too often), too repetitive (retold the same facts to at least one new town person each chapter), too many theories and characters to keep track of (at least 10 townspeople who 'may' have had a motive). If you like very slow-paced cozy mysteries set in a religious and judgmental town, then this book's for you! It wasn't for me. In the end, Mike finds the culprit with the young kid's help but his little town will never be the same again. But as he recalls the death of his parents, and helps another young kid find his own parents, the whole story comes together. As he investigates all the key players in the town to see which gossip may have seen it happen, he quickly finds no one knew the stranger. Unfortunately, as he's drinking his morning coffee at the town's police office and courthouse, he discovers a dead body sitting at the entrance. Orphaned at 15, he's seen enough death and returns home to his peaceful and quiet town of Hidden Springs, Kentucky, where nothing ever happens.

Michael Keane leaves his position on the Columbus police force when he realizes he doesn't want to watch people suffer in the city.

While the story was clever and interesting, it wasn't as appealing as I'd hoped. I downloaded this free e-book for Kindle and read it on my iPad.

Gabhart's Murder at the Courthouse, the first in the 'Hidden Springs' cozy mystery series.

Murder at the Courthouse by A.H. Gabhart