Splintered Bones

Number: 61
Title: Splintered Bones
Author: Carolyn Haines
Started: June 22, 2007
Finished: June 25, 2007
Pages: 354
Genre: mystery
ISBN: 0-440-23721-1

Language: English

Where The Book Came From: My TBR stack, which should be melting, but isn't because I keep adding books to it.

First Sentence: There is something about warm soil that connects the past and future into the present.

Cover Blurb: She may be a Mississippi belle, but Sarah Booth Delaney is no pampered daddy's girl. Unwed and over thirty, Sarah has her own set of problems - like coping with regular hauntings by her great-great-grandmother's nanny, a busybody of a ghost who's set on marrying her off to the first suitor who comes calling. But when an old friend is in trouble, Sarah Booth doesn't hesitate to get involved.

Eulalee McBride has confessed to murdering her husband... and she wants Sarah to dig up the dirt on the violent scalawag to prove he got what he deserved. Sarah Booth suspects her friend is lying through her pearly whites... but why? There's certainly no lack of suspects in Zinnia Mississippi, including Bud Lynch, a horse trainer, who arouses killer lust in the town's women. As Sarah Booth begins to put together the pieces of the case, a killer is preparing to strike again. And this time it could send one late-blooming southern sleuth into an early grave....

Reason For Reading: It's a buddy read for one of my online reading groups.

Comments: I'm trying to get my thoughts down without any spoilers as I believe you just have to read this book by yourself to discover all the twists and turns. And there are quite a few, believe me!

Ms Haines manages to not ignore the side characters (IMO there are no minor characters, just characters that don't play such a big role) and how they develope.

We've known Eulalee McBride already when she comes in as a major character. Before she was a friend, but that's about it. And in this installment we find out a lot more about her and her life. Same goes for Tinkie, who did appear right from the beginning, but again she seems to grow and we see more of her personality.

I just loved the twists and turns Ms Haines created. It has been a while since I last read a book with that many, yet everything was resolved in the end.

Also, I consider it still a lot of fun that Sarah Booth is not on the look out for a husband, no matter what Jitty says. Instead, in my eyes, she now has three good guys lined up. I hope to see a resolve to this soon, but I can also wait a bit longer, because the author keeps it light.

Okay, I'm afraid I'm babbling along as I really don't want to give away anything about the story. I better leave it at that: It is a great part of a great series and if you like the South, independent women and fun characters (including the dogs, Chablis and Sweety Pie), I'd definitely recommend it!

Favorite Part: That must have been Tinkie coloring Sweety Pie's fur!

Miscellaneous: I'm going to pick up the next in series some time today and I really can't wait!

Rating: A-