High Country Fall by Margaret Maron

". . . enough excitement and intrigue to keep the reader thoroughly engrossed."

". . . Maron?s prose and gift for creating memorable characters makes the book an enjoyable read."

Judge Deborah Knott needs to get away from wedding preparations and relatives descending to celebrate her coming nuptials. When she is asked to fill-in for a judge in Cedar Gap (five hours away in the midst of beautiful mountain foliage, tourists, and quiet) Deborah jumps at the chance. A five-day break from all the wedding madness will give her time to think, and time to become involved in intrigue, lies, deception, a car chase on the narrow mountain curves, a potential romance, and murder–just what she needs to keep her mind off the relationship with her fiancé, Dwight. What more could any woman ask?

Amidst the sun-dappled foliage bright with autumn, Margaret Maron places Judge Deborah Knott as the focal point for murder. Even though High Country Fall is not Maron’s first mystery with Judge Knott, this book stands alone. Among the recipes for down-home country cooking and an impromptu musical get-together, Maron paints the pristine setting of Cedar Gap and its residents with a firm, colorful brush and adds enough excitement and intrigue to keep the reader thoroughly engrossed. Some of Judge Knott’s leaps of logic leave the reader a bit baffled, but overall High Country Fall is a pleasant jaunt for a lazy weekend. Tying up all the loose ends to the mystery and the main character’s final pronouncement on her upcoming wedding are abrupt and seem loosely tacked onto the end, but overall Maron’s prose and gift for creating memorable characters makes the book an enjoyable read.

Reviewer: J. M. Cornwell