MURDER IN MINIATURE

Her work as a consultant to the local police, along with what she earns selling custom-made dollhouses, has helped widowed Maple Bishop stabilize her financial situation. But it’s clear that the miniature crime scene recreations that she makes for Elderberry Sheriff Sam Scott are a source not only of income but of professional pride and satisfaction. So when Sheriff Scott calls her to the scene of a tragic fire in which Daniel Perkins was burned to death, Maple is grief-stricken but also excited; at last, she has something more interesting than televised political speeches to engage her nimble brain. She’s also puzzled. How could Daniel, a firefighter himself, been careless enough to let his cabin go up in flames? To solve the puzzle, she constructs a series of miniature crime scenes, which she calls “nutshells,” to help the police pinpoint the causes of the fire. She also goes to Boston, the last place Daniel lived before Elderberry, to interview the people who knew him best. Her return to her hometown gives her the opportunity to reconnect with family and friends, reflecting on her journey from the big city that rejected her bid to become a practicing lawyer to the small town that doesn’t always accept her as a friend but shows her respect as a professional. The second in Tietjen’s series documents Maple’s growth beyond the shadow of her late husband. Her nutshells may not be essential to solving the puzzle of Daniel’s death, but they go far in understanding the complex individual Maple has become.