Books: The Orchard Mysteries

I love mystery stories and if it is a series of mystery stories it is even better.  The latest series I’m catching up on is The Orchard mysteries by Sheila Connolly. 

Meg Corey is the new owner of the apple orchard.  There is a prequel to the series which introduces Meg and her situation. She recently lost her job, her boyfriend and her apartment and her mother recommended she move to the old house in Granford, Massachusetts and fix it up for selling.  

She runs into difficulties as soon as she arrives and needs to fix the failed plumbing.  And what turns up in the septic tank but the body of her former boyfriend. Neighbour, Seth Chapin, is on the scene to sort things out.  He is a plumber and carpenter and local Selectman for the town.

Titles in this series, 12 in total so far, all involve apples as you might suspect.  One Bad Apple, Rotten to the Core, Red Delicious Death, A Killer Crop, Bitter Harvest, Sour Apples and Golden Malicious.  Throughout the series the relationship between Meg and Seth develops. Each book involves a murder and it always seems to be Meg that discovers the bodies.

In Golden Malicious, a neighbour of Meg’s is discovered dead.  At first it is thought to just be an accident but it is later revealed to be murder.  When Meg goes along with Seth to the local lumber business another body is discovered and also a dead insect is found.  The Asian Longhorned Beetle can be devastating to trees and a small infestation is also discovered.  This leads Meg and Seth to connect all the incidents and figure out what is happening.

As the story progresses, another murder is uncovered, a nasty plot involving the ALB is discovered, and Seth and Meg finally decide to get married.  It’s a great little series to read and I’ll be looking forward the the next book in the series.

Sheila Connolley also writes the Museum mysteries, and the County Cork mysteries.

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