A Garland of Bones

August 10, 2020
Haines’s sprightly 22nd Sarah Booth Delaney mystery (after Devil’s Bones) finds private investigator Sarah Booth and friends, including “one big burning hunk of lawman love—Coleman Peters,” heading from Zinnia, Miss., to the Delta town of Columbus, where they plan to spend a merry Christmas holiday. Once safely ensconced in their cute bed-and-breakfast, the crew stop at the home of Clarissa Olson, one of several well-to-do Columbus residents to open their houses to visitors during the holidays. Clarissa wastes no time in hiring Sarah Booth and her detecting partner, Tinkie Richmond, to figure out who has been perpetrating pranks directed at Clarissa and her friends. When the pranks become dangerous, and the town busybody goes missing, Sarah Booth and Tinkie are forced to dig into “all the dirty little secrets of Columbus society,” including murder. Meanwhile, Sarah Booth and company do their best to enjoy their vacation. Haines once again delivers entertaining cozy fare. Agent: Marian Young, Young Agency.