Another good read set in the book town of Stoneham. Catch up with Tricia, Angelica, and all the rest. Once again Tricia finds another dead body and works to find out what has happened, family crisis also needs to be solved.

Tricia and Angelica are surprised when their father arrives in Stoneham, and even more surprised to learn about his past. When he becomes the primary suspect in the murder of a villager, the sisters are determined to clear his name -- if only so then can send him on his way.

This series has had its ups and downs, with the past few books being more down than up. While I enjoyed learning more about the Miles family, I found Tricia's almost perpetual crankiness to be really annoying. Despite being a business owner, she obviously doesn't understand things like paying overtime or construction schedules. The mystery itself was good, although I guessed the identity of the killer long before it was revealed in the book. Despite all of that, I will continue the series and hope the next book finds Tricia in a happier state of mind.

A Just Clause: A Booktown Mystery
By Lorna Barrett
Berkley
June 13, 2017

Review by Cynthia Chow

A booksigning at Haven’t Got a Clue mystery bookstore has its owner Tricia Miles reuniting with two men readers last met during the Celtic Lady mystery cruise. While sparks flew between Tricia and bestselling thriller writer Steven Richardson, a freeze blew in as she was reunited with her estranged father. John Miles may have followed Tricia and her sister Angelica back to Stoneham, New Hampshire in the hopes of mending their relationships, but he soon fled yet again, leaving with a suitcase full of purloined item and numerous debts. Neither Tricia nor Angelica are thrilled that John has returned, completely unapologetic and with expectations that he would be welcomed to stay.

Despite their apparent differences, both Steven and John are on the receiving ends of slaps by Carol Talbot, an attractive but hard-ridden woman who heckles Steven during his booksigning. Despite having left Tricia’s mother, John’s irresponsible dalliance with Carol only seems to have stirred her ire and rage. When Tricia’s ubiquitous habit of finding corpses has her discovering that of Carol’s, the police naturally focus on Tricia’s larcenous father. That Tricia recently broke up with Stoneham’s Chief of Police certainly doesn’t help, and her journalist ex-boyfriend seems to have been so cowed by new fatherhood that he declines to conduct any investigation at all. So it’s up to Tricia to either clear her father; first she just needs to track him down and prevent him from skipping out on any additional debts.

It is a testament to the author’s skill at creating realistic characters that the actions of Tricia’s parents are so painful to read. In this 11th installment, readers are shown just how much of a struggle Tricia has had overcoming her childhood. While the previous installment showed the psychological abuse inflicted by Tricia’s mother, here we see Tricia’s nearly as abusive ineffectual father. The con man without a conscience proves to be just as harmful and inconsiderate as Tricia’s mother, perhaps more so as affects Tricia’s relationships with her friends. Having been burned far too often in romance, Tricia is reluctant to dip her toe into a new relationship, and seeing her take a little tasty revenge when being stood up is a satisfying delight. The new family Tricia and Angelica have created in Stoneham is far deeper and rewarding than her biological one, so it will be intriguing to see if the two can blend together into one that is just as healthy and redemptive. What never is in question is how much Tricia loves Stoneham’s Booktown, or how she uses her wit and humor to rise above it all.

I really like how Tricia is changing through each book. I kind of disliked her character because she was rather uppity and too reserved but she has definitely changed. This newest book gives us more understanding of how and why Tricia used to be so uptight by showing us more of her parents. Her dad turns out to not be the person she thought he was and her mother continues to be the same hateful woman she's always been. There is definitely a nice twist at the end, as always in these cozy mysteries. Lorna Barrett is always a good read.

I enjoy the setting of this series, which is a New England town with a variety of bookstores, like an American version of Hay-on-Wye. Tricia owns the mystery bookstore, Haven't Got a Clue, while finding herself in the midst of another murder. With the help of her sister, Angelica, Tricia attempts to solve the mystery of whodunnit.

A great addition to the series (of which I have read all but one)! I enjoyed learning more about Tricia's family and look forward to seeing how the turn-of-events at the end impacts her and her sister's relationship with their parents going forward. Along those lines, I wouldn't recommend it as a stand-alone though; new readers should really start a few books back, if not at the beginning, to get a fuller sense of the reoccurring characters and their relationships.

The characters in the Booktown Mystery series are like good friends at this point--they may have their flaws, but those flaws make them all the more likable and relatable. Tricia, our main character, reluctant sleuth, and mystery book store owner, has family problems in this one as she tries to solve the murder of a woman who attended an author signing at her shop.

While the mystery and writing are excellent, it is the estrangement of Tricia and Angelica's con artist father and distant, brittle mother that take center stage. In fact, these parents are so unlikable that I couldn't root for them to reconcile as a couple or for Tricia to move closer to her mean spirited mother or deadbeat father.

The mystery is multi-layered, with more than one murder, and skillfully presented. Of course, with the loose ends of family relationships and Tricia's relationship with Sheriff Grant Baker still dangling, I will be anxiously awaiting the next installment of this stellar series.

Full Disclosure--Net Gallery and the publisher provided me with a digital ARC of this book. This is my honest review.