Fantastic writing and great characters. The plot was excellent and well written. Love the history and murder mix. Makes for a great cozy read.

This is my favorite book in the series so far. I think after reading three in a row that I accept the author's writing style (multiple storylines with occasional rough transitions). I will also admit I skipped about 2/3 of the historical storyline, but read enough to know how it resolved itself and played into the 1980's storyline.

The main characters in this series are hard for me to warm up to and the author doesn't shy away from showing their flaws. That has never been more evident than in this book. One of the characters and the author make an interesting decision which has me pondering why. I'm eager to start the next book to find out if this decision is explored or if we're going to be left hanging which I would hate).

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

Old World Wisconsin curator Chloe Ellefson is being loaned out to the Pendarvis site, in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. This site relates much about the lead mining and Cornish settlers into the area in the first half of the 1800's. A friend of her boyfriend Roelke lives there and Adam's grandmother is playing host. Adam recently purchased the long time family home and when Chloe and Roelke arrive, bones are discovered during the early part of his renovation. The historical bits then intersperse with the present 80's. Having perused many Wisconsin historical documents in search of my own family genealogy, I found it interesting as Chloe delved into the past owners of the house, using microfilm (it is still the 80's in Chloe's world!) and information from Grandmother Tamsin and her even older, half sister Lowena. Roelke heads back to Eagle for a week of policing, interviews and helping his cousin Libby deal with her ex. I always find it intriguing that these books are set just before a lot of the technology that would help the heroine in the actual present day. Also, there is access to an older generation that was born in the 1800's is still available to Chloe too.

This is book Eight in the Chloe Ellefson Mystery Series. Each book is delightful to read and this book can be read as a stand alone. .I highly recommend the entire series.
In this next in series Chloe is researching the history of Wisconsin Cornish miners in Mineral Point Wisconsin. The story weaves from excellent historical information to the present day with Chloe and her boyfriend. A body is found and they are both involved in the sleuth to find clues and solve the mystery.
These are excellent historical mysteries and delightful to read. Each book is a wealth of information for the reader. I enjoyed this next in series.
Thank you for the ARC which did not influence my review.

Very interesting murder mystery involving two stories from the 1980's when the main part takes place and the early 1800's where the history of the story/mystery starts. Very interesting and I recommend it.

Kathleen Ernst always does an excellent job mixing murder and mystery with historical facts, and Mining for Justice was a perfect example. I enjoyed the two parallel stories, which brought an exciting and unexpected plot to life. There was lots of suspense for Chloe, and a neat look into a part of the past I hadn''t known about.

Mining for Justice by Kathleen Ernst is the eighth book in A Chloe Ellefson Mystery series. Chloe Ellefson is off to spend a week at Pendarvis, a historic site in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. First, though, Chloe and her boyfriend, Roelke McKenna will be assisting Adam Bolitho with some work on Chy Looan (Bolitho family cottage in Mineral Point). Adam and Roelke are excavating the old root cellar when they discover the skeleton with a bashed in skull. Chloe agrees to look into the victim’s identity using the records at Pendarvis. It looks like her week at Pendarvis will not be as pleasant as she hoped when an article appears in the local paper about the possible closing of the historic site for lack of funds thanks to Old World Wisconsin where Chloe works as a curator. One morning, Chloe enters Polperro House looking for her Pendarvis counterpart, Claudia and discovers the body of Dr. Yvonne Miller at the foot of the stairs. Now she has two mysteries to resolve before heading back home at the end of the week. Can Chloe discover the identity of the bones that were Adam’s root cellar? Who wanted Dr. Miller dead and why?

Mining for Justice can be read alone. Everything the reader needs to know is included in the book. I found the characters to be nicely developed and just right for this series. I kept forgetting is the story is set during 1983. Every time that Chloe needed a phone, I kept wondering why she did not use her cell phone. I can tell that Ms. Ernst did her research for this novel and the series. I liked finding out more about the history of Cornish miners after they came to the United States. Part of the story takes readers back in time (starting in 1827) to discover how the body ended up in the root cellar. There is quite a bit of action in the story. We have what I summarized above along with Roelke dealing with his sister, Libby’s abusive ex-husband, a possible promotion/training for Roelke, and Roelke dealing with a drug investigation (Roelke is a police officer). The novel has a slower pace, but it is due to the details that enrich the story. I am giving Mining for Justice 4 out of 5 stars (I liked it). The identity of Dr. Miller’s murderer can be ferreted out before the reveal along with who did in the boney remains. While I do not like murders to occur early in the book, I felt that at 42% it was a little late in the story. Overall, Mining for Justice is an entertaining cozy mystery and I look forward to reading more books in A Chloe Ellefson Mystery series.

I enjoyed this book by Kathleen Ernst so much! It satisfied my cravings of both historical locations and light mystery. Not only does Kathleen do a fantastic job creating a narrative that sets you right in the Wisconsin Pendarvis location, but she created entertaining webs of of mystery that leave you endlessly trying to connect the dots.

Post Live November 1st

Mining for Justice is the 8th book in the Chloe Ellefson series by Kathleen Ernst from Midnight Ink.

Writing history based narrative fiction is always a tricky prospect because often it winds up being too technical for period fiction lovers and not academically rigid enough for historians. Balancing between the needs of laymen and academics is something living history museums are well acquainted with, almost always with the added constraint of budget cuts and lack of resources.

'Fighting the good fight', to provide resources and education to the public and academics is obviously very familiar to the author of this authentically written and engaging mystery.

Set in Mineral Point, Wisconsin and environs, Chloe Ellefson is a visiting curator on loan, who's only trying to enjoy a week long sabbatical from her antagonistic, micromanaging boss. What she gets instead is murder, intrigue and a long buried skeleton in a root cellar.

The plotting is well managed between the current day and supporting flashbacks to the 1830's. The dialogue is believable and well written. The characters are appealingly written (this is the 8th book in the series).

The novel functions fine as a standalone, though I found it engaging enough that I intend to go pick up the other entries in the series. Chloe and company are fun and intelligent. I enjoyed the book very much. I also enjoyed the actual photographs of the site and some of the artifacts written in the book (though they're fictionalized of course).

Four stars

Stats: 384 pages, available in Kindle, library binding and paperback formats
Published October 8, 2017

Dollycas’s Thoughts

This time Chloe Ellefson takes us along on a trip to Mineral Point as she goes there to help out for a week. Roelke drives her there and plans to spend the weekend helping a friend update a family home. Chloe is hoping for a quiet week away from the drama brought on by her boss at Old World Wisconsin but when Roelke uncovers human bones in the root cellar Chloe knows her week in going to be far from quiet. She agrees to do some research to try to determine who the remains belong to and who buried them. This is all before she sets foot in Pendarvis, the historic location of her temporary assignment. A recent newspaper article has the employees there up in arms and Chloe finds herself the person to blame for a state funding problem. She also find another body.

I have lived in Wisconsin my whole life but I always learn something new when reading a Kathleen Ernst mystery. Pendarvis is one of 12 historic sites owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society. “Tucked away in historic Mineral Point, Pendarvis celebrates the restoration and preservation efforts of Robert Neal and Edgar Hellum, who saved a significant part of Wisconsin’s past.”* Sadly, I have never visited there, but using the author’s descriptions I feel like I have. With all the main buildings, land and nearby cottages it makes a wonderful setting for a murder mystery or two. Roelke back in Eagle has a mystery to solve as well.

The brilliance of this book is the way the author blends history with life in Wisconsin in the 1980’s. We get the story of a Cornish family coming to America and then to Wisconsin in search of a life provided by the mines. Pendarvis recreates and celebrates this time in history but has problems of the current day which for this series is the 1980’s.

Both time periods have very strong females. The woman in the story that immigrated in the 19th century had to be strong to live among the men working the mines, she even worked at the mines herself before she came to America. She was a trailblazer is protecting children at a time when most were forced to work in the mines. Chloe is the strong woman of current time. She searches for the truth and doesn’t give up even when she is putting herself in danger. She has a resilience that I truly admire.

Many issues are faced within the story, an abusive husband, drug dealers, financial worries, and of course, murder. It is also a story with a nice romance. Chloe and Roelke relationship has grown at a very comfortable place over this series. Set before cell phones, I really enjoy their nightly calls to check-in with each other when they are apart. The way they work together is heartwarming.

Kathleen Ernst is a real treasure. She researches these stories intensely and creates fictional drama based on facts that keep the reader fascinated from the first page to the last. She is an excellent storyteller whose words come alive. Her love of Wisconsin history shines brightly in this and all of her books in this series. The characters are believable with great dialogues. The setting always plays a key part and she always leaves me wanting to visit the location as soon as possible.

Each of the books in this series can be read all on their own, but to enjoy the character development you really should read them all. Mining for Justice has become my favorite book in this series and will be included in my Bests Reads of 2017.

Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Jeanie

What a fascinating glimpse of history! One of the things I like about Ms. Ernst’s novels is that I learn something new every time. She became one of my favorite historical cozy mystery authors from the first time I read one of her novels. In Mining for Justice, her writing talent and ability to share her love of history excels.

Past and present come together for Chloe Ellefson, loaned to Pendarvis, a sister site of where she works at Old World Wisconsin. When boyfriend Roelke McKenna, police officer for the Village of Eagle, drives her to Pendarvis, they spend time with Roelke’s friend Adam who has recently purchased Chy Rooan, a historical home that he is restoring. The guys find a skeleton in the cellar, a skeleton with its skull bashed in.

When a friend of Adam’s stops by, Chloe is blindsided to learn that Pendarvis may have to be closed due to much of the funding required to get Old World Wisconsin up and running sucked the available moneys for this smaller, less visited site.

Chloe will stay with Adam’s grandmother, Tamsin. Tamsin is very troubled by the turn of events in Adam’s home, as it has been in her family since the Great Depression. Only recently has she left it for a smaller apartment. She asks for Chloe’s help to find who was murdered if she has any time to help.

When arriving at Pendarvis Monday morning, one of the interpreters who has been with Pendarvis since it first opened is openly hostile to Chloe, as if the funding challenges were her fault. A young woman with a PhD, Yvonne Miller, is a historian writing a book and using reference materials there. Chloe attends the meeting regarding the disposition of Pendarvis. Not only does Yvonne speak poorly of the work that the interpreters have done, but she doesn’t sound too unhappy about the potential for closure. Nobody wanted the young doctor to be murdered, though – which is exactly how Chloe finds her at one of the houses at Pendarvis a couple mornings later.

Roelke also faces challenges while Chloe is away. His cousin Libby, a divorced woman with two young children, is having trouble with her ex-husband, who is now stalking her. There is a home suspected of housing drug dealers, and he is given the lead on taking them down. While dealing with Libby’s ex, he begins to question his desire to be in law enforcement, even as Chloe encounters challenges that make her question where her loyalties lie.

One of the things I like in this novel is how the author integrates the historical background of the family who had lived in Chy Looan (Happy House). She introduces Mary Pascoe when she was a girl in Cornwall, then as she and her brothers cross the ocean and come to work the lead mines in Wisconsin, and events throughout their lives and the contributions Mary made, particularly in that home.

Interesting, realistic dialog and actions show the reader the strength and depth of each character. I particularly like Mary Pascoe, Tamsin, and Chloe. Learning about the Cornish immigrants and lifestyle demonstrate just how hard of a life our ancestors had while at the same time showing their fierce determination and contribution to America as we know it today.

The novel’s setting is in the 1980’s, when computers and cellphones were dreams for the future. It is very well researched, for the 1800’s as well as the 1980’s. The plot twists continued to change the suspects, especially as Chloe meets up with multiple ‘mishaps’. Mary Pascoe’s life continued to change, as did the meaning of an elegant china teacup throughout her history. The love Roelke and Chloe have for each other is strong, especially when both of their lives are on the line in different ways. I highly recommend this suspenseful, fascinating novel to those who appreciate well-written historical cozy mysteries. The photos of historical artifacts are an awesome addition!

*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review*

I loved this book, the details and mystery are expertly weaved with history and romance. Chloe is excited to get an assignment learning more about Cornish miners when bones of a long buried body is discovered. Chloe investigates what could have happened, while trying to keep the town of Pendarvis from closing. This mystery had me guessing until the end and I live the relationship between Chloe and Roelke. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a great mystery.

This book has two independent stories one involving Chloe and one involving her boyfriend Roelke. Chloe story starts with her on a one week assignment to an historic site in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. This particular site tells the story of Cornish immigrants who came the America for a better life and mined the land. Roelke's story is back home and involves his cousin who he vowed to protect.

I loved the way the author was able to go back and forth flawlessly not only between the two stories but in Chloe's story between two centuries.

I'm a big fan of this author and the books in this series and I have recommended the books to my friends.
I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for giving me and ARC copy to read in return for an honest review.

Chloe is on a temporary assignment at another historic site in Wisconsin, where she's excited for the opportunity to learn more about the Cornish immigrants and their involvement in Wisconsin's mining industry. But when long-buried human remains are found in the root cellar of an old Cornish cottage, she can't refuse to help the cottage's current owner figure out what happened.

I love the historical aspects of the books in this series, and I always come away knowing more than I did when I started reading them. While some readers may not care for the alternating storylines of the immigrants in the late 1800s and the present-day characters, I liked it as much as I like the strong female characters that are always part of these books. I look forward to the next book in this well-researched series.

A dual time line mystery set in the 1830s and the 1980s about a niche I was unfamiliar with- miners from Cornwall who emigrated to Wisconsin. Chloe is an intrepid living museum curator (what an interesting job!) who finds herself fascinated by bones unearthed in a cottage and then someone else is murdered. Her boyfriend Roelke, a law enforcement officer, has a lot going on and his story is one of the parallel stories. I often wonder how differently investigations would be if they were conducted in 2017 but then we wouldn't have such interesting novels. I'd not read this series before so thanks so much to Netgalley for the arc. Great research and interesting characters make this a do read- and I'm going to look for more from Ernst.

I normally don't enjoy multiple voices and storylines. If not done right they fall apart for me. This is one author and one series that gets it right every single time. In this, the eighth of the series, Kathleen Ernst introduces the reader to a history of Cornish miners in Wisconsin in the 19th century. She gives us a historical mystery and a 1980's murder and ties it up wonderfully. The characters are well developed, the history is very well researched and the mystery is very satisfying. While this entry can be read as a stand alone, it would be worth the time to start at the beginning to get the back story on the main character, Chloe Ellefson, her position with a living museum and her relationship with her boyfriend, Roelke. I hope we don't have to wait too long for the next in the series.

Mining for Justice is the eighth book in Kathleen Ernst’s Chloe Ellefson mystery series set at a series of Wisconsin historical sites during the 1980s. This time, it’s Pendarvis, a site about the experiences of immigrant lead miners from Cornwall in the 1830s. These skilled miners helped settle the area, since they brought families.

I admit, my enjoyment in each installment of this series varies with the history site involved. I really liked the Laura Ingalls Wilder tour in Death on the Prairie, while the Civil War enactment of A Memory of Muskets was of less interest to me. So when I heard about this one, I thought “miners?” But it turned out to be fascinating, if a bit disturbing when you consider how life-threatening the activity was.

In each novel, Ernst weaves the current-day murder investigation together with flashbacks to the time of the location. In this case, it’s a family of two Cornish brothers and a sister who emigrate to Wisconsin. I thought her treatment of the historical elements in this installment was the best yet. She leaves certain elements unspoken, for the reader to put them together based on what they know of the modern-day artifacts that have survived.

In Mining for Justice, Chloe, curator at Old World Wisconsin, is visiting Pendarvis to help its curator with questions about artifact storage. She’s also interested in seeing an old stone cottage her friend is restoring in the area. Unfortunately, news has just broken that Pendarvis is at risk of being shut down, and a skeleton is found buried in the root cellar of the friend’s cottage. And then a pushy historian who disagrees with the site approach is murdered by being pushed down the stairs at one of the historical buildings.

Meanwhile, Chloe’s boyfriend, police officer Roelke, is trying to determine the best way to help his cousin Libby, who’s being stalked by her ex-husband. The series blends murder, personal relationship soap opera, and evocative descriptions of the historical sites as they were 30 years ago. Of course, there are the expected “our amateur detective is in danger!” scenes that I could do without, but that seems to be an expectation of the cozy mystery genre these days. Several of the plot points — child endangerment, busting drug dealers — are ramped up higher than they need to be to keep the excitement going and reader emotionally involved. It’s not a subtle read, but it’s an educational one in several ways.

Mining for Justice was an interesting mystery pertaining to an historic site in Wisconsin. I liked reading about all the history included in the mystery. I also liked that the setting was in 1983. An interesting addition to the Chloe mystery series.

Chloe finds lots of trouble when she visits her fellow curator Claudia in Mineral Springs, where the historical site that her friend works for is at risk for closing due to monies being directed toward Chloe's worksite Old World Wisconsin. While Chloe researches the mystery of the ancient skeleton found in another friend's basement, she nearly succumbs to contemporary murderers. The house with the potential murder victim was built by the Pascoe family, whom we follow in a parallel tale on their immigration from Cornwall, England to mineral mining pioneering in Wisconsin.

I'm delighted to discover that this book is part of a series. Unfortunately, I've just read the latest, which is actually fine, because it's self-contained. The author is an excellent storyteller. She takes the reader through the past and present tales, linking them through artifacts, ancestry, and setting. I'm frustrated that clues for Chloe's epiphanies are not always revealed to the reader, but secrets are released in a timely manner. My questions as I read were all answered by the end, not necessarily where I would have placed them, but satisfying, nonetheless. The history woven throughout made me want to visit the historical sites. She even included photographs and a glossary of Cornish terms.

Readers who love a good mystery and / or well-wrought historical fiction will like this series. I received an ARC through NetGalley.com and the launch date is October 8.

Having grown up in a mining town of similar foundation, I find these stories magical. It makes me want a pasty and a whiskey to as I read. Great writing, great descriptions, great characters.