There's more than one reason the new West Tisbury police chief officially made ninety-two-year-old Victoria Trumbull her deputy. For one thing, Victoria knows just about everything about everyone in Martha's Vineyard, not to mention their ancestors. Victoria may be afflicted with the usual aches and pains that descend on nonagenarians—she has a cutoff shoe to accommodate her bunion and a stout stick to help her on her walks across the fields and in the woods—but she is as sharp and as sharp-eyed as the proverbial tack. So it's not odd that when Victoria is the only one who notices something amiss among the gravestones of the West Tisbury cemetery, the chief listens.
And something is indeed amiss. Responding to a request by presumed relatives in the Midwest to disinter a coffin for reburying elsewhere, things go wrong from the start. The driver of the hearse coming to collect the coffin disappears during the Island ferry trip in a rainstorm. Other deaths—some of them irrefutably murder, the others suspicious—follow. And when, as a last measure, the coffin is found, dug up, and opened, it does not contain the expected body. Adding insult to injury, the coffin itself disappears.
Meanwhile, the bedroom for rent in Victoria's house has been taken over by a woman and her raucous toucan, a bird as spoiled as the most bratty millionaire's heir. Victoria is graceful about her unwanted boarders, but they do interfere with her newspaper column—and with her efforts to discover whether the strange antics of the coffin are related to the murders.
Victoria is the most realistic and most delightful nonagenarian in mystery fiction. Her years have not blunted her intelligence nor her sharp wit.
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"What an excellent little cozy. Victoria Trumbull might be 92, but she's quite the sleuth. This book had lots of twists and turns, keeping me on my toes all the way through."
— Grey853 (4 out of 5 stars)
“This is a cozy mystery with an underlying darkness...Riggs...is a thirteenth-generation islander who really knows her way around.”
— Romantic Times“With patience and charm, the down-to-earth Victoria succeeds in drawing out confidences.”
— Publishers Weekly“Can a ninety-two-year-old protagonist engage readers of all ages? Definitely…As satisfying as a steaming bowl of chowder on a cold New England evening.”
— Booklist" Victoria is an interesting amateur sleuth but the writing is only adequate. "
— Cyn, 3/17/2013" I found this to be a cleverly written and entertaining story with an unexpected conclusion. A thoroughly fun read. "
— Suzanne, 3/8/2013" More of Victoria Trumbull -- love anything with this character! "
— Consuela, 9/18/2012" Liked it - reminicent of Murder She Wrote "
— Tami, 8/5/2012" Pretty much the same as the first two in the series. I keep coming back because I feel that the main character is endearing "
— Olgalijo, 2/1/2011" This was just a light little read with a 92 year old woman in Martha's Vineyard as the sleuth. "
— Susan, 11/24/2010" Wonderful book!! Fun characters that kept you guessing right until the end! "
— Crispin, 12/2/2009" Nice easy read. Lots of dashing about with a good story line. Cute ending. "
— Lorraine, 8/19/2008" Last ditch book on tape for the drive. Maybe the narrator was just awful but this was quite bad and often silence seemed preferable. "
— Christina, 4/5/2008" Need to read the first 2. I love this old lady... "
— Nan, 6/22/2007Cynthia Riggs, a thirteenth-generation Islander, lives on Martha’s Vineyard in her family homestead, now a bed-and-breakfast catering to poets and writers. She has a degree in geology from Antioch College, an MFA in creative writing from Vermont College, and a US Coast Guard masters license.
Davina Porter has been enthralling listeners for over twenty-five years with her ability to mine the psychological depths of the characters she reads and bring them convincingly to life. In 2006, she won the prestigious Audie Award for Best Female Narration and in 2004 for Best Inspirational Literature Narration. She has been honored as an AudioFile Golden Voice and has won nineteen AudioFile Earphones Awards. As an actress, she has appeared on stage at the Vineyard Playhouse and the Square One Theater, among others.