A Child's Garden of Death (Scene of the Crime Mystery) (1975)

I remembered reading one of Forrest's books some years back, and all I could recall was that the protagonist wrote children's books and was a hot-air balloonist. Someone on the DorothyL list reminded me that the books were set in Connecticut and I discovered there were several in the series. This was the first, where protagonist Lyon Wentworth gets involved in a very cold case because his friend is the police chief in their small town. Numerous suspects, quasi-genealogical research, great danger for Lyon, all lead to a satisfying conclusion. The relationships between Lyon and his friend Rocco and also with Lyon's wife Bea, a state senator, are well-drawn and the setting in rural Connecticut is charming. I will certainly be reading the rest of the books. ( )