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Loading... Dove in the Window (Benni Harper Mystery) (edition 1999)by Earlene Fowler
Work InformationDove in the Window by Earlene Fowler
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. It's the week of Thanksgiving and time for both the Heritage Days Celebration at San Celinas and the annual huge family gathering at her father's ranch, so Benni Harper has her hands more than full trying to keep everything running smoothly. Her debonair Southern cousin, Emory Littleton, has chosen this as the perfect time to come to collect on a favor he did Benni while helping her solve her last case, and he's expecting to go out on a date with Benni's best friend Elvia, a Latina firebrand with no intentions of ever being alone with Emory. And it doesn't help matters any that her former brother-in-law, Wade Harper, has showed up, drinking hard and looking for a fight. Things take a turn for the worse when the body of young Western photographer Shelby Johnson is found early the next morning on a hill at the ranch. There are over 200 people camped out all over the place, but all indicators point directly at either Wade, or ranch hand, Kip Waterman. Benni knows Wade's hard to take sometimes, but she also knows he's not a killer, though it seems she's pretty much alone in that opinion, especially after Kip's body is found behind a local saloon only hours after he and Wade were seen fighting in the parking lot. Shelby's grandfather, world famous photographer Isaac Lyons, has arrived to find Shelby's killer, and he joins forces with Benni (over the protestations of Benni's husband Gabe Ortiz, San Celinas Chief of Police) to track down the murderer, while he also ruffles her feathers by courting Benni's grandmother, Dove. I'm liking Benni more and more with each book. The relationships between the main characters are evolving and ripening like fresh fruit. Benni is such a warm and likable person and that's one of the main criteria for me when I'm reading a continuing series. The author is able to write each of the characters with such distinctive voices that it's a real pleasure to read these books. They just keep getting better. 4+ no reviews | add a review
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Fiction.
Mystery.
HTML: Benni and her relatives and friends are gathered for the family's annual barbecue and cattle roundup. Among the guests is Shelby Johnson, a young photography student from a wealthy Chicago family. In Benni she finds a favorite subject and a new friend. But when the young woman's body is discovered on the ranch the next morning, Benni's closest relatives suddenly develop into prime murder suspects... .No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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I've been waiting to read the rest of the series so I could have a go with this one. I'm on a spiral which finally brought me the one before it! The great thing about these Benni Harper mysteries, as I've said before, is that there is a lot more going on in the books than just murder and mystery. Benni, her family, her husband Gabe and her friends are well fleshed out and interesting in their own right. Benni and Gabe's marriage continues to deepen and grow, and you don't get the feeling that emotional events are just there to drive the murder mystery plot. But there is of course a good plot here, and closer to home for Benni as a promising young photographer is found dead on the family ranch. Rivalries between the artists in the co-op are running high with some bemoaning the fact that only the young and beautiful seem to get attention. And one rough diamond cowboy would be even more of a top suspect without Benni's covert support. ( )