March Book Club: Death in a Pale Hue by Susan Van Kirk
It turns out that hitting the refresh button on your life isn’t as easy as scraping the paint off a canvas and starting over.
When Jill Madison returns to her hometown of Apple Grove to take charge of a community art center, she’s set on following in the footsteps of her late artist mother. Of course, things don’t quite go as planned.
After a thief makes away with a treasured sculpture from the center, a construction crew discovers a body in the historic building’s basement. With her career and the upcoming gallery showing on the line, can Jill keep her cool and outwit a killer who wants to color her out of the picture for good?
Jill is a character who’s easy to root for. She’s strong, smart, and independent yet vulnerable. Her relationships with her family and friends feel authentic and believable, especially the bond between her and her brother Tom, the police detective investigating the murder.
The small town of Apple Grove is a community where everybody knows everybody, and gossip can quickly spread faster than a brush stroke! As Jill navigates the investigation of her friend’s death, she has no choice but to confront her own painful memories and prove she can handle the art center to the dismissive board of directors.
I especially enjoyed the dialogue between Jill and her family and friends, which was witty and clever. Van Kirk sprinkled art references throughout the story, which made me smile.
Death in a Pale Hue is a fun cozy mystery with a well-crafted plot, engaging characters, and a suspenseful and atmospheric story. I recommend this book and can’t wait to read the next installment of the series.
You can buy Death in a Pale Hue anywhere you normally buy books. It’s also on Hoopla, if you want to give your library card some exercise! Susan previously wrote the Endurance Mystery series about a teacher in a small, historic town in Illinois. There are 5 books in the Endurance Series and they are available in Kindle Unlimited.
Kelly Brakenhoff is the author of 15 books and a seasoned ASL interpreter. She splits her writing energy between two series: cozy mysteries set on a college campus and children’s books featuring Duke the Deaf Dog.
Parents, kids, and teachers love the children’s books and activity guides because they introduce ASL and the Deaf community through fun, engaging stories. And if you enjoy a smart female sleuth, want to learn more about Deaf culture, or have ever lived in a place where livestock outnumber people, the Cassandra Sato Mystery series will have you connecting the dots faster than a group project coming together the night before it’s due.
A proud mom to four adults, head of the dog-snuggling department, and grandma to a growing brood of perfectly behaved grandkids, Kelly and her husband call Nebraska home.