I won’t say that “At the Scent of the Crime” by Melrose McFadden was a disappointment, but I must note that the story was sadly simplistic.
The story is set during Fall Haven’s annual Winter Festival. It is cold enough to require a jacket, with only a dusting of snow on the ground. Paloma Finch and her best friend Leigh Hill run Wicked Wick, a candle shop featuring Paloma’s unique blends of scents and Leigh’s creative names.
The women grew up in the quaint village, left for school and the corporate world but returned to start over. Most of the shops on Fall Haven’s cobblestoned square are “mom and pop” businesses who depend on tourist dollars.
Everyone is busy setting up for the three-day festival when Alistair Steele arrives. Alistair inherited most of the village buildings from his Uncle Xavier. Xavier was beloved in Fall Haven, but Alistair is despised. He has just announced that the rent on all his buildings will increase by 25% and the old maple factory will become a big box store.
Shop owners are furious, but before they can form a plan of action, Alistair Steele is dead. It appears that he crashed his little Vespa on the village square. This is where McFadden went wrong. Even the least qualified police officer would have asked basic questions such as “Why was Alistair Steele out and about before 5 a.m.? Why didn’t his Vespa leave tracks in the fresh snow?”
Oddly, Sheriff Cole Finch (Paloma’s ex-husband) agrees with the mayor who insists that the death was an accident. Things are cleaned up, and the Winter Festival goes on as planned. But that doesn’t keep Paloma and Leigh from their own investigation. Why was local real estate agent Butler looking for Alistair? What was the mayor doing at the square at 5 a.m.? Where was his assistant Parker at that time?
When they try to talk with the mayor, it feels like Parker controls what is said. They are most concerned with what will happen to the “big box” deal now that Alistair is dead. Naturally, the women waltz into Xavier’s house and snoop. It doesn’t take them long to find lots of business records but are shocked to find a marriage certificate and a shiny new laptop. They take them along for further study in the back of the candle shop.
In the midst of the investigation, Paloma realizes that though he’s still quiet, Cole has matured into a good investigator. And she can’t deny there is still a strong connection between them. At the same time, Leigh is being “courted” by Jason, the baker. As the Winter Festival winds down, the case heats up.
Paloma is closing the shop when she is confronted by Butler. The tiny woman confirms her suspicions by raving about how she and Alistair were not only working together on the property sale but were romantically involved until he suddenly dumped her. She would have made a quarter million dollars on the sale, but now she’d get nothing.
That rage drove Butler to poison Alistair by using information found in one of the botany books sold at Wicked Wick. She also implicated Parker and the mayor. Now she plans to kill Paloma before she can tell anyone. Luckily, Leigh and friends swing into action with no further injuries.
In the end, they learn that Alistair’s widow is in Fall Haven and assures them that the big box deal is off. She also pledges to use Alistair’s estate to help the village maintain its warm, small-town appeal. Will the budding romances grow or will they remain dormant? Only book two can tell us.
If you are looking for “feel good” stories, you can find lots of good ones at your public library. This could be a great week to stop by and check it out.
AT A GLANCE
Book: At the Scent of the Crime (Wicked WIck Mysteries, Book 1)
Author: Melrose McFadden
Year published: 2021
Number of pages: 222
Candle shop mystery falls a bit short
