Heavenly, PA has been transformed into a Christmas wonderland, and Claire is delighted to celebrate the season…but a fiendish killer has other plans in this all-new installment in the national bestselling series.As the owner of Heavenly Treasures, the local gift shop, Claire is busier than ever helping her English customers (and even a few of her Amish friends, like Esther and Ben) find the … Ben) find the perfect gift for the special people on their shopping list.
Claire makes sure she has time for her boyfriend, Detective Jakob Fisher. But the man, who was raised and then shunned by the Amish over his choice of career, has been unusually secretive lately. She tries not to worry, to trust their relationship, but trying and doing aren’t exactly matching up.
Before she can figure out what’s going on with Jakob, word comes that Ruth and Samuel Yoder are being questioned in the death of an elderly Amish couple, found murdered not long after the newlyweds were seen leaving the victims’ farm. Ruth, in turn, seeks Claire’s help in convincing the police that she and Samuel had nothing to do with what happened. But when Claire comes across a cryptic note tucked inside the wedding gift the victims had given the newlyweds no more than an hour before their murder, she finds herself in dire need of a little convincing as well.
Can Claire get to the bottom of things in time to ensure a merry Christmas for all?
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This cozy mystery kept my interest level high from start to finish. A double murder is committed and detective Jakob Fisher begins to investigate it. Claire Weatherly, owner of Heavenly Treasures and a slueth detective gets involved when Jakob places her Amish friends on his prime suspects list. She must work hard to find more suspects and remove her friends from Jakobs list.
It couldn’t have happened at a worst time. Claire is busy heading up One Heavenly Night , a Christmas festival. Spirits are high as the season approaches. And then this! A kindly and well thought of older Amish couple murdered in their own home! Will there be any joy this Christmas in Heavenly? Who would want to murder such a nice and well respected Amish couple? Or were they really such a nice couple?
A Killer Carol left this reader with an overall good feeling. I love the characters of this national bestselling series. Laura Bradford is the author and I’ve come to love her cozy mysteries. I did not guess who the real murderer was. I thought I knew but Laura surprised this reader. My feelings were all wrapped up in the last chapter.
If you have read the other books of this series than put this one in your TBR pile of Christmas books. If cozy mystery is your genre than cuddle up with this book. I highly recommend it for your Christmas reading pleasure.
I borrowed a paperback copy of A Killer Carol from the local library. I was not asked to write a review. All opinions expressed and shared in this review are my own.
Christmas is approaching in Heavenly, Pennsylvania, and Claire Weatherly has her hands full. Not only does she have the normal tourists coming into her shop, Heavenly Treasures, but she is organizing the first annual One Heavenly Night event designed as a chance for residence and tourists to enjoy the town at Christmas. However, murder rears its ugly head once again one night. Annie, the Amish teen who works for Claire, is out Christmas caroling with some friends, and when they stop at the Esch’s farm, they find both of the them dead. Detective Jakob Fisher is quick to realize it was murder. Unfortunately, the last people to visit the victims were Claire’s Amish friend Ruth and her new husband Samuel. Even worse, the couple appear to have a motive for committing the crime. Claire doesn’t believe they could have done it, but Jakob has to follow the evidence wherever it leads, even if it ruins the unofficial inroads he has made in building relationships with the people who used to be his family before he left the Amish community. Can Claire help him solve the case before that happens?
This series works best when the characters are driving a strong mystery, and that’s definitely the case here. I’ve felt like I knew the series regulars from their first appearances in the series, so it was fantastic to spend time with them again. They are still just as strong as ever, and the new character are just as compelling. Since Heavenly sits on the edge of an Amish community, life is a bit slower, and that is reflected in the plot. This isn’t a twist a page type of book, but that faster pace wouldn’t feel right. Don’t get me wrong, we do have twists and surprises, but the impact on the characters is just as important, and the two combined keep me glued to the book. I had to fight to keep from peaking ahead and making sure everyone was going to be okay. Honestly, just reading about Heavenly refreshes my soul, so picking up this book was great. The Christmas setting was an added bonus since I love that season so much. There are a couple of niggles with the book, but they are minor. This is a fantastic addition to a favorite series.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Claire Weatherly is so excited about the holidays and the event she has created. One Heavenly Night is sure to bring in the tourists and bring the residents a fun time too. She has gone over all her lists and checked them twice but MURDER was not on the list!
While a group was out caroling they find an elderly couple dead. Detective Jakob Fisher arrives on the scene and tries to reconstruct Daniel and Mary Esch’s final hours. That leads him to newlyweds Ruth and Samuel Yoder. They appear to be the last people to have visited the Esch’s farm. Ruth comes to Claire for help. Claire has helped the police solve cases before and she knows her friend is innocent . . . or is she . . . Claire finds a note that could change everything!
I always anxiously await each new book in this series. I love these characters and the entire feel of Heavenly, PA.
This time both Jakob and Claire are super busy, but that is usually the case and they still find time for each other. Claire feels Jakob is hiding something and she is not sure if their relationship can survive. One of the best things about this series is the true friendships made amongst the characters and their huge hearts that reach out to not only their friends but others in the community. There are several significant moments like that in A Killer Carol. Ms. Bradford has created characters with many layers and the character development over the series has been stellar.
The author also gives readers a strong mystery. The Amish theme means things unfold at a slower but perfect pace. She details Amish traditions and way of life alongside the Englisch ways. Claire has truly found her place in Heavenly and crosses comfortably between the two even though the practice of shunning still wears on her. This ability allows her to go places and talk to people that are closed off from Jakob. While trying to save her friend Claire is on a journey herself in this story. Both parts take hold and make this book impossible to put down.
The Christmas theme was the icing on the cake. The cover of the book is gorgeous and brings on that Christmas feeling even when the actual weather outside is still pretty balmy. The ending had me singing some happy carols of my own.
Awesome characters, an idyllic setting, a wonderful story. I wish I had book 8 in my hands right now. Waiting will be torture but I know it will be worth it.
This entire series is outstanding! I highly recommend them all! Run, don’t walk, get your copy today! Enjoy! You can thank me later
I just finished reading, A KILLER CAROL, and I wish I had the next book in this series to read right now. Seriously, waiting for a new book in this series to be released it close to unbearable. I’m always bummed when I’m finished reading one. It’s like being on the best vacation ever, only to wake up the next day back at home.
A KILLER CAROL (I miss the puny Amish themed title with this one), is another delightful installment to the Amish Mysteries. Author Laura Bradford has once again taken us to Heavenly, Pennsylvania. I love the setting of this series and I adore the characters.
Ms. Bradford knows how to write a mystery that pulls me in. This book was no different. There’s a double murder to solve this time, and the main suspects are an Amish couple that are friends of protagonist, Claire. While the Amish are said to do no harm, it’s easy to believe that just may be the case this time. With Amish and “English” (non-Amish) adding to the suspect pool, this was one mystery that had me stumped.
If you’re a fan of true to the meaning “cozy” mysteries, you’re going to love, A KILLER CAROL. If you’re an Amish fiction fan, you’re going to love, A KILLER CAROL. If you’re a fan of Laura Bradford, you’re . . . okay, you see where I’m heading with this right? Plain and simple, you are going to love, A KILLER CAROL!
This is one of those times when being a book reviewer and keeping your own bias out of the review shows. I enjoy reading about new cultures and customs, so in that regard learning more about the Amish was a great experience. If I were to let my bias set in I would give this book a three because it was way too sweet for me, even in regards to it being a cozy. Even with a murder and people being shunned, everyone was just loving to each other and telling them they are great people and how they are so happy they are in their lives. For me, this much kumbaya should be relegated to Chick Lit or Christian fiction.
But I realize this is how An Amish Mystery series is written, as well as other books featuring the Amish. So I can’t give the book less credit because Laura Bradford still wrote a good novel with great descriptions of the town and wonderful character development.
The reason I’m not giving it five stars is because Claire was driving me crazy with how passive-aggressive she was being with her boyfriend, Jakob. She thinks he’s acting really strange and then later on, that he’s cheating on her. She keeps getting upset and walking away from him, saying she can’t bother him right now because of the case and all the stress he’s under. Come on! Since all the Amish wives are so meek, please have at least the main character, who is not Amish, show a little spunk.
And the mystery started off strong, but once we get a look at the letter, I feel like it gave you the answer right then. Claire kept looking at it wrong, which maybe would make the reader think the same thing. But I really hope they didn’t, especially if they are a fan of cozies.
I can’t see myself reading any more in this series, but I would love to give her other four cozy mysteries series a try to see if the characters have a bit more grit. Bradford’s other series are; the Emergency Dessert Squad Mysteries, the Tobi Tobias Mysteries, the Jenkins and Burns Mysteries, and the Southern Sewing Circle Mysteries.
I loved this book. Every time I thought I figured it out the plot changed again. Great characters
A Killer Carol is the seventh book in Laura Bradford’s fabulous Amish Mystery series. This book is another great story filled with the elements of a cozy mystery including suspense, romance, humor, love, friends and family, and a sense of community. The setting is perfect for a Christmas mystery: it is snowing outside, there are festive decorations all around Lighted Way, and Christmas music is often playing. I would love to visit Heavenly. The ending was so awesome – even though I had guessed early on what was going on with Jakob – it still made me teary-eyed.
I was eagerly awaiting this 7th in the series and I wasn’t disappointed.
Claire is busy organizing a Christmas celebration for Heavenly. Things go downhill fast when an Amish couple is found murdered and Claire’s close friend is a suspect. Added to that, Claire suspects that she is being lied to by someone close.
Ms. Bradford has a way of bringing a book to life so that you find it very easy to wrap yourself into the story. The feelings that Claire goes through comes through with all that is going on. The mystery was excellent and wrapped up nicely and I thoroughly enjoyed the ending. I will definitely continue on with this series and am eagerly awaiting the next book.
A Killer Carol is the 7th installment in Laura Bradford’s Amish Mystery series. When my pre-ordered e-book downloaded to my Kindle on release day, I considered waiting until closer to Christmas to read it. But the more I looked at that gorgeous cover, I just couldn’t take it anymore and dove into this book. WOW, what a great story!
Heavenly Treasures Gift Shop owner Claire Weatherly is in charge of this year’s Christmas festival in Heavenly, PA. She wants to make sure that the festival turns out just perfectly, since it was her idea. During the planning and preparations for the festival, an elderly Amish couple is found murdered. Claire’s boyfriend, Detective Jakob Fisher, jumps on the case to attempt solving this horrible holiday crime. Unfortunately, there is reason to believe that some of Claire’s Amish friends may have a motive for the crime. As Claire tries to dig up information to help exonerate her friends, she and Jakob seem to be having relationship issues that make her question her actions. Bradford skillfully leaves clue after clue that could point to several different suspects. I must say that the identity of the killer is not who I expected it to be at all. Great job by Laura Bradford on this book! I can’t wait to read the next in the series.
I just love the Amish Mysteries by Laura Bradford. The descriptions of Amish life are very interesting, and I love the interactions in the book between the Amish and English (non-Amish) characters. Heavenly, PA is a place I’d like to live and all the characters seem like a big family to me. I really hope that this series will continue on for several more books, as I want to see how the relationship between Claire and Jakob develops and continue to keep tabs on all of our favorite Amish characters as well. I highly recommend this book and the whole series to anyone who enjoys a good, clean cozy mystery!
A Killer Carol
I love the Amish Mystery series by Laura Bradford! This is the seventh book in the series and I really hope there will be more! I have grown to love the characters and the Amish and English sides of Heavenly, Pennsylvania!
This is the seventh installment in Laura Bradford’s Amish Mysteries series, and no surprise, it is a winner! Claire Weatherly lives in Heavenly PA, a small town where usually, the Amish and “English”, as the Amish refer to non-Amish people, live in simple, quiet harmony. Just before Christmas, the quiet is shattered when an elderly Amish couple is found murdered in their own home. Claire’s boyfriend, Jakob, who left the Amish to become a policeman, is charged with figuring out who did it. As he looks at Claire’s good friends as potential suspects, she knows she has to figure out who really killed the couple. At the same time, she is trying to deal with betrayal on a personal level. Is someone close to her really lying to her, as she suspects?
I have enjoyed all the books in this series, and this one is no exception. Ms. Bradford describes the area in and around the fictional Heavenly so vividly, I always feel as if I am visiting the delightful Lancaster Pa. area. Her characters are wonderful, making you wish you could just sit down and have a cup of coffee or a piece of pie with them . The mystery is puzzling enough to make you wonder, which of these folks did it, and I have to admit, the real villain was not even on my radar until the end! This was a great book, not only because of the mystery, but also the Christmas feel, and the smile it left on my face as I closed the book. If you haven’t read it yet, take a few hours to embrace Claire and her world. I am pretty sure you will be glad you did!
Fantastic book and I highly recommend!!! An older Amish couple are found dead in Heavenly, Pennsylvania. It appears it was murder and Claire’s Amish friend, Ruth, and her husband are the prime suspects. Jakob is having a hard time with this, as it hurts his relationship with Eli, Ruth’s twin brother. Jakob has also been acting strangely, which causes Claire to worry that their relationship is ending. As the town gears up for the holiday festival and the Amish mourn their loss, a killer must be found. This has been my favorite book in the series so far and I so hope there will be more. These characters are ones that feel like family and friends and the town is charming. I always enjoy learning more about the Amish and think it would be fun to live around an Amish culture. I look forward to seeing what’s next for Jakob and Claire and their friends!
This is one of my all-time favorite cozy mystery series and each book just keeps getting better. I think this is perhaps my favorite book in the series, although it is hard to choose. This series hits all the high notes I look for in a cozy mystery. The setting is idyllic, the characters are full, rich and well developed and the mystery is strong with a good steady plot. When I open a book in the Amish Mystery series I know I am going to be swept away to a quieter and simpler place for hours of entertainment. When I opened this book, I was excited to visit with these characters and return to Heavenly, PA. By now these characters feel like familiar friends and I can’t wait to catch up and see what is new in their lives. Laura Bradford has created a delightfully authentic series and I sincerely hope that there are more books to come because this is one series cozy series I can’t imagine not being able to read.