Claire Weatherly and her beau, police detective Jakob Fisher, learn that when it comes to murder, evil can hide in plain sight in this all-new addition to the national bestselling Amish Mysteries.Jakob and Claire have been enjoying more time together in lovely Heavenly, PA. With Claire’s help, the detective is making slow progress reconnecting with the members of his Amish family who shunned him … family who shunned him when he left to pursue a career in law enforcement. Jakob’s mentor, Russ Granger, the long-retired police chief who inspired him to become a cop, is back in town. Claire has always wanted to meet the man who changed the course of Jakob’s life. But not long after he arrives in Heavenly, Russ is murdered.
Jakob can only imagine that his old friend must have been killed by someone outside of the Amish community. He and Claire soon find that things are not as they seem–and that Russ may have stumbled into something sinister before he was killed. The answers they uncover are closer to home and more shocking than they ever expected.
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I never get quite excited as I do when a new book in the Amish Mysteries is released. One of my top favorite cozy mystery series since it first came out, getting to read a new installment is like Christmas and my birthday all rolled into one.
I truly enjoyed, JUST PLAIN MURDER. It was nice learning about Russ Granger, the cop that inspired Jakob Fisher to want to become a police officer. Using Granger as the murder victim in this tale, was a great way for author Laura Bradford to bring a lot of emotion into the story.
The investigation into the murder doesn’t turn up a lot of information as to who would have wanted the victim dead. Right up until the not-so-action-packed end (which actually made for a realistic change), it really could have been anyone. The reveal was a huge shock to me. I never saw it coming. That may be in part to the author keeping me distracted with a newborn baby, a new love match, and a Rumspringa gone wrong. Way to divert attention, Ms. Bradford!
A well done addition to this wonderful series, JUST PLAIN MURDER is a plain good read.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
The lines become a little more blurred between the English and the Amish as Jacob Fisher’s mentor returns to Heavenly only to be killed before the two men can reconnect. The family that has shunned him knows how much this man meant to him. Claire is trying to bring his family closer while doing her best to be there for him herself, but he is carrying a heavy load of burden. This awful crime happened in his town and on his watch. He can’t believe anyone in Heavenly would be behind the heinous act, but he needs to get to the truth and find out what his friend stumbled into that got him killed.
Laura Bradford has written quite a mystery in this long-awaited return to Heavenly Pennsylvania. She gives us a clearer picture of Jacob Fisher and why he left the Amish way of life to become a police officer. Because he did it after he was baptized he has been shunned by his family. He paid that high price because he found his true purpose in law enforcement. Sadly, a man he respected, his mentor, has been killed and Jacob needs to step away from his pain and grieving to bring a killer to justice. The author brings Claire into the picture as support in a tender way, as a helpmate to lean on and a sounding board and partner in solving the crime. Her intuition and ability to get closer to the Amish make them a great team.
The amateur sleuth really came out of me while reading this story. It was very complex and surprising. There was a subplot about a rebellious Amish teen on rumspringa that twisted into the main plot and by the end, the teen played a key role and had an awakening of their own.
Ms. Bradford’s storytelling talents were out in full force for this story. By the end I cared more for characters I already cared for greatly. She brought out my mothering feelings regarding that teen and I genuinely was concerned about his life and hope he is included in future stories. The characters in this story continue to be some of my favorites. They continue to grow and their lives move forward and I feel blessed to follow them on their life journeys.
I have loved the town of Heavenly and it’s uniqueness since book 1 and I hope we will not have to wait as long to visit again. I look forward to many more stories with Claire, Jacob, their friends, and their families.
In the time that shop owner Claire Weatherly has been dating detective Jakob Fisher, she has never met Russ Granger, the man Jakob counts as a mentor and father figure. Of course, it makes sense since Russ has retired and moved to Florida. He is back in Heavenly, Pennsylvania, for a visit, but before Jakob and Russ can reconnect, Russ is murdered. Distraught over the man’s death, Jakob throws himself into solving the crime. Can Claire help him come up with any leads?
It’s been two and a half years since we’ve been able to visit this community, and I hadn’t realized just how much I missed it until I was reading the first page. I was immediately swept back into the peaceful state I find while reading this series. In keeping with a town next to an Amish community, the pace in this series has always been a bit on the slow side, but I did feel this book’s pacing was slower than normal. Still, when the pace does pick up, we get a well-done plot. The real star has always been the characters, and I was thrilled to be able to visit them again. They are as wonderful as ever, and I enjoyed some of the developments happening in their lives.
This was my first time reading a book from this series and I truly enjoyed it. I was pulled in from the beginning and didn’t put it down until the end. The characters and setting captured my attention right away and the mystery kept me going from there. After the first few chapters I was able to get a sense of who the characters were, I felt like I knew who Claire and Jakob were by the end. I liked the way they worked together as a team and their relationship felt like a true connection. Claire was truly the anchor that Jakob needed in this read after the murder of the man who changed his young life. After reading this book I will definitely be going back and reading the previous books. I liked learning about the Amish way of life and this book was a great source of information. You could tell the author did quite a bit of research that led the book to its authentic feel when it came to all things Amish. I look forward to seeing where the author takes these characters next!
Just Plain Murder is the sixth book in the An Amish Mystery series.
This is a wonderful series centering around the lives of Claire Weatherly, a shop owner, and her police detective, Jakob Fisher and the Amish community of Heavenly, PA. Jakob had been baptized in the Amish but had decided to leave the Amish church and become a policeman. Growing up he had been in awe of the police chief of Heavenly, Russ Granger, who ended up being Jakob’s mentor. A few years ago Granger retired and moved to Florida, but had always kept in touch with Jakob often reviewing cases with each other. Granger liked to review “cold cases” thinking he might see something that would be the clue needed to solve the case.
Jakob is excited when he gets a phone call from Russ saying he is in town to visit with his daughter and grandchildren and would like to meet with Jakob that evening. Jakob puts off the meeting as he would probably have a late night and he and Claire have planned a picnic for the next morning. Unfortunately, while on their picnic Jakob gets a phone informing him the Russ Granger’s lifeless body has been found in the backyard of his daughter’s home.
Granger’s murder hits Jakob particularly hard, not only was he Jakob’s good friend and mentor, but Jakob feels that if he had met with him he wouldn’t have been killed. Jakob sets out to solve Granger’s murder and will do so with Claire’s valuable assistance.
Also happening in and around Heavenly. Claire’s Aunt Diane might have a romantic interest. Billy, who we met in book five has come back for another visit and just might become a regular character. Ben, an Amish friend of Claire’s, and who had wanted to leave the church for Claire, might see romance heading his way.
This is another well-plotted and told story from Ms. Bradford. The residents of Heavenly are wonderful and well developed and the interaction with the Amish community is well done.
I am looking forward to the next book in this delightful series.
Didn’t have the slightest clue of whodunit in Laura Bradford’s Just Plain Murder. I love when I’m completely surprised by who the real murderer turns out to be. This book grabbed me into the story and refused to let go until the last page. I enjoy that kind of reading experience.
Jakob Fisher’s friend and mentor, Russ Granger, former Chief of Police in Heavenly Pennsylvania , is found dead on his daughters property. The Chief had retired and moved to Florida but was visiting his daughter at the time of his death. He had been stabbed to death with only a shred of evidence left behind. Jakob was the Detective assigned to the case with basically nothing but a half of a shoe print left as a clue.
Russ Granger was well respected by the entire community. Jakob had known him since he was a young Amish boy and spent his rumspringa shadowing the Chief around the department. He spent a lot of time learning about law enforcement from Russ Granger. The two formed a close bond that lasted over the years. The former chief’s death was a hard blow to Jakob and he swore he would find Granger’s killer. Who could have hated the former Chief to the point of ending his life. What could motivate the killer to take such an violent act against the retired Chief.
Readers of Cozy Mysteries, Amish Fiction and fans of Laura Bradford will want to read Just Plain Murder. I highly recommend it .
I borrowed a Kindle ebook copy of this book from the Ohio Digital Library. A review was not requested. All opinions expressed here are my own.
This is the latest in Ms. Bradford’s Amish Mysteries Series. Even though the story-line keeps moving at a great pace, Ms. Bradford manages to keep a peaceful background which, to me, is wonderful. I have read all the books in this series and truly enjoyed reading them. The mysteries are realistic puzzlers; no “red herrings” dropped in at the end.
I have been a fan of this series from the start and this one did not disappoint! Not only is there mystery but romance as well. It is well written with twists and turns that will have you guessing until the end.
Ms. Bradford does it again with an eagerly awaited return to Heavenly, PA. She has developed a setting that is so easy to feel like you are walking into the story itself. The characters are so likable and it is fun to see them growing with each book.
We learn more of Jakob’s past in this book and why he left the Amish, when his mentor is murdered and he is struggling to find the murderer. We also get the side story of an Amish teen on Rumspringa who is wreaking havoc wherever he goes. I loved the story and the twist that pulled everything together in the end.
The fact that Ms. Bradford has researched the Amish shines through with how the characteristics bring them to life on the page. I eagerly await the next in this series.
Now as you see the title of this book it is the sixth in a series, but the first that I have read, and it didn’t take much to be caught up and involved in the lives of these English and Amish in Heavenly.
The author offers us a story with a bit of romance, family love and comradery, with a glimpse into Amish life, and unfortunately a murder.
Right to the end of the book you really don’t know how things are going to turn out, and I never saw the ending coming.
Now I want more, I want to move on with Claire and Jakob, and more of Diane and Bill, and now I am looking forward to another read in this series!
I received this book through First Reads, and was not required to give a positive review.
This was a great book! I had read dome of the series before, but not all of the books. Claire helps Jakob solve the murder of his mentor, who is murdered when he comes for a visit. The characters in this series are delightful,and I love reading about the Amish culture. I highly recommend this book! I can’t wait to go back and read the books in this series that I’ve missed and see what happens in the future both with Claire and Jakob and Aunt Diane and Bill!!!