Review: "A Very Woodsy Murder," Ellen Byron

By Liz Soares

Dee Stern is fed up with her frustrating career as a sitcom writer. She’s striking out for gold—almost literally—in this fun and funny cozy mystery.

Dee and her friend Jeff (who’s also her ex-husband) have bought the Golden Motel in the tiny town of Foundgold. The Golden is a rundown assortment of cottages in the foothills of the the Sierra Nevada. It needs a lot of work, but the place has potential.

It’s directly next to the Majestic National Park, as well as the kitschy tourist town of Goldsgone. Yes, after the wannabe miners ran out of luck—and precious metals—in Foundgold, they headed next door. And seemingly never left. In Goldsgone’s quaint downtown, the Victorian buildings are lovingly maintained, the merchants dress in gingham and the smell of sarsaparilla seems to be everywhere.

Dee hopes to cash in on the “forty-niners” vibe, but she and Jeff soon find out that their new home is not as idyllic as it appeared. Michael Adam Baker shows up as their first paying guest. He’s an annoying former colleague of Dee’s. She suspects he’s up to no good, especially when she finds him snooping in her apartment. Then he turns up dead—with half his body on motel property, half on national park land.

This means both the local sheriff and a park ranger—who don’t get along—are on the case. Of course, Dee and Jeff also have to get in on the sleuthing—they are losing business as the “murder’ motel.

There’s no lack of suspects. Michael Adam Baker was a local boy, and he had burned a lot of bridges before he hit the road for LA.

An entertaining cast of characters populate the two towns, including Elmira, proprietor of the All-in-One General Store. Her home-baked goodies are, unfortunately, disgusting. Serena Finlay-Katz is married to a powerful Hollywood agent. No one can predict who will be in Serena’s baby sling and who in the stroller—baby Emmy or her Morkie dog, Oscar. Serena creates charcuterie boards and turns up with them on all occasions.

There’s also Ma’am and Mister Ma’am, who live in the woods and show up any time a charcuterie board does; Verity Donner Gillespie (descendent of those Donners and proud of it); and Dee’s dad, Sam, a voice actor who can’t help but converse with his daughter in the voice of “Colonel Cluck” and other favorite characters.

There’s a second murder, a fire in one of the cottages, and Dee is attacked. It’s clear that someone wants Dee and Jeff gone. They are undeterred, even as bookings are cancelled and it looks like they have made a big mistake in buying the Golden.

I thoroughly enjoyed A Very Woodsy Murder. Dee and Jeff are likeable protagonists, and the fact that Dee has adopted the prior owner’s old dog, Nugget, is a bonus. The writing is witty, the action nonstop and the vintage motel concept interesting. This appears to be the first in a series—I’m already looking forward to the next installment.