Emilie Richards Blessed is the Busybody

Blessed is the Busybody

Emilie Richards

Berkley, Dec 2005, $6.99, 272 pp.

ISBN: 0425207242

Relocating to Emerald Springs, Ohio Aggie Sloan-Wilcox, the wife of the Minister of the Consolidated Community Church, misses the excitement of their previous home in the DC area. Still Aggie loves and supports her spouse Ed, is a good mother to their daughters Deena and Teddy, and cares for the members of the congregation, who consider her a likable eccentric; all that is except septuagenarian town leader Lady Gelsey Falowell, who disrespects the Wilcox family.

Hearing Sally Berrigan scream, Aggie rushes outside her home to see on her front porch a dead naked female, covered somewhat by a granny square, knitted by Aggie's mother during a short singles stage between spouse three and four. Detective Kirkor Roussos heads the investigation in which Teddy mentions that her spouse had a public altercation with the deceased just yesterday. Everyone, including Kirk, theorizes that even a saint like Ed could go over the top when dealing with an insulting maniac like the victim. Everyone that is, except Aggie, who knows her husband the pacifist, could not hurt a fly. She plans to prove she is right by uncovering the identity of the real culprit, though that places her in danger of becoming a victim too.

BLESSED IS THE BUSYBODY is a delightful cozy, that stars an amateur sleuth who feels as if she swims upstream against the tide. The storyline provides insight into the local politics of religion within the dueling investigations. All comes together in this fine "Ministry is Murder" thriller, that starts with eccentricity (Teddy digging holes to bury the family's living cat), and continues that way until the final altercation. Emilie Richards writes a fun cozy, with a serious look at religious politics.

Harriet Klausner