Mother's Day Murder
Leslie Meier
Kensington, Apr 2009, $22.00
ISBN 9780758207050

In Tinker's Cove, Maine, right wing republican Tina Nowak and left wind democrat Barbara "Bar" Hume are fighting but not over politics. Instead the pair is disputing over the relative merits of their sixteen years old daughters, Ashley and Heather as the teens compete for valedictorian.

Their war spills over to a Prom committee in which Pennysaver reporter Lucy Stone plays peacekeeper keeping the felines from a cat fight. Unfortunately, Lucy gets distracted by a high school baseball star asking her freshman daughter Sara to the prom, her daughter-in-law's suffering with postpartum depression and spending time with her newborn first grandson. Lucy is stunned to see what looks like Bar Shoot Tina on a tennis court. Lucy investigates the feuding families only to learn the mistress of Bar's philandering spouse Bart died in a car crash. Her inquiry places mother and daughter in jeopardy from someone using the feud to cover a homicide.

The latest Lucy Stone holiday cozy (see FATHER'S DAY MURDER, NEW YEAR'S EVE MURDER and ST. PATRICK'S DAY MURDER) is a fun whodunit filled with several subplots that compete for top gun even with a homicide, but ultimately converge into a nice and cozy Maine investigative thriller. Lucy is terrific as she goes from harassed to witness to doubter to investigator. Fans of the series will enjoy Leslie Meier's fun tale.