As someone who enjoyed the first seven books in this series, this new installment with a new publisher disappointed me. In previous installments, Professor Michael Brandon was the main character/sleuth. Brandon is nowhere around for the first 2/3 of the book. When he does show up, he's conveniently in Florida with his wife when Ricky Neill needs to come down and will need help. The sheriff's department became central, and I felt the time was split between Sheriff Robertson and Ricky Neill. An Amish girl's brutal murder sparks an investigation which shows she unknowingly carried drugs from Florida back to Holmes County in an extra suitcase she was not to open. Other Amish girls who recently visited Pinecraft as well as other evidence help them identify suspects. Holmes County officials work with Florida officials and the DEA to bring resolution. However, the resolution is perhaps the weakest part of this installment. While I enjoy the characters of Sheriff Robertson and Ricky Neill, I want Professor Brandon back in a central role in future installments. ( )

I have come to enjoy Gaus's Amish Country books, believing they are one of the more accurate fictional depictions of the Amish currently available. In this book, a young Amish girl is murdered after returning from a vacation in Florida. Apparently she inadvertently became involved in drug-running between Sarasota and Holmes County. The description of the Florida Amish community is especially interesting. Recommended for those interested in an unvarnished look at Amish life. ( )

Got an early egalley of this by mistake (wrong file downloaded from Net Galley). I was unfamiliar with this series, and had I believed the gooshey blurbs, would probably not have picked this up. I usually avoid anything labeled Christian lit, not because I'm anti-Christian (quite the contrary) but because the genre tends to be too gooey sweet for me.

This is a first rate murder mystery, evidently part of a series. The religious connection comes from its setting and its characters. The victim is a young Amish girl who appears to have become somehow involved in drug-running between Florida and Ohio. How the local sheriff goes about solving the who and why makes for a riveting story. Gaus holds the reader's interest, adds plots twists and new elements, all the while weaving in a respectful description of Amish mores and precepts.

It's not the first in the series, but can easily stand alone. ( )