As the widow of a revered Millersburg College alumnus and one of the school's biggest donors, Juliet Favor has immense wealth that empowers her acquisition of whatever, and whomever, she wants. So when Juliet is murdered the night before she is slated to sign a new will--one that would prove unfavorable to both the college and her two children, Sonny and Sally--Sheriff Bruce Robertson faces no shortage of suspects. Professor Michael Branden and Pastor Caleb Troyer fear that Martha Lehman, Sonny's Mennonite girlfriend, holds the key.

The idea of the story was interesting but was written in a way that there wasn’t much impact or suspense. I also never really cared about the characters. I think there needed to be a little more development of the story to draw me in. Overall, just a so-so read. ( )

Martha Lehman, a former Amish and now Mennonite woman, had a troubled childhood which caused her to stop speaking for a number of years. Now something has triggered a reaction that has suppressed her speech once again. She shows up at the steps of her counselor with blood on her apron and body. In the meantime, part-time sheriff's deputy and professor at Millersburg College Michael Brandon is called to investigate the death of Juliet Favor, a woman with deep pockets who was about to change her will, giving motives to a multitude of persons. Martha was dating the son of the woman and had been at the home the previous night as had most of the woman's family members and department heads and administrators of the college. Brandon and others do not believe Martha capable of murder but believe she is covering up for someone. The conclusion itself is fairly predictable based on the hints dropped. However, it was a pleasant way to spend a few hours. I personally believe the author was preaching the superiority of Mennonite faith to Amish faith. As a Christian, I do believe in salvation by grace through faith as the author portrayed the Mennonites. However, I'm not sure what the author's point was in bringing up the perceived reliance on good works in Amish doctrine. The material would have been more appropriate in an appendix than in the story as it was irrelevant to the plot. I listened to the audio book read by George Newbern who did a good job as he had in earlier installments. ( )

Every action creates a reaction, and often the chain of events is unpredictable. P. L. Gaus spins a spellbinding tale of greed and motherly love careening out of control in this fourth book of his Amish mystery series. Set in Ohio, Gaus does a masterful job of describing the communities of the Amish and the English and what happens when the two interact. There is an undercurrent of despair and secrecy, of control and defiance. Clues are present for the astute reader: match your wits with the characters to solve the mystery. ( )

The murder of a multimillionaire in her own home has the quiet county of Holmes stirred up. Being mostly Amish, there is little to no crime in the area, but when it happens the crime is BIG. The problem the police have in solving this case is it seems EVERYONE has a motive to murder Juliet Favor! She is a decidedly wicked woman with a vengeful streak and she has no problem telling people what she thinks of them, from her daughter to the president of the University….or cutting the funds her late husband endowed on Millersburg College and their children.
Martha Lehman is a troubled young lady with a terrible past and even she doesn’t understand everything that has happened to her. Silent for years in her youth after this tragedy, Favor’s murder, she goes back to the trusted silence for protection again. Mike Braden is a professor at the college who is aiding the police and a friend of Martha. He is helping interview possible suspects when he gets a call that Martha has been found with blood all over her!
The Amish community has never brought peace to Martha, so her friends get defensive when an old neighbor shows up to help Martha. She is either guilty of murder, covering up for someone or too traumatized to speak, but everything in the case hinges on Martha, and her silence is screaming.
With a masterful story telling ability, Gaus has you turning the pages of this book as quickly as you can to determine ‘who done it’ and how they did! You don’t want to miss this installment of his Amish-Country Mystery Series!
Reviewed by Ashley Wintters for Suspense Magazine ( )

Part of a series. This book either draws heavily on a previous volume that I haven't read, or the backstory is told in bits & pieces and by allusion. It was moderately interesting. There seemed to an anti-Amish, pro-Mennonite tone & theme.