Murder Tightly Knit (Amish Village Mystery #2) by Vannetta Chapman [Review & Giveaway]

ISBN13: 9780310325697

About the book: In a town where Amish and Englisch mingle every day, a grisly murder leads to mutual suspicion. Can Amber and Hannah find the killer before fear unravels the community . . . or he strikes again?

Now, as leaves of brown, gold, and orange blanket Middlebury, Indiana, Owen lies dead on the Pumpkinvine Trail. The only clues to the murderer’s identity point in two very different directions.

The police call in a federal investigator, but Hannah and Village manager Amber Bowman are in no mood to wait for them to figure out what they already know—that no one from the Amish Village could have killed Owen Esch.

Amber and Hannah will need to work quickly to solve the murder mystery and bring harmony back to the Amish community.

My thoughts: In the first book of the Amish Village Mystery series, Murder Simply Brewed (read my review-click here), the author takes the reader into a lovely, quiet village of touristy, shopper friendly shops. These are manned by folks of the Amish faith as well as non-Amish and they work well together. The series is a gentle read in the genre of cozy mystery. Prepare as you open the pages of Murder Tightly Knit to have this gentle atmosphere shattered with the murder of a local Amish man whose heart was pierced with the arrow of a crossbow.

While the story opens with the shattering of peace that normally surrounds the village, the story flows with a gentle rhythm as good folks work together and in desperation to find the killer.

I thought it interesting that the author wove into the story the growth of survivalist groups and their varied agendas that cause concern and investigation by the government. The Amish are grouped with survivalists of a darker motive, yet the Amish are just a naturally conservative group that believes in harvesting their bounty and in preparing for the future with what God allows. While not an integral part of the story, it does, however, factor in to the activities of the characters.

Chapman writes a good story. It is clean. It presents the Amish lifestyle and faith with clarity and respect. The solution to the mystery is not easy to determine (at least for this reader). I like that the story had the killer speak between chapters. He revealed a little of himself, but not enough to solve the mystery. Of course, he wasn't speaking to anyone - it was just "himself" on the pages for the reader to get to know a bit of.

I recommend this book as a good, clean, relaxing cozy mystery that is faith based.

GIVEAWAY: Vannetta Chapman has reserved a copy of Murder Tightly Knit for one of Chat With Vera's readers to win. Use the entry form below. Begins January 19 & ENDS February 9 @ 12:01 a.m. ET. Open to USA addresses only.
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About the author: Vannetta Chapman writes inspirational fiction full of grace. She has published over one hundred articles in Christian family magazines, receiving more than two dozen awards from Romance Writers of America chapter groups. She discovered her love for the Amish while researching her grandfather’s birthplace of Albion, Pennsylvania.

Her novel, Falling to Pieces, was a 2012 ACFW Carol Award winner for best mystery. All of her books have been Christian Book Distributor bestsellers. She currently writes Amish fiction for Abingdon Press, Zondervan, and Harvest House. Chapman lives in the Texas hill country with her husband.

DISCLOSURE: I was provided a complimentary copy in exchange for my review. I was not compensated for this review. Opinions expressed are solely my own.