Something Borrowed, Something Bleu: A Home Crafting Mystery

Artisan cheese making and a really stinky cold case (or two) occupy soap maker Sophie Mae Reynolds of Cadyville, Wash., in Macrae’s well-constructed fourth Home Crafting mystery (after 2009’s Spin a Wicked Web). Sophie heads home to Spring Creek, Colo., after her mother, Anna Belle Watson, receives a disturbing letter, lost for 18 years, that never reached its intended recipient. Sophie Mae’s late brother, Bobby Lee, wrote the letter to his teen sweetheart, Tabby Atwood, shortly before hanging himself. Tabby, now married to Joe Bines, Bobby Lee’s best friend, is shocked when Sophie shows up at their dairy to take Tabby’s cheese-making class and show her the letter. The plot thickens after someone fatally beans Joe with a glass bottle of heavy cream. Likable characters and an easy-to-follow plot that doesn’t require knowledge of previous entries in the series are a plus. (July)