Dead in the Water

Swanson’s witty, charming 20th adventure set in Scumble River, Ill., the first in a series reboot that moves the timeline forward to 2017, finds a very pregnant school psychologist Skye Denison-Boyd (who was suffering morning sickness in 2016’s Murder of a Cranky Catnapper) and her hunky husband, police chief Wally Boyd, dealing with the aftermath of a devastating tornado. But there’s no time to mourn their own losses; Skye’s jerk of an uncle, Mayor Dante Leofanti, is bellowing threats at Wally and demanding that he personally perform checks on his cronies’ properties. This turns up the body of city councilman Zeke Lyons, whose death doesn’t look accident- or tornado-related. But before Wally can delve too far into Zeke’s death, his check on an old farmhouse lands him in personal peril. And when Carson Boyd, Wally’s Texas millionaire dad, arrives to help, the well-kept secret of Wally’s wealthy background becomes another issue. Based on this delightful entry, this cozy series should have a long, bright future. Agent: Laura Blake Peterson, Curtis Brown. (Sept.)