Kappy King and the Pie Kaper

In Lillard’s unremarkable third Amish mystery (after 2018’s Kappy King and the Pickle Kaper), Kappy King, a member of a middle-of-the-road Amish denomination in Blue Sky, Pa., learns that Alma Miller, the bishop’s wife, has been hospitalized after being found bludgeoned and unconscious on the floor of her home. The only clue to the identity of her assailant is a cryptic message Alma managed to write on the floor in flour: “Nine babies. ME blue.” Kappy, along with her non-Amish friend Edie Peachey, play amateur detective, focusing on the theory that the assault was motivated by the victim’s skill at pie baking. The attack came shortly before the next scheduled local pie-making contest, which gains even more attention when word arrives that a representative of the national Mrs. O’Malley’s Pies chain is planning to attend. Some pleasant light touches include Kappy persuading herself that Amish rules don’t specifically proscribe “solving a murder mystery on a Sunday,” but this cozy is best suited to readers willing to overlook implausible developments. [em]Agent: Mary Sue Seymour, Seymour Agency. (Jan.) [/em]