Barbara Ross

Torn Asunder is the twelfth book in the A Maine Clambake Mystery by Barbara Ross.

The renovations at Windsholme Manor on Morrow Island are complete, and the first wedding will soon be held. The first wedding will be the marriage of Julia's good friends, Zoey Butterfield and Jamie Dawes. In addition to being in the wedding party, Julia is the wedding and venue planner. The wedding is threatened by a horrible storm traveling up the coast to Maine. Everyone hopes the wedding and everyone will be back on the mainland before the storm hits. As the rehearsal dinner guests arrive, it is noticed that an uninvited guest has arrived. The rehearsal dinner is served, and soon, the uninvited collapses and dies. None of the guests are willing to admit to knowing the man, even though Julia saw him in disagreements with a couple of wedding guests. Julia and Tom, her boyfriend and a Maine State Police detective, begin to investigate the death. The storm has rolled in, and everybody is confined to the island. With everyone staying inside due to the storm, it seems that it would be easier to find the murderer, but the more questions they ask, the more suspects they uncover.

I love this series. The stories are all well-written, plotted, and written so that you feel you are right there. The characters are well-developed and believable. There were enough twists and turns that I was kept guessing until the end as to the identity of the murderer.

Delicious-sounding recipes are also included in the book.

It sadden me to learn that this was the last book in this excellent series. It has been a wonderful time visiting Julia and her family and attending the delicious-sounding clambakes. Ms. Ross does a fantastic job of giving a glimpse into the character's future life.… (altro)

Julia Snowden helps run the Snowden Family Clambake, which is given all summer on the private island her family owns. Her best friend Zoey is marrying Jamie, another friend, and they want to hold their wedding on the island. While is was difficult to find an open weekend, everything is planned. Julia and her sister Livvie are in the wedding party, along with Jamie's police partner Pete and his cousin Dan. They are the scheduled ones to stay on the island overnight.

The rehearsal dinner is a grand affair. All the guests are invited to try the clambake dinner, and so both sides are attending. Jamie's large family, and Zoey's friends, since she has no family left. Julia notices a man mingling that she's never seen, and assumes he's a friend of Zoey's. But when the man dies during the dinner, no one seems to know who he is.

But do they? While most of the guests were able to leave before the storm hit, it is now in full force, and the remaining people are stuck on the island with a corpse. With a man that possibly one of them murdered. :Luckily, Julia's boyfriend Tom Flynn is there, a detective with the Maine State Police, so he can question everyone. But will they tell him the truth? Or will a murderer go free?...

I have read all the books in this series, and I have enjoyed them all. They are like old friends to me. Julia, her family members, her friends. I have witnessed their heartbreaks and triumphs, and shared this through them vicariously. It has been a journey that I've highly enjoyed. A journey that has, alas, come to an end. I would not have mentioned this, but others on social media have already popped the balloon.

But the mystery is done just as well as we expected. People are keeping secrets, telling lies; and eventually it will all have to come out. Someone knew the dead man. Someone wanted him dead. But with so many suspects -- and they are -- which one had the opportunity. Many had motive.

Julia isn't sure the wedding will go on, but Zoey wants to get married, and nothing is going to stop her, not even wondering if someone she knows is a killer. But Tom and Julia need to find that killer before the wedding. The problem is, will they be able to do so?

In the end, we are given a bittersweet finale to this series. There is a lot of pleasantry in it, a completion of the tale, as you will. It is a lovely tribute to all those we've known (and loved many of them); and a fitting end to the story. I am sad to lose this series, but the author has done a wonderful job through the years. Thank you, Ms. Ross. Highly recommended.

I received an advance copy from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.… (altro)