In reading a 'stash' of novels in the Deborah Knott Mysteries series that have been on my tbr shelves, I began with Book 2, and continued to read Book 3, Book 6, and Book 7. In reading Book 13, there is welcome news for the series readers but for me it was also bittersweet in missing the developments of Book 8-12. I'm sure that at some point I will read all the books I missed and including up to when the series ended in 2015 with Book 20. I can easily imagine that fans of the series eagerly await "Tales from Colleton County" with anticipated publication date of April 30, 2020. The author is said to have "gathered some of Deborah's shorter adventures...a dozen stories of mystery and mayhem beginning with the very first tale from Colleton County, North Carolina, and concluding with a never-before-published Deborah Knott story."

I was excited to see that "Deborah Knott's Family Tree" is again available on the opposite page of Chapter 1 as it is very useful. The 1st time that I viewed the family tree was in Book 6, "Home Fires." After reading several books in the series right in a row I'm more familiar with Deborah's large family but it is a good resource and I wish it would have been available in the first book I read in the series which was Book 2, "Southern Discomfort.”

This novel continued a feature which I enjoy as it provides a "heading" and/or very effective "lead-in" at the beginning of each chapter. In this novel the italicized sentences are verses of hymns which are credited on the copyright page: All chapter epigraphs are from "Profitable Farming in the Southern States," by J. W. Fitz. “Assisted by a Large Corps of Prominent and Successful Agricultural Writers,” 1890. Franklin Publishing Company, Richmond, Virginia. Margaret Maron's selected epigraphs are as true to farming today as they were when written in 1890.

In this series Margaret Maron used the foundation of a strong, independent female, Deborah Knott and a large and yet close-knit family to explore diverse issues from rape to elections to building homes for single mothers to racism to hurricanes to the challenges of farming from the family history of being tobacco farmers, the initial use of pesticides to the advent of the younger generation trying to explain the desire and need for organic farming. The writing is compelling yet straightforward. I also appreciated the sense of humor the author gave to Deborah Knott as throughout the series Deborah has 2 sides of her brain quietly talking to her - the preacher and the pragmatist.

I really enjoyed this series. Each book can easily be read as a stand-alone but to enjoy reading multiple novels in the series consecutively has been pure joy. ( )

As Judge Deborah Knott presides over a case involving a barroom brawl, it becomes clear that deep resentments over race, class, and illegal immigration are simmering just below the surface in the countryside. An early spring sun has begun to shine like a blessing on the fertile fields of North Carolina, but along with the seeds sprouting in the thawing soil, violence is growing as well. Mutilated body parts have appeared along the back roads of Colleton County, and the search for the victim's identity and for that of his killer will lead Deborah and her new husband, Sheriff's Deputy Dwight Bryant, into the desperate realm of undocumented farm workers exploited for cheap labor.

In the meantime, Deborah and Dwight continue to adjust to married life and to having Dwight's eight-year-old son, Cal, live with them full time. When another body is found, these newlyweds will discover dark truths that threaten to permanently alter the serenity of their rural surroundings and their new life together. ( )

If you're looking for a cozy, (a character driven mystery story that focuses on the people involved as much as the mystery) look no further. I'm glad I listened to the audiobook version. It's slow pace is well suited to being told, rather than read.

When I read it I thought it was the first in the series. Come to find out, it's the 13th. Oops. Originally, I was willing to forgive some of the slowness as setting the scene - but by book 13, the scene is already well set. The writing is okay, and the characters have a lot of depth, but the mystery took a distant 2nd or 3rd place to the goings ons in the characters' lives. I may pick up some of the others in this series, but only if I find them at the library as audiobooks. ( )

Body parts are found strewn across Colleton County, no doubt its murder but who is the victim. Meanwhile, the Judge starts learning to be a stepmom as well as how to be a hockey fan. Lots of insights into farming and the cost that "guest workers" pay to earn a living. Another good story about Deborah's extensive and growing family and their changing roles in the once rural South. ( )

Another good entry in the Judge Deborah Knott series. Dismembered body parts start showing up in odd places (OK, I don't know what would NOT be an odd place for them to show up) and Dwight Bryant has his hands full both with the investigation and with his young son, who is still grieving for his dead mother and trying to adjust to his new living situation. Maron handles all this life story stuff so well I wouldn't even care if the mystery was a bit lackluster, but this one was very well put together. I had a pretty good idea who was dead and even who was responsible, but the side bits and whys and wherefores were not so obvious. Solid escape read.