Bones Under the Ice by Mary Ann Miller Book Review

About the Book:

Jhonni Laurent is the first female sheriff of Field' s Crossing, Indiana— and now she has her first murder case

Two days after a blizzard hits Field' s Crossing, Indiana, Sheriff Jhonni Laurent discovers the frozen body of a high school senior under a fifteen-foot pile of snow and ice. Murder is rare in farm country, and this death marks the beginning of Jhonni' s first homicide case.

Just as the investigation gets underway, Jhonni' s opponent for sheriff from four years ago wages a bitter reelection battle to oust her. Then, Jhonni finds another body, and further complications arise when a century-old feud between two families reaches its breaking point.

Soon, a slew of newspaper articles causes the Indiana State Election Board to doubt her credibility. Jhonni must fight to maintain her reputation, keep the small farming community together, and find the murderer at large— all while demons from her own past threaten to crush her. Can she find the killer and mend her battered spirit before it' s too late?

My Review:

I liked this novel, a new author and the first in a series. Miller has done a good job creating an engaging heroine. Sheriff Jhonni Laurent is a tenacious law officer, working hard to solve two murders even though faced with opposition. She is a flawed character in that she has a past that haunts her and one she has to own up to. She is vulnerable yet strong.

The small town setting is developed well too. We see how dirty politics can be in the community. We find out about small town feuds from the past influencing actions today. And the town provides some good support characters from a jealous deputy to two old codgers smarter than the young ones and a strange hermit style fellow.

I like to learn something when I read fiction and was happy to see information about windmill farms. They can be a source of income for a farmer in trouble but they are also very controversial in the community.

Miller's writing style is good. I'm hooked and will be looking for the next in this series.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

About the Author:

Mary Ann Miller has been a bookworm from the moment she learned how to read. She is a Northern Illinois University graduate where she met her husband. An Illinois native, she moved south to Winter Garden, Florida, with her husband, Mike, to escape the snow and start a new chapter as a mystery writer. Bones Under the Ice is her debut novel and the first book in the Jhonni Laurent Mystery Series. You can find out more at https://www.maryannmillerauthor.com/. 

Oceanview Publishing, 336 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

(My star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it, 1-I hate it.)