Taylor Quinn is suffering from PTSD after the confrontation in her kitchen with her mother's killer. She's not pleased when her ex, Clayton, shows up wanting to kiss and make up, after refusing to come with her to Comfort, Oregon, when her mother died, but do to sheer persistence and refusal to accept "no" as an answer, he finally gets her to agree to go out for breakfast that morning. Unappealing as that was, it's worse than she expected. Sissy, her somewhat combative and critical neighbor who is the mother of one of her sister Belle's friends--and often the source of useful advice--is having breakfast there, also. She's with her son Cooper, who is a good friend of Belle's, another of her own kids, and a woman whom Taylor doesn't know, but who looks like she must be a relative of Sissy's. What's the big deal? Just the fact that the relative, Sissy's Aunt Raynette, drinks part of a cup of coffee, and suddenly vomits, chokes, and dies.
Belle's friend Cooper, and his friend who is the granddaughter of the owner of the diner and was waiting on their table when it happened, are convinced it's murder, and convinced the girl could get blamed for it.
Cooper and the friend decide that Taylor has to investigate, because of her previous success--which left her traumatize, but the kids don't understand that.
Among other things, it means working closely with Sissy, with whom she has a strained relationship. It means talking to people who, however unlikely, might be killers--and she knows how dangerous that can be.
And she really, really needs to be working on keeping the store running smoothly and the YouTube channel her mother created lively and interesting, because that's what's been keeping the business comfortably profitable rather than just scraping by.
Yet every decision she makes, despite her best efforts, draws her deeper into a murder investigation she wants no part of, while Clayton's determined efforts to win her back (after he dumped her when she needed him) make everything harder and simultaneously demonstrate that "when someone shows you who they are, believe them."
It's a challenging time for Taylor, and the recurring characters, including Grandma Quinn, Cooper's mom Sissy, and Belle's bio mom, Colleen, grow in depth and complexiity.
Recommended.
I received a free copy of this audiobook from the author, and am reviewing it voluntarily.
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