Best Laid Plans [Paperback]

Anne White (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 7, 2010

Mayor Loren Graham is counting on Emerald Point's new community center to attract the tourists the town needs to recover financially from the devastating effects of the previous year's tornado. And she's pulling out all the stops to make sure everything's ready for the start of the summer season on Memorial Day. But Loren's best laid plans can't stem the run of misfortune plaguing the Lake George community. First, a body in contemporary clothing turns up among the statues of Rogers' Rangers in a French and Indian War display case, a body which disappears before it can be identified. Then, as the town gathers to celebrate the center's opening, a mysterious explosion disrupts the festivities. A few nights later, attractive, popular Madeline Hathaway, a driving force on the center committee, is found murdered outside her elegant lakeside home. Madeline kept many secrets, both from her wealthy but socially inept husband, Ted, and from the new friends she made after moving to the lake. When Madeline's poor relations arrive in Emerald Point unexpectedly, they ask Loren for help. As Loren comes to their aid, she learns more than she bargained for about Madeline's past and a secret affair which will shock the town and turn her own life upside down.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Anne White's first Lake George Mystery, An Affinity For Murder, was awarded a Malice Domestic Unpublished Writers' Grant in 1999, chosen a winner in the Oak Tree Press Dark Oak Contest in 2000 and received a Malice Domestic Best First Mystery nomination in 2002. Beneath The Surface, introduces Loren Graham, a former New Yorker, who's adopted the Lake George area as her home, Loren is back with new mysteries to solve in Best Laid Plans, Secrets Dark and Deep and Cold Winter Nights. White is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, the Lake George Arts Project and the Unusual Suspects, a Saratoga Springs writers group. She is married and the mother of six children.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Hilliard & Harris (September 7, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591331706
• ISBN-13: 978-1591331704
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,293,982 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

After Anne White's first Lake George Mystery, An Affinity For Murder, was awarded a Malice Domestic Unpublished Writers' Grant in 1999 and a Malice Domestic Best First Mystery nomination in 2002, she continued the series with Beneath The Surface (2005), Best Laid Plans (2006), Secrets Dark and Deep (2007), and Cold Winter Nights (December 2009). White's protagonist, Loren Graham, a former New Yorker, now mayor of the sleepy lakeside town of Emerald Point, can't seem to help getting involved in sheriff's department business, especially when murder is involved. Anne White is a member of MWA and Sisters in Crime, the National, New York and New England chapters, and the New York State Retired Teachers Association. Check her out at www.annewhitemysteries.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 4.5 Stars: a small town Lake George mystery, July 28, 2007

By 

D. Merrimon Crawford (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Best Laid Plans (A Lake George Mystery) (Paperback)

Best Laid Plans is a murder mystery set in the small town of Lake George where hidden secrets must be unveiled before the murder can be solved. The mayor sleuth is lovable, intelligent but not overbearing -- except maybe to those afraid of what she might uncover. The trail twists and turns to an unexpected but satisfying ending.

Mayor Loren Graham is busy helping her Lake George community prepare for the 3 month tourist season but there is always something getting in the way. First, a dead body shows up in the locked historical French-Indian War display --- and then disappears, then a resident shows up dead at the end of a long flight of stairs. Accident or murder? The more clues Loren uncovers, the more secrets she finds---hidden alliances, hidden histories, hidden loves, hidden people. Truth becomes elusive in this small community, but find it she must, even if it puts her in danger. Loren is a politician sticking her nose in everyone's affairs, but as the mayor of a small town, she is a lovable sleuth. She wants the truth. Most of the town's residents and visitors like her --- at least until she rustles some feathers and unearths some well-orchestrated secrets. Trouble has a way of finding her.

Best Laid Plans is a great mystery read and a nice variation to other mysteries I have read recently. Here the sleuth is a bit sassy. She is smart but she also falls into some truths by accident. Best Laid Plans was more like a traditional mystery read, at least traditional in terms of the mysteries I first read when I became a fan of the mystery genre. Best Laid Plans contains more twists and turns than I first expected --- a real plus making this a great mystery read. The ending is satisfying although just slightly rushed but only slightly and not enough to lessen the fun mystery. I don't want to reveal too much and create spoilers to detract from the clever unveiling of the perpetrator and motive but this mystery was a fun read and a needed change of pace.

3.0 out of 5 stars Review, September 1, 2008

By 

Cheryl Koch (CO) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Best Laid Plans (Paperback)

Loren Graham is the mayor of Emerald Point. While the town is preparing to drum up more business for tourist season, someone else has plans on how to go about it. Ideas like a dead body stuffed in a display case of the French and Indian War memorabilia that appears one moment and the next disappears or how about finding Emerald Point's very own, Madeline Hathaway's body at the bottom of some stone stairs at her lakeside home. Mayor Graham can't allow murders to start popping up all over her town, so she decides to take matters into her own hands and figure out who is behind all this mayhem. The closer Mayor Graham gets to the truth the crazier she looks. The reason for this is because every time the police or anyone shows up, the bodies disappear as if nothing ever happened. Can Mayor Graham get to the bottom of things before Emerald Point gets a bad rap?

Best Laid Plans is the third book in Anne White's Lake George mystery series. I have not read the other books in this series but Best Laid Plans can be read without having read the other books prior to Best Laid Plans. Now having said that I am sorry to say that I did not like this book as well as I thought I would. The characters were fine and the plot was good but for me I had a hard time staying focused throughout the book. The beginning was good, the middle was alright and towards the end I was reading the last few chapters just to have it end. There are not many books that I have come across where I did not like them but Best Laid Plans was not one of them this time. I might try another book by this author sometime in the future.

4.0 out of 5 stars 4.5 Stars: Best Laid Plans: a small town Lake George mystery, July 28, 2007

By 

D. Merrimon Crawford (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Best Laid Plans (Paperback)

Best Laid Plans is a murder mystery set in the small town of Lake George where hidden secrets must be unveiled before the murder can be solved. The mayor sleuth is lovable, intelligent but not overbearing -- except maybe to those afraid of what she might uncover. The trail twists and turns to an unexpected but satisfying ending.

Mayor Loren Graham is busy helping her Lake George community prepare for the 3 month tourist season but there is always something getting in the way. First, a dead body shows up in the locked historical French-Indian War display --- and then disappears, then a resident shows up dead at the end of a long flight of stairs. Accident or murder? The more clues Loren uncovers, the more secrets she finds---hidden alliances, hidden histories, hidden loves, hidden people. Truth becomes elusive in this small community, but find it she must, even if it puts her in danger. Loren is a politician sticking her nose in everyone's affairs, but as the mayor of a small town, she is a lovable sleuth. She wants the truth. Most of the town's residents and visitors like her --- at least until she rustles some feathers and unearths some well-orchestrated secrets. Trouble has a way of finding her.

Best Laid Plans is a great mystery read and a nice variation to other mysteries I have read recently. Here the sleuth is a bit sassy. She is smart but she also falls into some truths by accident. Best Laid Plans was more like a traditional mystery read, at least traditional in terms of the mysteries I first read when I became a fan of the mystery genre. Best Laid Plans contains more twists and turns than I first expected --- a real plus making this a great mystery read. The ending is satisfying although just slightly rushed but only slightly and not enough to lessen the fun mystery. I don't want to reveal too much and create spoilers to detract from the clever unveiling of the perpetrator and motive but this mystery was a fun read and a needed change of pace.