Customer Reviews

Grape Expectations: A Pennsylvania Dutch Mystery

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Magdalena Yoder is back with the verve and over-the-top humor which characterize this series. This time, one of the citizens of Hernia, Pennsylvania, has sold his land to a group who plan to build a winery called Grape Expectations. Of course this does not go over well in this ultra-conservative Amish community, and the outraged citizens look for ways of heading off this potential catastrophe. Someone, however, carries the anger too far when one of the developers of the winery is killed. For some obscure reason, the local sheriff decides that Magdalena is her #1 suspect. As usual, the book is full of madcap jokes, and several past indiscretions come to life which seem at odds with the supposed clean-living Mennonite and Amish citizens of Hernia. The book is mildly amusing, but the oft-used formula in this series may be wearing a little thin.

I believe I have read all of the Pennsylvania Dutch mysteries and have been a big fan, but this one fell very flat. There was entirely too much background information included/required. If anyone had picked this up and tried to read it without having read the other mysteries first, I doubt it would have made any sense. Myers explains the whole background of each character, such as Melvin Stoltzfus, who isn't even a character in this book, but whose background is included. It's very cumbersome and difficult to follow the present story.

I think there comes a time when an author needs to just let go of a character's background and let the present circumstances speak for themselves. Now's the time!!

I have read other book series and the characters have developed as the books went along. For some reason Magdalena hasn't. Each book you know she is going to say something about her big feet, having small breasts,and her bigamist ex husband etc. If you have read the earlier books you know about her ancestry. Why does she have to keep bringing it up over and over. I am wondering if Tamar Myers is just trying to add filler in the books because there isn't much of a story. When I got to the recipe area at the end of the book, I couldn't believe the errors I found. In the first one for Cornish Game Hens 2 ingredients were left out of the ingredients list but were mentioned in the instructions. Also the last recipe for the Concord Grape Cake called for a 10 inch tube pan but said the recipe makes 1 inch cake. It also said to cook the cake for 15 minutes on a rack instead of cool. Guess the editor was sleeping on the job.

In the Amish-Mennonite town of Hernia, Pennsylvania, population 1877, Penn Dutch Innkeeper Magdalena Yader is not having an easy time of it. Her sister's husband, the former chief of police, is in jail awaiting trial for allegedly murdering the local preacher. Her sibling is torn between still loving him and wanting male companionship. Her fiancé Gabe, a Jewish man, who settled in Hernia to get away from New York City, can't find anyone who will marry them because of their conflicting faiths. Since Magdalena is the richest and nosiest person in Hernia she wins the election for mayor and promptly appointed two Californians to replace the former chief and his deputy Zelda who is in love with him. To make matters worse, Magdalena has recently found out Zelda is her half sister.

However, the greatest calamity to unfold in Magdalena's mind is learning that the GRAPE EXPECTATIONS Resort is opening up. They are going to serve liquor which is going to incense the locals and they are going to be fierce competition for her, which makes her furious. It makes somebody else more outraged because somebody kills one of the owners. The new chief of police smartly turns Magdalena loose to investigate in the hope that she can ferret out the killer.

Any Pennsylvania Dutch Mystery is a special treat but GRAPE EXPECTATIONS is especially fun and funny. The wise cracking innocent heroine interrogates people seeking clues that will eventually solve the case but for the most part she is insulted and ignored, but she does make a new friend, the town gossip who gives her the final puzzle piece that brings the whole picture together. Tamar Myers is at her audacious best and her local recipes are the icing on the cake.

Harriet Klausner

Magdelano Yoder is such a kick. As the story progresses it gets more outrageous. I've begun to share her life with my friends as if she was someone I know. Weird. I can't get enough.

At the end of the prior book, Mags was about to go visit her newly discovered sister, Zelda, and Doc & Ma Rosen were about to elope in Hawaii. This book opens a few months later with a clumsy recap of how she found out about Zelda (a very forced conversation with the never-eloped Doc)--with her having never visited her yet and no reason given as to why she didn't, as the last book ENDED with her heading over to see her! Also, the planned elopement is never discussed--it's actually totally ignored, as if the author hadn't used it as one of the closers of the prior book. Instead, near the end of this book, Mags offers to pay for Doc & Ma to take a trip since they can't afford one on their own (yet he'd planned on taking her to elope in HI?! Make up your mind, Tamar!). As for what exactly happened to Agnes, that was left unclarified. If you are going to read these books, I HIGHLY recommend you do not read them one after the other. The humor is good, but not good enough to cover up the incongruities, so if you space out the reading of them and read other stuff between them, the errors might not whack you so hard and take from your enjoyment. The motives for the murders in these last few books have been paper thin, which could be forgiven if it was the only flaw.

I have purchased several times from this seller, every time with great results. The book arrived not long after placing the order and was in very good condition. I highly recommend this seller and will continue purchasing from them again. Thanks!

Tamar Myers is a great writer. Her ability to combine the humor of every day life with murder is a gift. Okay, murder isn't funny, but you know what I mean. She makes you think, laugh, and wonder with just one sentence. She is one writer who I will laugh out loud while reading. If you're looking for a cozy mystery, this one is it. You'll learn a little something too. :-)