Rotten to the Core (Wheeler Cozy Mystery) [Large Print] [Paperback]

Sheila Connolly (Author)

Book Description

Series: Wheeler Cozy Mystery | Publication Date: January 20, 2010

Second in the series that readers can sink their teeth into.

Orchard owner Meg Corey must clear her name of murder after the discovery of a pesticide-poisoned body in her springhouse. Includes recipes.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 423 pages
• Publisher: Wheeler Publishing; Lrg edition (January 20, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1410421953
• ISBN-13: 978-1410421951
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,806,928 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

After collecting too many degrees and exploring careers ranging from art historian to investment banker to professional genealogist, Sheila Connolly began writing in 2001, and has now published eight traditional mysteries. Now a full-time writer, she thinks writing mysteries is a lot more fun than any of her previous occupations.

She wrote her first mystery series for Berkley Prime Crime under the name Sarah Atwell, and the first book, Through a Glass, Deadly (March 2008), was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel; Pane of Death followed in November 2008, and Snake in the Glass in September 2009.

Under her own name, her Orchard Mystery Series (Berkley Prime Crime) debuted in 2008 with One Bad Apple, followed by Rotten to the Core (2009), Red Delicious Death (2010), A Killer Crop (2010), and Bitter Harvest (2011). The next book in the series, Sour Apples, will be published in August 2012.

She also writes a series, the Museum Series (Berkley Prime Crime), set in the many museums of Philadelphia. Fundraising the Dead came out in October 2010, Let's Play Dead in 2011, and the third, Fire Engine Dead, will be published in March 2012.

Sheila has also published short stories: "Size Matters" appeared in the 2010 Level Best Anthology, Thin Ice; "Called Home," a short prequel to the Orchard series, was published by Beyond the Page in 2011; and "Dead Letters," an e-story featuring the main characters from the Museum series, will be published by Berkley Prime Crime in February 2012.

She lives in a too-big Victorian in southeastern Massachusetts with her husband and three cats, as well as her daughter who graduated from college in 2007 with a degree in Comparative Literature and is still trying to figure out what to do next.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Rotten to the Core educates, charms & entertains, July 10, 2009

By 

Lesa Holstine (Glendale, AZ) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rotten to the Core (An Orchard Mystery) (Paperback)

Sheila Connolly's Orchard Mysteries are some
of the most satisfying cozy mysteries I've read. With her first one, One Bad Apple, I said it was, "An example of everything that is right with the cozy mystery." Connolly continues to educate, charm and intrigue the reader, all at the same time, with her new book, Rotten to the Core.

After a rough start, Meg Corey is starting to settle in to her farm property in Granford, Massachusetts. And, the start of spring is the perfect time to get to know her apple orchard better. She's taking a class in orchard management, the better to tend the fifteen acres of trees, an orchard over two hundred years old. She's hired a student to work as orchard manager, and she's working with a professor at the university. It wasn't in Meg's plans to find a body in the springhouse in the middle of the orchard.

Meg didn't even know the dead man, identified as a student, Jason Miller. The young man was the front man for GreenGrow, a group of organic farming zealots. But, since he died of pesticide poisoning in her orchard, Meg's a natural suspect for the state police detective who doesn't like her anyways. It's a good thing she's made some friends in Granford, people who believe in her innocence.

There's quite a contrast between Meg and Jason. Meg even says, "Almost nobody seems to have liked Jason much, and everyone I've talked to seems relieved that he's out of the way." However, in the short time she's lived there, Meg made friends with Seth Chapin, a local selectman and plumber who is renting part of her barn, his sister, Rachel, the professor, and even the local police chief. Even so, Meg and Jason have her property in common. Why would anyone want to drag Meg into Jason's murder? It's a shame the death of a man she never even knew causes Meg to suspect her friends.

I always find cozy mysteries more satisfying when the main character is reasonable, and calls the cops, rather than taking matters into their own hands. Meg Corey might be ignorant of the reasons behind the murder, but she's not stupid. She understands it was murder, and she does call the police when she's in danger.

Cozy mysteries seem to have a specialization, whether it's a bookstore mystery, a pizzeria mystery, or, in this case, a mystery set on land with an orchard. Connolly allows the reader to learn about renovating the old farm house, and tending the orchard, right along with Meg, but she never forgets this is supposed to be an enjoyable mystery, not a lesson in country living.

Granted, it's easy to pinpoint the killer, but for most of us who read cozies, the puzzle is only part of the reason we read them. This is a mystery for those of us who enjoy getting to know the characters, watching their lives change, and relationships develop. Rotten to the Core is warm and entertaining from the first paragraph to the last. Fans will look forward to the next Orchard Mystery.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delicous to the core ~ a great sequel, July 18, 2009

By 

Mystery/suspense lover (New Hampshire) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rotten to the Core (An Orchard Mystery) (Paperback)

The second installment in Sheila Connolly's Orchard series was even better than the first, and I loved One Bad Apple! This book was so thoroughly enchanting and enjoyable that I hated for it to end. Meg Corey is my kind of sleuth--intelligent, kind, and introspective--not obnoxious or annoying, as so many protagonists are these days. Meg's character deepens with every touch she adds to the old farmhouse she recently moved into. I foresee a long and successful life for this delightful and highly satisfying series.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Just Couldn't Get Into It, June 12, 2011

By 

Mom of Twins (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rotten to the Core (An Orchard Mystery) (Paperback)

I gave this book "the old college try" but after 100 pages, I just had to give up. The writing felt stilted to me and I never really became invested in the characters. Perhaps part of the problem was that I hadn't read the first book in the series, so I didn't have any of the background information that the author often assumed her readers would have. I wanted to like it, but alas, it was a no go.