Customer Reviews

Skeletons In Purple Sage (Worldwide Library Mysteries)

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Austin, TX writer Barbara Burnett Smith has done it again--Jolie Wyatt, everywoman and perfect amateur detective, is up to her ears in flood waters and murder in the latest Purple Sage mystery. Things start innocently enough when Jolie and best friend Diane arrange a tribute dinner for a couple of old friends from their past. But thanks to the monsoons, before the night is out, one of honored guests has had the humiliating experience of being hosted in her former home by the husband who left her and his new trophy wife--and the other Guest of Honor is dead.

Then the sheriff announces that the death may be a suicide--and Jolie's on the warpath. Dr. Bill did NOT kill himself--and she's going to prove it. Complicating her mission are a host of suspects who may have believed they had ample reason to hate Dr. Bill, the arrival of Jolie's estranged mother, and Jolie's own fluctuating temper and emotions--is it sheer frustration from multiple directions, PMS--or even humble pie, as Jolie discovers friends who are foes, foes who might become friends, black is white, Truth may be relative and...well, the waters run very deep.

This Purple Sage contains the things we've always loved about Smith's books--the great small-town politics and tangled personal relationships--and takes them in unexpected directions. If you enjoyed the other Purple Sages, don't miss this one. And if you haven't tried them yet, what are you waiting for? And yes--I think you can start with this one, if St. Martin's STILL hasn't reprinted the others!

Purple Sage is a small Texas town founded by nine religious fundamentalist families and even today their influence can be felt. Jolie Wyatt, a newcomer to the town and married to native-born Matt, is hosting a party in honor of retiring Dr. Bill Marchak and Beverly Kendall, who has returned after a three year absence to take care of her ailing father.

The only problem is that most of Purple Sage is flooding and the house where the reception is supposed to take place is underwater. They are forced to hold the party at the home of Beverly's ex-husband Tom who divorced her to marry Leigh. A gracious Beverly insures no one feels uncomfortable. Later that night, Dr. Bill's body is found tightly wedged in a drawn wrenched ditch. Nobody knows the cause of death but rumors abound. Shortly thereafter, Leigh disappears. Julie finds the body believing that the same person murdered both people.

The protagonist, trying to achieve justice for the dead, almost finds herself becoming the third victim of a demented killer. Her bravery and unwavering quest for the truth as well as her loyalty to friends and family are only some of the reasons the heroine is easy to like. Sad to say, the killer's identity is totally believable and raises some interesting legal and social issues. After a two-year absence, it is good to see the Purple Sage gang reunited again.

Harriet Klausner

With Skeletons in Purple Sage, Barbara Burnett Smith has
created a very appealing heroine in Jolie Wyatt, a
realistic and interesting family and a whole town of
characters, good and bad.
A disasterous flood has brought the Governor to town
to asses the damage and Jolie has been picked to host
a reception - difficult to do when the site is under
six feet of water.
The next available location is logical but difficult,
since the hostess is the new wife of Jolie's good friend's
Ex. After that, the discovery of the body of the town's
beloved doctor in a ditch just piles on the trouble.
Jolie wants to find out who took her doctor's life, why
the local fundamentalist church is shunning the doctor's
funeral and why her Mother always liked her sister best.
I strongly recomment this book for its character development
and the exciting plot.