I’m the first to admit I haven’t read all twenty-five Faith Fairchild mysteries. But, twenty-five books in any series is cause for celebration. Katherine Hall Page manages to throw in a celebration as well as an issue-oriented, hit-close-to-home traditional mystery with The Body in the Wake.
Wife, mother, caterer, friend. Faith Fairchild fits all of those roles in the latest book in the series. However, it’s been quite a long time since she had so much time to herself. She and her husband, Tom, are spending the summer on their beloved Sanpere Island in Maine. But, he’s writing a book in an office on one side of the island, and she’s alone, with time for friends, on the other. Their son, Ben, is working on a college summer research project. Their daughter, Amy, is on the island, but working long hours in the kitchen of a new conference center. Faith has time to listen to her friend, Sophie, worry about the lack of a baby. And, her best friend, Pix Miller, is worrying over her daughter’s upcoming wedding. She has a lot to worry about when Samantha’s future mother-in-law shows up, out of the blue, with over-the-top plans for a wedding that doesn’t fit Samantha and Zach’s lifestyle.
It’s while spending time with Sophie that Faith discovers the first body of the summer at her favorite swimming pond. They try to save the man, and it’s while doing CPR that Sophie recognizes him as a biker she saw with some others in town one day. She remembers his tattoo. When Faith and Tom find a second body, this time in the water off an island, the victim has the same tattoo. Both men are from Lowell, Massachusetts, a link in the drug chain that extends from Colombia to Maine, and into Canada. But, drugs and the opioid crisis strike even closer to home for the Fairchilds and their friends. It’s not just bikers who are involved.
The Body in the Wake is a well-written traditional mystery, the twenty-fifth in a series that celebrates friends and family with a concluding wedding. However, the author emphasizes the opioid crisis, addiction, and the problem it has become for every community. While it doesn’t take long to guess who the addict is in Faith Fairchild’s circle, it’s a dramatic scene when the moment of discovery occurs. And, the discussion of addiction is worth reading by itself.
Katherine Hall Page’s The Body in the Wake is a satisfying mystery, and a satisfying celebration for readers who appreciate longevity with continued high standards of writing.
Katherine Hall Page’s website is www.katherine-hall-page.org
The Body in the Wake by Katherine Hall Page. William Morrow, 2019. ISBN 9780062863256 (hardcover), 240p.
*****
FTC Full Disclosure – I received the book to review for a journal.
I have this on hold at the library
It's a little different, Sandy, but I liked it.
I believe I have read most, if not all, of the books in this series, and will probably read this one. They are not books that I get excited about, but they are comfort reads, and that's worth pursuing.
It's getting to be the right time of year to read this one, too, Margie. Faith is spending the summer at their summer cottage on the island.
A good series and Faith is always finding those dead bodies. I have probably read half of them, they are a great read on an icky day
And, her husband isn't happy that she's always finding those dead bodies. I like your comment, Netteanne, about a great read on an icky day.