Welcome to The Blue Spruce Coffee Shop Where the Java is Hot and the Murder is Cold Blooded
The Blue Spruce coffee shop in the heart of Myrtle Lake retirement village does a bang-up business all day long, keeping barista Charlie and owner/grandmother Carla on their toes. Local eccentrics like a former Broadway dancer, a famous landscape painter, a dotty psychic, and a mischievous sea captain pop in to share tall tales and ribald jokes, much to the delight of their over-caffeinated neighbors.
But this happy crew gets the shock of their lives when Fritz Caulfield, a lovely man and horrible sculptor, drowns in the village’s pristine pool and 24-year-old Charlie’s accused of his murder.
Carla rallies her troops, including studly retired NYPD detective Saylor Reeves, to clear her granddaughter’s name. The small-but-determined pack outpaces the local Sheriff to discover a parcel of suspects including a grouchy groomer, an angry art teacher, and an uppity upholsterer.
But no leads let Charlie off the hook. They need a breakthrough right now.
Just as the long arms of the law stretch toward the coffee shop, a bizarre clue sheds new light on the case. Could a pair of vintage toys spring Charlie from the hoosegow?
Meanwhile, the more fanciful villagers see phantom lights dancing in the woods east of Myrtle Lake, and a creeping sense of unease permeates the crisp autumn air.
Can Carla, Saylor, and their wacky senior sleuths save Charlie and protect the town from an invading ghost army?
All in a day’s work for these unshakeable elders. After decades on the planet, it will take more than murder, menace, and mystery to scare this gang away.