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Benni Harper #4
Goose in the Pond
Benni Harper—spirited ex-cowgirl, quilter, and folk art expert—finds herself on the trail of a storybook killer in this mystery from Agatha Award-nominee Earlene Fowler.
Hoping to relax after solving a murder in Wichita, Kansas, Beni and her new husband Gabe Ortiz are back in San Celina, California. But while Benni is jogging in the park, she happens upon the dead body of a library storyteller. It's an odd and disturbing scene—the woman is still dressed in her Mother Goose costume, lying facedown in the lake.
Benni's investigation takes her inside the Storyteller's Guild, where she finds out that Mother Goose was telling more than fairy tales. She was capable of airing the kind of secrets that destroy lives—and inspire revenge...
Hoping to relax after solving a murder in Wichita, Kansas, Beni and her new husband Gabe Ortiz are back in San Celina, California. But while Benni is jogging in the park, she happens upon the dead body of a library storyteller. It's an odd and disturbing scene—the woman is still dressed in her Mother Goose costume, lying facedown in the lake.
Benni's investigation takes her inside the Storyteller's Guild, where she finds out that Mother Goose was telling more than fairy tales. She was capable of airing the kind of secrets that destroy lives—and inspire revenge...
305 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 1, 1997
81 people are currently reading
468 people want to read
About the author
Earlene Fowler
45 books358 followersEarlene Fowler was raised in La Puente, California, by a Southern mother and a Western father. She lives in Southern California with her husband, Allen, a purple pickup truck, and many pairs of cowboy boots. She is currently working on the next Benni Harper mystery.
Series:
* Benni Harper Mysteries
* Love Mercy Johnson Mystery
Series:
* Benni Harper Mysteries
* Love Mercy Johnson Mystery
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 90 reviews
January 31, 2017
This was probably the most ho-hum outing of Benni and Gabe. The cast of characters is almost entirely new, including Jillian Sinclair, Benni's boss's niece; Nick, the brother of the murdered Nora (called "Mother Goose" just once, I guess to further drive the title); Evangeline and her father, "D-Daddy" (which I thought when she first said it was the result of a stutter), new to town as of 6 months ago; Dolores Ayala, a storyteller who seems to be cuddling up to newcomer and handsome bachelor Ashley Stanhill; and Sam, Gabe's 18-year-old college dropout son. Rita, Benni's 22-year-old cousin from the first book, comes back to town for a brief appearance too. And of course, Gramma Dove is back with her ranting and raving ways.
Nora Hudson is murdered but who did it? The mystery is a bit lackluster - I didn't really care especially once
I also find it really unlikely that there are this many murders in this small town. And that Benni should always be the one to be there when the body is found is even more ridiculous.
The storyteller 3-day event seemed interesting, but I didn't really believe that so many people would show up for it. Is this kind of a thing a Western past-time?
Note: This book took place in late September, so Benni and Gabe have known each other about a year. He's kind of a bastard in this book, and part of me wondered if they are heading for splitsville.
Nora Hudson is murdered but who did it? The mystery is a bit lackluster - I didn't really care especially once
I also find it really unlikely that there are this many murders in this small town. And that Benni should always be the one to be there when the body is found is even more ridiculous.
The storyteller 3-day event seemed interesting, but I didn't really believe that so many people would show up for it. Is this kind of a thing a Western past-time?
Note: This book took place in late September, so Benni and Gabe have known each other about a year. He's kind of a bastard in this book, and part of me wondered if they are heading for splitsville.
May 6, 2017
Benni Harper is a museum director who doesn't seem to spend much time (or perhaps the museum isn't open much) working, so its no surprise that she has plenty of time to snoop around town seeking clues to the death of a friend of hers. Benni is the one who finds the woman while out for a run with her husband, who happens to be at the police chief of a town that is all too much like San Luis Obispo, California.
To get to the beginning, Benni is planning a storytelling festival at the museum and the murdered woman is one of the storytellers. Her death leads to both Benni and her husband looking closely at all the storytellers and their secrets — among them: the woman's husband who has been living with another woman; the local businessman dangling two woman at the same time; an environmentalist storyteller; a quilt maker and her father, who works at the museum.
On top of it all, Benni's husband is having to deal with the recent death of a friend and the estrangement of his son. It makes for interesting, quick reading.
To get to the beginning, Benni is planning a storytelling festival at the museum and the murdered woman is one of the storytellers. Her death leads to both Benni and her husband looking closely at all the storytellers and their secrets — among them: the woman's husband who has been living with another woman; the local businessman dangling two woman at the same time; an environmentalist storyteller; a quilt maker and her father, who works at the museum.
On top of it all, Benni's husband is having to deal with the recent death of a friend and the estrangement of his son. It makes for interesting, quick reading.
August 14, 2011
I feel sorry for this poor police chief who can't seem to break a case; soon he's going to be out of a job!
July 4, 2018
Another solid cozy with Benni and Gabe. Benni is organizing a storytelling festival when one of the main storytellers ends up dead. Add to the pot Gabe’s son unexpectedly showing up on their doorstep and tensions run high.
January 14, 2014
About one-third of the way through Goose in the Pond, protagonist Benni (Albenia Louise) Harper, curator of the local folk art museum in a fictional Central Coastal California town, thinks about the way small communities of intense interest form “little universes around a common interest” and describes artistic conclaves (though she could as easily been talking about anime conventions, game conventions, or comic/media celebrations) as “mini-societies closed to most people.” (pp. 77-78) From there she considers the storytelling convention that her museum is hosting and begins to consider “stories” as “oral artistry.” I particularly liked these few sentences:
“I thought about the many people who’d read or told stories to me throughout my life—public school teachers, Sunday school teachers, aunts and uncles, my father and Dove. Much of who I am was formed by the stories passed on to me or, as storytellers like to emphasize, through me. Because, as many of them pointed out, stories were a living thing and like an unplayed symphony, useless until heard.” (pp. 78-79) The character parlays those thoughts into the following two lines from her opening speech: “Telling a story is a way of moving closer to another human being. It is a sharing of the heart and soul and intellect. It says you and I, we’re alike in this one particular thing.” (p. 79)
That isn’t the kind of thought-provoking material one expects to read in a “cozy” mystery, but that’s one of the reasons I enjoy picking up these quilting mysteries I discovered through my Mom and Dad. These stories often catch you off-guard with philosophical pondering that rarely uses sophisticated vocabulary but often offers profound ideas.
And, in the case of the Goose in the Pond where a storyteller is found dead in her “Mother Goose” costume (get it?), Benni not only discovers the positives about storytelling recounted above, but the negatives of gossip-mongering when she discovers the identity of the local (anonymous) gossip columnist: “What was it in us human beings that caused us to enjoy reading or hearing about the mortification of other people?” (p. 126) Realizing that words “can build up or tear down, make things easier or harder for people, cause wars or negotiate peace….” (p. 184), she goes on to conclude that “…the line between hate and love is as thin as a strand of baby’s hair.” (p. 254)
Goose in the Pond has enough viable suspects to keep the merry-go-round spinning and there may be a very good reason for that, but if the mystery isn’t transparent enough for your taste, consider the fact that alongside the mystery, Benni has to referee between interpersonal problems within her festival committee, between her grandmother who raised her and her self-righteous, Bible-quoting aunt (and I don’t mean quoting the SPIRIT of the verses, either), in the middle of her relatively new husband and stepson, and with regard to her cousin and her estranged husband. It’s a rollercoaster of a ride—appropriate enough for a mystery where they protagonist confesses, “My stomach is like a snow dome someone just shook.” (p. 269) This is perfect commute reading and I liked it better than the average mystery.
“I thought about the many people who’d read or told stories to me throughout my life—public school teachers, Sunday school teachers, aunts and uncles, my father and Dove. Much of who I am was formed by the stories passed on to me or, as storytellers like to emphasize, through me. Because, as many of them pointed out, stories were a living thing and like an unplayed symphony, useless until heard.” (pp. 78-79) The character parlays those thoughts into the following two lines from her opening speech: “Telling a story is a way of moving closer to another human being. It is a sharing of the heart and soul and intellect. It says you and I, we’re alike in this one particular thing.” (p. 79)
That isn’t the kind of thought-provoking material one expects to read in a “cozy” mystery, but that’s one of the reasons I enjoy picking up these quilting mysteries I discovered through my Mom and Dad. These stories often catch you off-guard with philosophical pondering that rarely uses sophisticated vocabulary but often offers profound ideas.
And, in the case of the Goose in the Pond where a storyteller is found dead in her “Mother Goose” costume (get it?), Benni not only discovers the positives about storytelling recounted above, but the negatives of gossip-mongering when she discovers the identity of the local (anonymous) gossip columnist: “What was it in us human beings that caused us to enjoy reading or hearing about the mortification of other people?” (p. 126) Realizing that words “can build up or tear down, make things easier or harder for people, cause wars or negotiate peace….” (p. 184), she goes on to conclude that “…the line between hate and love is as thin as a strand of baby’s hair.” (p. 254)
Goose in the Pond has enough viable suspects to keep the merry-go-round spinning and there may be a very good reason for that, but if the mystery isn’t transparent enough for your taste, consider the fact that alongside the mystery, Benni has to referee between interpersonal problems within her festival committee, between her grandmother who raised her and her self-righteous, Bible-quoting aunt (and I don’t mean quoting the SPIRIT of the verses, either), in the middle of her relatively new husband and stepson, and with regard to her cousin and her estranged husband. It’s a rollercoaster of a ride—appropriate enough for a mystery where they protagonist confesses, “My stomach is like a snow dome someone just shook.” (p. 269) This is perfect commute reading and I liked it better than the average mystery.
June 28, 2015
This book was like a breath of fresh mystery air for me. I decided to take a break in the series I was reading to mix up my reading with this book. I am so happy I did! Goose In The Pond is an amazing book, with such great characters. I just loved Benni, her police chief hubby Gabe, and all the family members and friends of theirs. Benni may get into trouble without even trying, but her heart is in the right spot; all she wants to do is help her small town, her friends, and her husband by being naturally curious and inquisitive when it comes to solving murders. How can she stay out of things like she promised Gabe she would, when everyone seems to think she knows more than she does and is telling her things that could break open the case of the murdered Mother Goose, aka Nora? Benni figures what can it hurt to do a little poking and prodigy around for clues. People think she's digging anyway, so why not make that assumption the truth? Only hitch in this country girls giddy up will be her police chief husband Gabe. He wants her to keep her nose out of this murder and just let him do his job, but can she do that? He's so stressed from a friend dying, his son showing up on their newlywed doorstep, her family showing up on their doorstep, and pressure from above to solve this murder she would actually be doing him a favor by sticking her nose in and helping right?
Having never read any of the work from this author, much less the books before this one, I was a bit worried I would be lost. I recently tried reading a book by another author mud series and ended up very lost and just giving it up. This book pleasantly surprised me and was very easy to hop right into. Yes, there were references to past events from the previous books, but none that were super pertinent to this book making sense. They made me curious about the other books, but that was all. No confusion or lost feelings. This author has done an amazing job with description and with character development! I found myself going through all kinds of emotions while reading this book too. I felt like I was part of the characters circle and could just see and hear the things going on; because of this I felt a lit of the emotions the characters did, especially Benni. I must say this was one of the few mysteries I have read that had me completely stumped for "who done it". I mean completely! I have had mysteries where I've been wondering til the end if I could really be right, but this one had me clueless. I literally had no clues myself as to who killed Nora. I was about ready to say the ducks in the pond she was found in must have done it because she neglected to feed them bread crumbs. I didn't see the ending coming at all! And...it was an amazing feeling! The feeling of being truly surprised by a book.
Great writing, great characters, great plot, steady flow, and amazing mystery. This book is a must, must, must read!! You can't help but fall into this book as you read. You get caught up in reading this book from page one and find yourself a little sad when it has to end. If you are a mystery lover, then this is absolutely the best book ever for you to seek out and pick up!
5/5 Stars!!!
Having never read any of the work from this author, much less the books before this one, I was a bit worried I would be lost. I recently tried reading a book by another author mud series and ended up very lost and just giving it up. This book pleasantly surprised me and was very easy to hop right into. Yes, there were references to past events from the previous books, but none that were super pertinent to this book making sense. They made me curious about the other books, but that was all. No confusion or lost feelings. This author has done an amazing job with description and with character development! I found myself going through all kinds of emotions while reading this book too. I felt like I was part of the characters circle and could just see and hear the things going on; because of this I felt a lit of the emotions the characters did, especially Benni. I must say this was one of the few mysteries I have read that had me completely stumped for "who done it". I mean completely! I have had mysteries where I've been wondering til the end if I could really be right, but this one had me clueless. I literally had no clues myself as to who killed Nora. I was about ready to say the ducks in the pond she was found in must have done it because she neglected to feed them bread crumbs. I didn't see the ending coming at all! And...it was an amazing feeling! The feeling of being truly surprised by a book.
Great writing, great characters, great plot, steady flow, and amazing mystery. This book is a must, must, must read!! You can't help but fall into this book as you read. You get caught up in reading this book from page one and find yourself a little sad when it has to end. If you are a mystery lover, then this is absolutely the best book ever for you to seek out and pick up!
5/5 Stars!!!
February 10, 2013
In this fourth outing, Benni Harper and her police chief husband, Gabe Ortiz, have returned home to San Celina, California from visiting his family in Kansas. They are hoping to have some peace when Benni discovers a dead body and an investigation begins. This series has some developing story arcs that would make it harder to pick it up in the middle. Their new and developing marriage relationship, his difficult past as a marine in Vietnam and twenty years of work in the LAPD, his troubled relationship with his teenage son, her weird and wacky family, and her independent attitude all have roots in the earlier novels. These story threads are advanced in this novel and that's one of the intriguing things about reading a series: the reader starts to care about the characters and wants to know what happens next. Gabe is dealing with pain and loss and Benni has some wise words to say about both as she watches him deal with these issues. Her grandmother, Dove, is hilarious but also wise.
The author utilizes an interesting technique to avoid the impression that everyone in this middle-sized city is a murderer. She concentrates the action on a small group of people who are thrown together for some reason. In this case, Benni is organizing the first storytelling event in the town in conjunction with her museum curator job, and the characters are all on her organizing committee. Some of the other residents come in and out of the story peripherally, to remind us they still live there, but we really only read about these storytellers. It's easier to keep track of the suspects that way and Benni even notes in the book how interesting it is that people tend to group themselves into interest circles and there's a whole set of history and rules that others don't see unless they're involved.
This cozy mystery series has good plotting, some suspense, and is written for more mature female readers who can identify with widowhood, second marriages, and grown-up problems. It's written in the mid-90's so sometimes I chuckle at the technology anachronisms. Only the rich carry "cellular telephones" and at one point Benni looks for clues in a set of "rainbow-colored computer disks". Remember when we had those? Wasn't that long ago.....
The author utilizes an interesting technique to avoid the impression that everyone in this middle-sized city is a murderer. She concentrates the action on a small group of people who are thrown together for some reason. In this case, Benni is organizing the first storytelling event in the town in conjunction with her museum curator job, and the characters are all on her organizing committee. Some of the other residents come in and out of the story peripherally, to remind us they still live there, but we really only read about these storytellers. It's easier to keep track of the suspects that way and Benni even notes in the book how interesting it is that people tend to group themselves into interest circles and there's a whole set of history and rules that others don't see unless they're involved.
This cozy mystery series has good plotting, some suspense, and is written for more mature female readers who can identify with widowhood, second marriages, and grown-up problems. It's written in the mid-90's so sometimes I chuckle at the technology anachronisms. Only the rich carry "cellular telephones" and at one point Benni looks for clues in a set of "rainbow-colored computer disks". Remember when we had those? Wasn't that long ago.....
November 25, 2012
I generally liked this one. I liked the balance to it. Generally, I thought the balance between Benni and Gabe was better. I liked how their relationship was portrayed for the most part in this one. Dove and Garnet's biblical verse feud was fun. Sam was realistic. Rita was less annoying than I was expecting. I generally liked the family dynamic, and I like the idea of a storytelling festival. That was charming.
However, the ending?
But, I liked most of the rest of the book, so sill four stars. I guess I'm in a generous mood. It's probably 3.5 rounding up.
However, the ending?
But, I liked most of the rest of the book, so sill four stars. I guess I'm in a generous mood. It's probably 3.5 rounding up.
July 23, 2016
On an afternoon run with her husband, Benni takes a break to feed the birds but instead discovers a dead body in the pond--and it's someone she knows. Newlyweds Benni Harper and Gabe Ortiz are still not completely comfortable with one another, so having Gabe's son, Benni's grandmother and her cousin all arrive at their small home at almost at the same time is a disaster in the making. Benni is trying to organize the first storyteller festival at work. And now her husband, the chief of police, is investigating those with whom she's working because the victim was a storyteller and one of the organizers of the event. Benni tries to separate herself from her husband's investigation, but everyone seems to think she knows more than she does because she's married to Gabe. And, at the same time, she seems to continue to fall privy to information that her husband needs to know. Antagonism between Gabe and his son Sam at home and Gabe's failure to deal with his grief over the death of two friends creates problems between Gabe and Benni at the same time both are under pressure at work. Another good mystery with a few surprises at the end.
September 30, 2013
This book, the fourth in the series, is less about the mystery than about trying to develop the relationship between Benni (the woman who can't help tripping over dead people and then solving the murders - usually while being threatened with bodily harm) and her husband, Gabe (the police chief). I have the same problems with this book as with earlier ones in the series, and I didn't think that the mystery with this book was very good, but the third book was better than the second, so maybe the fifth will be better than the fourth.
April 11, 2016
This one was a little darker than the others in the series, but by no means sinister...it just seemed to have a heavier plot that the others. However, the side characters (Bennie's relatives) kept it light where it needed to be. The humor was tossed in at the exact right place to keep the book from bogging down, yet didn't gloss over the seriousness of the murder. I love this series.....can't wait for the next one. The author manages to keep the humor at the right level, and use it at the right time, to make it all work.
November 21, 2016
I like this series for the most part but the main couple can get a little too angsty for my tastes. I know the series has been out for a long time and there are many books in it so I have to hope they both mature and some of that dies down because I like the actual mysteries. I also don't like when the main character goes against their paramours wishes - which she does a lot. Like I said, I like the mysteries and the characters themselves - just hoping some of the interpersonal angst dies down.
February 28, 2013
I would have given four stars but for the ending. I like Fowlers characters, her descriptions of the community, and her main characters Benni and Gabe. The plots are good, good action, good character development, very entertaining. But this book just seemed like Fowler had to think of something to solve the whole mess at the end and couldn't think of a good reason why the victim died, so she just put it all together as a big mess to finish the book. I was disappointed.
March 25, 2016
As museum curator Benni Harper gets ready for a storytelling festival she finds the body of one of the storytellers as she is jogging. Despite police chief and husband Gabe Ortiz's warnings to stay out of the investigation for her safety, Benni finds she is just too involved with the suspects to stop asking questions. I really like this cozy mystery series. Benni is an interesting character with a good background and I like the romance between her and Gabe.
July 23, 2017
Benin Harper mystery
Benni is running a story telling festival. When she and Ortiz are running, she discovers a body. It is Nora, a woman Benni works with. Although Ortiz won't tell Benni anything about the investigation, everyone thinks she knows, and Benni can't help investigating, and gets into trouble. Things are complicated by Benni's cousin and grandmother and Ortiz's son.
Benni is running a story telling festival. When she and Ortiz are running, she discovers a body. It is Nora, a woman Benni works with. Although Ortiz won't tell Benni anything about the investigation, everyone thinks she knows, and Benni can't help investigating, and gets into trouble. Things are complicated by Benni's cousin and grandmother and Ortiz's son.
August 30, 2011
This book was still pretty good. I really like to read about the relationship between Benni and Gabe more then the murder part. These are well written enough that I am still guessing who the murderer is right up until the end, which is pretty good considering this is the second time I've read them.
June 17, 2008
This was pretty good addition to the Benni Harper series. Not one of my favorites, but decent. The bad guys seemed a little forced, but I liked the view into Benni and Gabe's relationship and the introduction to Sam, Gabe's son. I will definitely keep reading this series. It still makes me want to learn to quilt. And go live in San Luis Obispo, which series' setting of San Celina is based on.
August 15, 2010
My notes show this was 305 pages, copyright 1997. This book was a quick read. Some humor, dry humor, which I enjoy. This episode had a soap-opera feel to it with a surprise ending. The storyline was set-up one way and ended with a twist. Read these books in sequence. The backstory makes more sense that way.
February 14, 2011
I don't usually read a series because I get bored with the writing style or characters. But, this series is the exception. The books are fun to read, each mystery is unique and I enjoy learning about the arts group is doing. Each book brings new insights into the characters and I enjoy following their stories.
March 30, 2018
Fun to find a book I'd missed in the Benni Harper series! Interesting to note that since I've"read" about three of them on cd (after having read the print edition), my brain "hears" the characters much better. Still can't wrap my head around Benni being blond. To me, she's a dark-haired brunette!
November 7, 2016
Now I have to start the next in this series. I love the characters and wish that I could make their acquaintance. However, Benni finds way too many dead bodies and then her curiosity leads to trouble and physical injury. I have always wished for a close family (no such luck), so I vicariously enjoy Benni's and Elvia's (Benni's close friend) families.
December 31, 2016
If a mystery could be called light hearted - this would be it.
If a mystery could be called light hearted - this would be it. Ordinary people caught up in events that conclude in murder.
Good plot that will not give you nightmares. Just kick back, relax and enjoy a visit to San Celina.
If a mystery could be called light hearted - this would be it. Ordinary people caught up in events that conclude in murder.
Good plot that will not give you nightmares. Just kick back, relax and enjoy a visit to San Celina.
November 28, 2011
Benni Harper, the sleuth whose crime-solving talents are as colorful and complex as the patchwork she loves, faces her most perplexing case yet as she tries to find out who killed the library storyteller, who was found facedown in the lake.
July 29, 2011
This continues to go well. The writing is not at a high caliber but it is pleasant. I like the quilt references, and Benni Harper is good--sometimes I find her a little annoying but she is largely a good character
October 13, 2011
Another good story in this series - haven't found one I don't like yet. A bit 'angst-y' but I think the author does a good job of balancing that, so it doesn't weigh you down. I'm looking forward to continuing with the series.
November 7, 2013
I generally like Earlene Fowler books, but this one wasn't quite up to par. Too much gossip and soap opera situations for my taste. I also didn't think the mystery in this one was as good as past books.
April 7, 2008
True to form her writing is great. Good mystery book.
October 19, 2008
I really enjoyed this 4th in the Benni Harper series. I enjoy the interaction between Benni and her family and Gabe.
July 31, 2009
This is an easy-to-read mystery series -- like Nancy Drew for adults. I pick up one when I need that break from heavy reading!
January 18, 2012
This was one of my favorites so far in this series. It was a good mystery as well as a little romance going on.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 90 reviews