Plain Deception

Amish Inn Mysteries #2

by Tara Randel

Liz Eckardt, new owner of the Olde Mansion Inn, located in the idyllic town of Pleasant Creek, Indiana, has her hands full with guests and Beans, her notoriously lazy bulldog. When Beans uncovers a freshly buried stash on the inn’s property−an old love letter, a Civil War-era photograph and human bones, Liz is determined to get to the bottom of the macabre find. But how deep will she have to go to find the truth?


With the help of her quilting friends, the Material Girls and Pleasant Creek’s handsome mayor Jackson Cross, Liz slowly unearths the clues that will lead her to the heart of the matter, and to a local family’s secret that has been buried for over a century.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Amish, Amish Fiction, Christian Fiction, Cozy

204 pages, Unknown Binding

About the author

Tara Randel is an award-winning, USA Today bestselling author. Family values, a bit of mystery and, of course, love and romance, are her favorite themes, because she believes love is the greatest gift of all. Tara has received the Heart of Excellence Readers' Choice Award and the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award. Visit Tara at www.tararandel.com. Like her on Facebook at Tara Randel Books.

Reviews

[Tina Loves To Read · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book in the Amish Inn Mysteries. This series is an Amish Cozy Mystery series. I have read this book two times, and I really enjoyed this book. The main character is Liz Eckardt who is the Olde Mansion Inn owner. Beans (Liz Bulldog) found a Civil War-era photograph and human bones in the ground behind the Inn. In this book Liz wants to find the truth behind the photo and human bones. (*)

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very light reading

[Christa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this 2nd book in the Amish Inn Mysteries. Liz is a great main character, and there are plenty of excellent secondary characters among her friends and family. I find the setting very appealing, and the mystery storylines have been fast-paced and interesting.

This series is different from the ones I usually read, as the books are not all by the same author. I wondered if that would affect the consistency of the series, but no worries with that so far!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yep, I am completely hooked on these books now. Very fun cozy mysteries. I need a pile of these with a quiet place and time to read them.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this but the first one is much better. This series revolves around the same woman Liz and her B&B. However, the off part is the author changes.
It is a little off putting as Tara Randel wrote Liz and her dog all wrong.

[CHM · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice break from heavy subjects. Characters are enjoyable.

[Joyce Rankin · Rating 5 out of 5]

After her dog digs up some old bones and a picture and love letters Liz goes about uncovering who and what happens

[Jennifer Robb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this series while searching for books in another series by the same publisher. I believe only 2 books from this series were available and this was the earliest one of the series. It's book 2 and I read it without reading book 1 so it can be read as a stand alone, though you might better understand the relationships between some of the characters if you've read book 1.

Liz's dog, Beans, digs up some old bones on the Inn's property. Found with the bones, but newer, is a photo and letter. (I'm still not clear how that got to the burial site--was it placed in when the bones were moved? If not, how did Clara know where the bones were to place it there since at the end of the book, she claimed her ancestors didn't know where Emma had been reburied.

I sort of suspected two characters but wasn't sure which would turn out to be the perpetrator.

[S. Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liz Eckardt's bulldog, Beans, digs up skeletal remains underneath the new business owners favorite resting bench beside a fragrant lilac bush in the backyard of the Olde Mansion Inn. Pesky dog! So begins book #2 in the Amish Inn Mysteries series.

This book has historical background dating back to the Civil War, genealogy involving a female soldier in the war between the states, Arsenic poisoning, a fight between competing Genealogists vying for historical credit, a love story gone bad, a wealthy male antagonist-murderer, wow...too much to list! Keeps you reading!

I truly enjoy this series. It's light, no vulgarity, no gore, and a cast of lovable eccentric characters! Kudos th Annie's fiction!

[Cozy Reader Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Plain Deception (Amish Inn Mysteries #2)" by Tara Randel has very minimal Amish influence to the story. The main character, Liz, was trying to connect to Amish roots by moving to Pleasant Creek and buying her inn. However, she doesn't do any of that in this book. Instead she gets pulled into investigating a death that occurred just after the Civil War when her dog, Beans, digs up bones in her yard. Along with the bones, a love letter and old photo is found.

While Liz is investigating the items found in her yard someone else is set to stop her and anyone else from investigating. This one is super cozy on the modern day side. Most that happens is some robberies and a deliberate medication switch up. However, it did work out about how I expected it would.

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liz has a bulldog named Beans and most of the time he is lazy. But he digs up an old love letter, a Civil War era photograph and human bones. Liz tries to find out who the bones belong to and learn more of the history of the woman in the photograph.

With the help of the Material Girls, a group of women, Liz included, who get together to make different crafts, and her newest friend Jackson Cross, will she be able to find out who and why someone put those three things in her yard and find out what happened to Emma?

People who love to read mysteries, serials, books written by Christians and chick books should enjoy this book.

This book can be read by anyone.

[Emily Frame · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once I started reading, I couldn't put this book down. This is a great read if you like small town mysteries. There's just the right amount of action, so you don't get bored.

While the series is called Amish Inn Mysteries, this particular book didn't have much to do with the Amish past mentioning the main character's Amish roots, one Amish character mentioned in passing, and a description of Amish presence in the town. I love Amish books, and this was not the same type I usually read. The series is so good, that's not a problem for me.

I can't wait to find more in this series,

[Mayda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liz gets involved working to solve a really cold case dating back to the Civil War days. When her dog Beans digs up some human bones in her courtyard, it sets in motion a chain of events that will finally get justice for a wronged young woman. This cozy is delightful for not only its intricate mystery, but also for its enchanting array of characters.

[Shauna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Same series, different author, but I still enjoyed the characters and the plot. The books flowed together seamlessly. There was less focus on the Amish details in this book but the historical aspects tied into the mystery were very interesting. These are quick, delightful summer reads.

[Tien · Rating 2 out of 5]

When you've figured out who the villain is fairly early on, this became a pretty frustrating read.

I listened to audiobooks and unfortunately, narrator was terrible. In putting on other characters' voices, her voice became robotic. An utter turnoff.

[Casseroll · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. The narrator had some good voices and then some slow/robotic like voices. It was a bit weird. Also the story tried to be quaint but it was a bit cheesy like the first one. This one was a bit sad, not romantic.

[Lis Sigona · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second book in the series. Intriguing and kept me wanting to read to find out who was the suspect and who was the victim. Some parts I could figure out were going to happen, others I didn’t foresee coming and was blindsided. Great read.

[Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

This mystery was one I think many would find very interesting! How did the bones get barred on the Olde Mansion Inn property? Could they really be Emma Hartsfeld Ashby? Emma was said to have fought in the Civil war, was the picture found in a plastic bag Emma?

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read. Characters are real people who help each other. Like most murder mysteries, the main character, Liz gets very involved. Took a while to zero in on the guilty party. A must read.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

These are kind of fun!

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mystery about long ago ancestors keeps Liz and the town guessing until the end!

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

These books are cute little page turners!!!! I’m really enjoying these stories and when I finish one book, I can’t wait to read the next one!!

[Deborah Stevens · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy read

[Bess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super quick and enjoyable. This is gonna get expensive....

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good followup to the first book, though you could tell that it was a different author.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun read but expected it to have more to do with the Amish culture. Started out slow but I enjoyed the last half. A cute, slightly predictable mystery.

[Phyllis Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoying the second book in this series

[Aide · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. It was a good cozy mystery. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would since I didn’t finish the first book.

[Debby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a wonderful read. The story was well written in the sense it flowed very nicely along. Murder, mystery, genealogy, and the Civil War are all mixed into a nicely told tale.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5