Proof in the Photo is the ninth book in Kathi Daley’s heartwarming The Inn at Holiday Bay series. The writing style flows smoothly, and the book is a clean and easy read. The author is very talented in descriptive writing, and much of the time I was reading, I felt like I was right in the midst of the activities taking place and sharing the characters’ tragedies and joys. The mystery is well-plotted and complex, with lots of twists and red herrings to keep the reader engaged and guessing. The setting is charming, and the well-developed characters are affable, compassionate, and caring. I highly recommend this series to readers who enjoy well-crafted cozy mysteries.
Abby Sullivan’s life was dramatically changed when she lost her husband and their infant son in a tragic accident, but since moving to Holiday Bay, Maine, and opening the Inn at Holiday Bay, she’s made a new life for herself and found a home and a family. Georgia Carter, the inn’s talented cook/baker and manager, and her dog, Ramos, live with Abby, Rufus, a Maine Coon, and Molly, a terrier mix, in a cottage located on the property. Georgia’s cooking show, Cooking with Georgia, which airs on local cable, is doing quite well, and her ten-episode trial contract has been extended. Jeremy Slater, who lives in the inn’s basement apartment with his young niece, Annabelle, is a valuable asset as he helps Georgia with the day-to-day operations of the inn.
Fiona Arlington, who comes from a long line of multimillionaires, and her fiancé, Carson Devonshire, booked the inn for their engagement party. Fiona told Georgia that she chose their inn because it was quaint and commonplace, and would stand out from the elaborate affairs thrown by her friends. Her party will definitely be remembered since one of the guests, Alvin Connor, a groomsman, was murdered. People find Abby easy to talk to, so as she discovers things, she shares that information with her friend, Chief of Police Colt Wilder, as he tries to solve this baffling case. Meanwhile, Lonnie Parker and his wife, Lacy, have been hired by Baron Chadwick to refurbish the huge summer house built in Bar Harbor by Ozzie Chadwick in eighteen eighty-four. Abby finds herself caught up in the history of the Baron’s relatives and the possibility that she and Lacy may have discovered a secret room.