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Mailbox Mysteries #1
The Route That Takes You Home
All she needs is a fresh start. Can she find it in a familiar place?
It’s been a rough year for Kate Duncan, both on and off the job. Being a mail carrier puts her in close proximity to her customers, with consequences that can’t always be foreseen. So when a position opens at her hometown post office, she decides to leave Chicago in her rearview mirror.
What follows is a summer filled with change. Kate and her cat settle into a charming apartment above Eagle River’s historic Main Street, but she dreams of a different home to call her own. And when she volunteers for the annual sweet corn festival, it doesn’t take long for her to establish her new place in the community.
As she drives the back roads around Eagle River, Kate begins to take a personal interest in the people on her route. So when an elderly resident goes missing, she feels compelled to help track him down. It’s a quest marked not by miles of gravel, but matters of the heart: friendship, family, and the small connections that add up to a life well-lived. Don’t miss this new series by the author of the heartwarming “Growing Season” novels!
It’s been a rough year for Kate Duncan, both on and off the job. Being a mail carrier puts her in close proximity to her customers, with consequences that can’t always be foreseen. So when a position opens at her hometown post office, she decides to leave Chicago in her rearview mirror.
What follows is a summer filled with change. Kate and her cat settle into a charming apartment above Eagle River’s historic Main Street, but she dreams of a different home to call her own. And when she volunteers for the annual sweet corn festival, it doesn’t take long for her to establish her new place in the community.
As she drives the back roads around Eagle River, Kate begins to take a personal interest in the people on her route. So when an elderly resident goes missing, she feels compelled to help track him down. It’s a quest marked not by miles of gravel, but matters of the heart: friendship, family, and the small connections that add up to a life well-lived. Don’t miss this new series by the author of the heartwarming “Growing Season” novels!
292 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 24, 2022
About the author
Melanie Lageschulte
30 books299 followersMelanie Lageschulte writes heartwarming rural fiction, including the "Mailbox Mysteries" and "Growing Season" series. After growing up on an acreage in Iowa with a menagerie of four-footed friends, she had spent much of her professional life telling the stories of the state and its residents. She enjoys baking, sewing, and supporting local animal shelters.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 92 reviews
May 23, 2024
Kate grew up on a farm in Iowa, but moved to Chicago when she got married. Now she's back in the same small town after divorcing her cheating husband. She is a rural mail carrier who is surprised one day when a vet stops her to assist in delivering a calf. The person who lives there is missing, and Kate has noticed that he hasn't picked up his package. She wants to find out what happened to the old bachelor farmer, plus she hopes to find some friends and buy a house. The town residents are friendly, the town seems like a pleasant place to live, and she enjoys her job. Recommended for anyone who enjoys small town stories like those by Debbie Macomber and Viola Shipman.
June 3, 2022
Like looking up an old friend
A new series with ties to her last one, Lageschulte continues to offer up sincere characters with good old hometown values, always with a little twist thrown in to make things exciting. In a world where so much craziness is happening all around us, these are a lovely reminder that there is still places where the pace is a little slower and people are still kind
A new series with ties to her last one, Lageschulte continues to offer up sincere characters with good old hometown values, always with a little twist thrown in to make things exciting. In a world where so much craziness is happening all around us, these are a lovely reminder that there is still places where the pace is a little slower and people are still kind
June 13, 2022
Decent writing but not quite as good as the other books I have read by this author. Good enough
however to give the next book a try also.
I enjoyed the other series about Melinda and Prosper very much.
however to give the next book a try also.
I enjoyed the other series about Melinda and Prosper very much.
unread-later
January 4, 2025I grabbed this as my final read on my KindleUnlimited subscription and only got a little ways in when it zapped back (yes, my subscription expired, but I thought as long as it was open on my Kindle it would stay). Oh well, I wasn't THAT into it. Maybe I'll try again in the future (when there's a KU deal ... which they don't seem to offer much except to new subscribers). Text only, no audio.
Right off ... I struggled just a bit with names. Often, I register the first letter ... "it starts with K" ... the MC is Kate, and then comes across Karen. Dang ... why do they have to start with the same letter? Apparently Karen is a vet, saw a laboring (pregnant) cow struggling so she stops to help, Kate helps too.
Karen the vet makes a statement like "we can mail out a bill" ... CAN she do that? The people who owned the cow didn't ask for her help. She came onto the property uninvited. Who knows if her help saved the cow/calf or if nature would have taken care of things? I don't think this is integral to the story at all, it just happens right at the start and I'm afraid I was wondering more about that then the mystery being presented (the people in the home don't appear to be home ... and it feels off) ...
Anyway - I just wanted to document that I did indeed START this book, didn't finish (not a DNF per se, as it wasn't really my choice) just in case I come back in the future. Note to self ... just start at over at the beginning.
Right off ... I struggled just a bit with names. Often, I register the first letter ... "it starts with K" ... the MC is Kate, and then comes across Karen. Dang ... why do they have to start with the same letter? Apparently Karen is a vet, saw a laboring (pregnant) cow struggling so she stops to help, Kate helps too.
Karen the vet makes a statement like "we can mail out a bill" ... CAN she do that? The people who owned the cow didn't ask for her help. She came onto the property uninvited. Who knows if her help saved the cow/calf or if nature would have taken care of things? I don't think this is integral to the story at all, it just happens right at the start and I'm afraid I was wondering more about that then the mystery being presented (the people in the home don't appear to be home ... and it feels off) ...
Anyway - I just wanted to document that I did indeed START this book, didn't finish (not a DNF per se, as it wasn't really my choice) just in case I come back in the future. Note to self ... just start at over at the beginning.
March 28, 2026
Pretty slow
Read
April 19, 2023Due to circumstances, I was looking for a lighter read and this book fitted the bill perfectly.
Kate Duncan's life is in turmoil; with her marriage breaking up and an incident in her job as a mail carrier has left her unsettled in Chicago and with an opening in the sorting office at her home town of Eagle River, she and her cat settle into a rented apartment until such times as her home in the city is sold and she has the funds to look around for a house. In the meantime, she is getting to know her co-workers and those on her route. When an elderly resident goes missing, Kate is determined to do her bit to help find him - after all, that's what living in a small community is all about, caring for your fellow man (or woman).
This is just the book I needed at a time of upset. Beautifully written with a host of fine characters, the love and friendships shine through and with a little mystery to help things along, I enjoyed this one so much that I immediately moved on the the next in series. A truly wonderful read, and one which helped me with a bit of healing. Recommended and, for me, 4.5*.
Kate Duncan's life is in turmoil; with her marriage breaking up and an incident in her job as a mail carrier has left her unsettled in Chicago and with an opening in the sorting office at her home town of Eagle River, she and her cat settle into a rented apartment until such times as her home in the city is sold and she has the funds to look around for a house. In the meantime, she is getting to know her co-workers and those on her route. When an elderly resident goes missing, Kate is determined to do her bit to help find him - after all, that's what living in a small community is all about, caring for your fellow man (or woman).
This is just the book I needed at a time of upset. Beautifully written with a host of fine characters, the love and friendships shine through and with a little mystery to help things along, I enjoyed this one so much that I immediately moved on the the next in series. A truly wonderful read, and one which helped me with a bit of healing. Recommended and, for me, 4.5*.
June 7, 2022
Can’t help but fall in love with the characters. Melanie develops the characters do well right from page one. I find her books to be comfort books. I grew up on a farm near a small town. So like going home. She brings a few characters from her Growing Seasons series in too which is nice to see them again. This one has a touch of mystery which is fun.
Read
July 14, 2022I enjoyed the Melinda Foster series.. just a simple easy read. This series is quite boring and hard to read because it feels like the author was trying too hard to write something
March 17, 2026
Typical Iowa
Needed a book on the plane but found the plot dragged. I was unsure of the point. The mystery was inane.
Needed a book on the plane but found the plot dragged. I was unsure of the point. The mystery was inane.
April 7, 2026
This book was hard for me to get into. It was slow and repetitive at times. I did like the sense of family and community. However, the gossiping and lack of real empathy for one of their neighbors for such a small community even with it being spread out was hard for me to understand. Jack to me was a selfish character who just wanted to argue for the sake of arguing. Kate Duncan had come home to outrun the hell she went through in Chicago first from her close proximity to her customers, with consequences that can’t always be expected.
The trauma is too much and soon after her husband Ben starts pulling away until he tells her the truth that he had been having an affair. So once the divorce goes through her grandpa calls to say his best friend is retiring, and he can put in a good word with Bertha some he had worked with at the post office. So she left Chicago in her rearview mirror. She now has an apartment overlooking Eagle River’s historic Main Street. When she gets roped into helping with the birthing of a calf.
She also gets involved in the whodunit or is it where’s Milton. To the point of an obsession. Or is it nosiness? I like to think of it as caring. So let's just say I had to sit with this for a bit as to see how I felt about it. Bottom line, I enjoyed it, but it would have to pick up the pace in the next book.
The trauma is too much and soon after her husband Ben starts pulling away until he tells her the truth that he had been having an affair. So once the divorce goes through her grandpa calls to say his best friend is retiring, and he can put in a good word with Bertha some he had worked with at the post office. So she left Chicago in her rearview mirror. She now has an apartment overlooking Eagle River’s historic Main Street. When she gets roped into helping with the birthing of a calf.
She also gets involved in the whodunit or is it where’s Milton. To the point of an obsession. Or is it nosiness? I like to think of it as caring. So let's just say I had to sit with this for a bit as to see how I felt about it. Bottom line, I enjoyed it, but it would have to pick up the pace in the next book.
June 12, 2023
I enjoyed this book. It is essentially a mystery but there is so much else going on as well. It is the story of Kate and her friends and family and the relationships between them. I enjoyed how it revolves around Kate's job as a post lady or mail carrier as they are called in America.
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All she needs is a fresh start. Can she find it in a familiar place?
It’s been a rough year for Kate Duncan, both on and off the job. Being a mail carrier puts her in close proximity to her customers, with consequences that can’t always be foreseen. So when a position opens at her hometown post office, she decides to leave Chicago in her rearview mirror.
What follows is a summer filled with change. Kate and her cat settle into a charming apartment above Eagle River’s historic Main Street, but she dreams of a different home to call her own. And when she volunteers for the annual sweet corn festival, it doesn’t take long for her to establish her new place in the community.
As she drives the back roads around Eagle River, Kate begins to take a personal interest in the people on her route. So when an elderly resident goes missing, she feels compelled to help track him down. It’s a quest marked not by miles of gravel, but matters of the heart: friendship, family, and the small connections that add up to a life well-lived.
*******************************
All she needs is a fresh start. Can she find it in a familiar place?
It’s been a rough year for Kate Duncan, both on and off the job. Being a mail carrier puts her in close proximity to her customers, with consequences that can’t always be foreseen. So when a position opens at her hometown post office, she decides to leave Chicago in her rearview mirror.
What follows is a summer filled with change. Kate and her cat settle into a charming apartment above Eagle River’s historic Main Street, but she dreams of a different home to call her own. And when she volunteers for the annual sweet corn festival, it doesn’t take long for her to establish her new place in the community.
As she drives the back roads around Eagle River, Kate begins to take a personal interest in the people on her route. So when an elderly resident goes missing, she feels compelled to help track him down. It’s a quest marked not by miles of gravel, but matters of the heart: friendship, family, and the small connections that add up to a life well-lived.
August 5, 2025
I liked this book a lot, but I gave it spotty treatment, to say the least. It seemed lightweight, but it began to come together, and I owed it another shot. It was an unsettled time around here, and I couldn’t get into the book at first, but I realized I wasn’t giving it a fair shot. I’m not much for cozies,” but my move to the country, and, thus, fewer encounters with friends on a day-to-day basis, reading has taken on a different dimension for this already-passionate reader. Texas doesn’t lend itself to a quilt under a tree, lemonade and a fat turkey and avocado sandwich, and a big fat pillow for summer reading. But fall is coming! There’s a lot of great promise to the premise of this series: return to small-town life, buying a farm as a single gal, solving the mystery of a missing man, and a postal route, not to mention dogs, cats, and a calf, I’m looking forward to the second book in the series.
October 16, 2023
The Route That Takes You Home
As one who just returned home after 10 years & 2000 miles, this book was a great one for me! I didn't return to a mystery as our protagonist did, but I know how going home is not always what you expect it to be. But it will always be home! I enjoyed not only the story but the setting. My parents were farmers, but stopped before I was born, so IDK a lot of this first hand, but heard many stories. However, we always had a big garden. Mama taught me how to can & freeze the bounty from it. Green beans & tomatoes are what I remember with the most fondness! So the canning chapter may be my favorite! I can't say what I want to say without spoiling the story, so I'll simply say: this is a very good book, I hope you will read it, & I've just added a new series to my TBR list!
As one who just returned home after 10 years & 2000 miles, this book was a great one for me! I didn't return to a mystery as our protagonist did, but I know how going home is not always what you expect it to be. But it will always be home! I enjoyed not only the story but the setting. My parents were farmers, but stopped before I was born, so IDK a lot of this first hand, but heard many stories. However, we always had a big garden. Mama taught me how to can & freeze the bounty from it. Green beans & tomatoes are what I remember with the most fondness! So the canning chapter may be my favorite! I can't say what I want to say without spoiling the story, so I'll simply say: this is a very good book, I hope you will read it, & I've just added a new series to my TBR list!
June 20, 2024
I really want to like this book. And it one sense I did enjoy reading it, but I easily put it down after a chapter or two. It never did enthrall me. Small town Iowa girl moves back home after her divorce. Kate leaves Chicago to make a new start. She was able to transfer to her home town post office. On one of her rural routes, the woman vet asks Kate to assist her in pulling a calf. That incident leads the ladies to notice that the owner (Milton Benniger) of the farm is not there and hasn't been there in a few days. The mystery of this book is the missing elderly man. Kate is concerned and begins to investigate. And basically that's it. Will I continue reading the series: probably not.
May 14, 2023
Kate Duncan is enjoying the slower pace of delivering mail in Eagle River, Iowa, the rural community where she was raised. However, she is still plagued by the trauma she experienced while living and working in Chicago. This story brings the reader along with Kate as she digs around trying to discover what happened to a well-known and very private member of her small community. In the process of her investigation, Kate makes friends, gains confidence in herself, accepts and makes peace with her painful past, and begins to look forward to a brighter future. This was a great story filled with mystery, discovery, and plenty of heart. Great Read!!!!!
April 30, 2024
The Route That Takes You Home is mostly a slice of rural life in a small farming town, the next town over from Prosper where her Seasons series is set. Once again it centers on a woman coming home to start over, coming back to where her family lives, and making a new life for herself. The mystery is really secondary to the plot, with the main character, Kate, asking questions and making a few observations, but mainly the mystery is solved by the local law enforcement, and not detailed in the story. The novel is charming, just as much as the beginning novels of the Seasons series, as Kate buys a house, and starts to get settled with her cat.
June 4, 2024
The mail carriers
To me this was really not too much of a mystery, it was more of a story of life in the countryside. Yes, there was a disappearance which formed A continuous thread throughout the story but it was more of a story of Kate. Kate's readjustment to life in Eagle River, Kate's readjustment to mail delivery in a small town and to a small town's mail room dynamics.
It was a nice, pleasant read, it was easy paced, definitely not boring because I like descriptive books, especially ones featuring life in rural areas.
So, if you like this type of book, go ahead and read you will not regret it. Memorable characters are included especially the cats.
To me this was really not too much of a mystery, it was more of a story of life in the countryside. Yes, there was a disappearance which formed A continuous thread throughout the story but it was more of a story of Kate. Kate's readjustment to life in Eagle River, Kate's readjustment to mail delivery in a small town and to a small town's mail room dynamics.
It was a nice, pleasant read, it was easy paced, definitely not boring because I like descriptive books, especially ones featuring life in rural areas.
So, if you like this type of book, go ahead and read you will not regret it. Memorable characters are included especially the cats.
July 28, 2026
While the setting was interesting and the main character was sympathetic, the mystery (?) hardly moved. The tale was more like "everyday life for a traumatized home-comer in a small town." I can't understand that Kate became so obsessed with the disappearance of someone she didn't know at all, based on the dim feeling that "something doesn't seem right." Especially when it seems he'd made provisions to go away. Half-way through the book "the best clue she had so far" was that he sometimes went to a local bar. I wanted to see if the old guy finally showed up with his story, but I gave up half way through.
October 30, 2022
Review of TRTTYH
I love tender stories about people who seem real and struggle in real life situations. I was a little surprised to find Kate acting a bit co-dependent about Milton, whom she’d never met. Also, she kept dismissing the manipulative behaviors of the bar tender character. That would not bode well for her self-preservation. I think the story was a long stretch and made common gossip seem like it should be considered as normal. It seemed a bit shallow. I have enjoyed most of M. L’s fiction books. But this one seemed a little forced.
I love tender stories about people who seem real and struggle in real life situations. I was a little surprised to find Kate acting a bit co-dependent about Milton, whom she’d never met. Also, she kept dismissing the manipulative behaviors of the bar tender character. That would not bode well for her self-preservation. I think the story was a long stretch and made common gossip seem like it should be considered as normal. It seemed a bit shallow. I have enjoyed most of M. L’s fiction books. But this one seemed a little forced.
May 27, 2022
Another Iowa adventure
I loved the Growing Season series, and was excited to know we were going to meet some new people in a new series while revisiting some old friends, too. I definitely enjoyed getting to know Kate and the rest of the mail carriers, and worried through the mystery of Milton! I was happy to see more animals in the story; I loved the big black tuxedo kitty who guarded the mailbox! I'm so looking forward to the next book in the series.
I loved the Growing Season series, and was excited to know we were going to meet some new people in a new series while revisiting some old friends, too. I definitely enjoyed getting to know Kate and the rest of the mail carriers, and worried through the mystery of Milton! I was happy to see more animals in the story; I loved the big black tuxedo kitty who guarded the mailbox! I'm so looking forward to the next book in the series.
June 19, 2022
Melanie Lageschulte new series
I loved Melanie Lagesculte's other series, so was happy to read her first book in new book series, Mailbox Mysteries. I was not disappointed. "The Route That Takes You Home" has the same charm as the rest of her books. Love the added mystery element in this series. I recommend these books to anyone who loved small, rural town life and a book with an interesting, charming story.
I loved Melanie Lagesculte's other series, so was happy to read her first book in new book series, Mailbox Mysteries. I was not disappointed. "The Route That Takes You Home" has the same charm as the rest of her books. Love the added mystery element in this series. I recommend these books to anyone who loved small, rural town life and a book with an interesting, charming story.
June 19, 2023
A warm and gentle mystery set in Eagle River. I loved reading this, such an easy read as Kate returns to her hometown from the bit city after an assault and a relationship breakdown she just needs to be around some comfort. When an old gentleman on her postal round appears to go missing she finds herself in the middle of a mystery, helping with some nosing around and making new friends. Enjoyable and cosy.
September 8, 2024
This is the first book of a new mystery series (Mailbox Mysteries) by the same author whose Seasons series about life on a small farm has me so enrapt in my old age. This new series features a mail carrier who realizes that a house is empty that probably shouldn't be. The elderly owner is missing. We meet some of the same characters that populate the Seasons series, and a whole lot of new ones. I enjoyed revisiting this 'verse.
April 23, 2026
The book starts with heartbreak. After 10 years, Kate finds her husband has been having an affair. They decide to divorce and sell their home in Chicago and she moves back to her rural farm town and continues to be a mail carrier. During her route, she discovers a missing elderly man from the small town. What happened? Small country town and everyone in everyone is a busybody. Is he alive? Where did he go?
May 28, 2022
The Route That Takes You Home s is a well-written story opening a door to a whole new community with enough references to people and places in the Season series to give this reader confidence that I will feel at home here, too. This is a sweet story with a real mystery and plausible explanations and exonerations. Definitely looking forward to book 2!
May 31, 2022
Another winner for Iowa lovers!
Who knew this little square state could make for such interesting reading? Farm and small town life make for an enjoyable change of pace for us city dwellers and the post office that we all take for granted takes center stage in this "home again" story. Kudos to Melanie for the blend of new characters with the Seasons crew. Great read!!
Who knew this little square state could make for such interesting reading? Farm and small town life make for an enjoyable change of pace for us city dwellers and the post office that we all take for granted takes center stage in this "home again" story. Kudos to Melanie for the blend of new characters with the Seasons crew. Great read!!
June 4, 2022
I’ve read all of her prior books, more than once. For me, reading her books and stories are like coming home and putting on my mother’s cardigan and feeling her warmth and love. The stories are uplifting and positive. It leaves me feeling good about humanity, which isn’t always easy to feel these days. She needs to write faster (kidding) because we need more of her wonderful stories and characters!!
June 8, 2022
Great new series
I am so glad a new series is starting. I loved the last one this author wrote. Great characters and accurate description of country life in small towns. Can't wait to enjoy Kate's adventures. I love how the characters of the last series are incorporated in this series.
I am so glad a new series is starting. I loved the last one this author wrote. Great characters and accurate description of country life in small towns. Can't wait to enjoy Kate's adventures. I love how the characters of the last series are incorporated in this series.
June 13, 2022
Sucked me right in
Another good book by a great storyteller. Loved all her "Season" books and enjoyed this one as well. I feel the rest will be even better now that we know the characters. Loved the believable way the author incorporates characters from the Season series.
Fast read. Looking forward to book 2
Another good book by a great storyteller. Loved all her "Season" books and enjoyed this one as well. I feel the rest will be even better now that we know the characters. Loved the believable way the author incorporates characters from the Season series.
Fast read. Looking forward to book 2
July 12, 2022
Rural Iowa mailboxes
Nice start to a new series. I’m in rural Iowa again. Kate is a mail carrier back home after a messy divorce. Settling n to her old routine felt like going backward, but there was more to it now. Follow Kate as she settles into Eagle River as a mail carrier, homeowner, and pet lover.
Nice start to a new series. I’m in rural Iowa again. Kate is a mail carrier back home after a messy divorce. Settling n to her old routine felt like going backward, but there was more to it now. Follow Kate as she settles into Eagle River as a mail carrier, homeowner, and pet lover.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 92 reviews