Newly divorced, Evie Carson has followed her dreams back to her small hometown in Georgia to open a fashion boutique. Everything seems to be on track until one evening she climbs to the remains of her childhood tree house to enjoy some quiet after work.
Suddenly a man appears under her tree, bearing the nude body of her childhood friend. She watches, terrified as Jake buries Denise's body, vowing to find her friend's murderer. She firmly believes Jake didn't do it.
I was certain I'd discovered the identity of the murderer early in the book, but like Evie, I learned things aren't as simple as they first seem. Repeatedly. The author had a few tricks up her sleeve, and I fell for them, along with Evie.
Evie can't be persuaded to leave the investigation to the appropriate agencies, so she puts herself in danger repeatedly. Local law enforcement want's to protect her,once they cleared her of the murder, but she doesn't want to be protected. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation thinks she's murdered someone else close to her.Sheriff Douglas is falling in love with her, and she's confused between her feelings of obligation to Denise, and her feelings for Douglas, as he tries to help and protect her. Evie just goes full steam ahead in her investigation despite all of them.
Small town secrets come to the surface, and Evie is in for some serious shocks. One of them may deny Evie the chance at true love if she can't get things sorted out.
We're given entry into the murderers thoughts which add greatly to the tension and suspense of the novel. Evie doewsn't realize how close the murderer really is to her.
Ther were times I wanted to shout at Evie when she followed her thoughts in her investigation; "You aren't really going to go back to your house, are you? Why won't you take someone with you? People around you are getting hurt! Listen to Douglas' advice!" Evie doesn't listen to anyone.
The novel contained one of the most intertesting street names-- Burnt Magnolia Street. Probably harkens back to Reconstruction after the Civil War.
A fascinating read. I loved how the relationships between the characters developed and in some cases broke down, and the portrayal of the angst of small town folks was as true as it could get.
Find out if Evie solves the mystery, or if law officials beat her to the solution. I'll tell you this-- "It ain't easy bein' Evie"!
