Farm to Trouble: An Organic Cozy Mystery

I absolutely loved Farm to Trouble. It didn't hurt that the setting is in Northern Lower Michigan in a fictional town near Traverse City. As a Michigander, I always love reading books set in my home state. The story itself had a nice plot, the mystery was executed well, and there is a great deal of character development.Shiloh fled Cherry Glen 15 years ago after a tragic turn of events. When her father requested she come home, she wastes no time cashing in her 401k, leaving Hollywood behind. In between buttoning up her California life and getting back to Michigan, Shiloh locates an investor, all while trying to discuss options to keeping the farm running with her dad, who refuses to acknowledge the problem or any of Shi's solutions. She no more than gets out of car at her home in Michigan, and all the good she thought was going to happen crumbled to the ground. Her father holds a grudge against the investor and does nothing but belittle Shiloh and drag her cousin into the charade, too. When she didn't think things could get any worse, her investor is found dead and she and her dad are the main suspects.I really felt Shiloh got a raw deal, and not just from the investor. The entire town treats her like an outcast and her family? The people that are supposed to love and support? They treat her like trash. I was seriously pissed about how poorly her dad and her cousin acted. Shi never even stood up for herself. She tried but they talked over her and never let her even attempt to explain or justify. She took their abuse and it made me mad. Despite her dad and cousin's treatment of her, Shi was nothing if not loyal.Despite my thoughts about her family, I found Shi to be a wonderful character. I enjoyed watching her brainstorm ways to save the farm while doing what she could to make minor improvements. When it was clear law enforcement wasn't going to look any further than at Shi and her dad, Shi took matters into her own hand. Of course, this alienated her even further with the townsfolk but at this point, her family's innocence was worth more than acceptance.I look forward to reading the next book.

This was an interesting start to a new series. There is a lot going on in this first book, we have tons of backstory, which is necessary, and I think will set up a wonderful series. I did find it a little lacking in details of now. We get the mystery and some good red herrings but sometimes I could not figure out where our heroine was going, what was she going to actually do to save the farm, why not try to figure out what the actual situation was. We did some conclusions in the end but there were several things left up in the air so I really hope we get book two soon!!!

Shiloh Bellamy left Michigan years ago after a tragedy and led a successful life in California but now her father, and her family’s farm needs her so she returns to Michigan with plans to turn Bellamy Farms into a sustainable, organic operation. The only way she can do that is to sign with an investor, something she quickly regrets when the investor is murdered and the police suspect either Shiloh or her father is the killer. When Shiloh realizes the police aren’t looking for any other suspects, she sets out to clear her name. It won’t be easy – everyone in town thinks she or her father is guilty but Shiloh is determined to find the killer not only to clear her family’s name but so she can build the farm of her dreams.“Farm to Trouble” is the nicely done first book in Amanda Flower’s Farm to Table cozy mystery series. Flower has created an interesting character in Shiloh who wants to help her father even though her relationship with him isn’t the best. In fact, it is the relationships that make this book so interesting starting with the reason Shiloh left town so many years ago and her relationship with not only her father, but her cousin Stacy, and her next door neighbor Quinn who seemingly has never forgiven Shiloh for the death of his best friend but may like her more than he lets on (and his daughter is adorable!). These relationships can be tough to take – if I was Shiloh I would have been on the first flight back to California – but they make for an interesting book to read (I do hope the relationships soften up a bit in the next book – people were awfully mean to Shiloh at times). The mystery itself was well plotted with plenty of twists and turns and surprises – while I tried to guess who the killer was (my guess was usually whoever was meanest to Shiloh at the time!) – I was surprised when the killer was revealed. Finally, there was a mystery that was not solved by the end of this book – I look forward to the next book to see if it is solved then.“Farm to Trouble” is a nicely done cozy mystery.

A good cozy mystery set in the country. This had some Hallmark movie vibes, but I liked it well enough. I'm just not sure there was enough uniqueness about it for this book to stick with me.Good, but not particularly compelling.

i am a Amanda Flower fan and that was why i tried this new book. I am hooked i liked it as much as the other series she has. Well written, amazing characters who are human . Very hard to go back home after being away for so long and it shows all the problems she goes up against and also the friendships she continues. Cannot wait to see how she developes these characters over the next few books. She kept my attention and for once i did not guess the killer

Ist okay , aber etwas langatmig zu lesen .Schade , denn ihre Bücher als - Isabella Alan -geschrieben , besonders ihre Amish Quilt ShopSerie waren echt toll .