YELLOW ROCK

In this 17th installment of a mystery series, two newspaper colleagues must keep on their toes while investigating the death of a square-dance caller.

Warren “Mitch” Mitchell, a reporter for the St. Paul, Minnesota–based Daily Dispatch, is taking up square dancing at the behest of his lawyer wife. No sooner does he make the acquaintance of a nationally renowned caller at a dance than the man keels over. A heart attack is suspected, but as the medical examiner cautions Mitch: “You might want to wait on presuming anything until the autopsy results are complete.” Sure enough, it is determined that the caller was murdered with a shot of “enough fentanyl to knock out a horse.” The news sparks an investigation by Mitch and Alan “Al” Jeffrey, the newspaper’s staff photographer. Meanwhile, Mitch’s mother is being spooked by a phantom’s late-night visits to her farm, rearranging porch furniture, stealing implements, and “trying to drive us nuts,” she says. One night, she catches the prowler in the act and fires a warning rifle shot that takes off a couple of his toes. When someone shoots out a window in her bedroom, Mitch ceases to be an unbiased observer, locates the perpetrator, and demands that he reveal who’s behind the harassment of his mother. After nearly 20 years, Ickler is comfortable in the skins of Mitch and Al; perhaps too comfortable. The subplot with Mitch’s mother raises the stakes in an otherwise straightforward mystery. Al’s co-billing in the subtitle is generous. The photographer exists here mostly to set up puns for he and Mitch to swap. Mileage will vary on how funny they are, but some, like one play on the phrase the right to bear arms, land solidly. And in this enjoyable story, readers will learn about square-dance etiquette and culture. In addition, the journalism procedural bits accurately reflect the often mundane work that goes into breaking news scoops.

This engaging mystery should please fans of the series and pick up some new ones.