THE DEAD WILL NEVER HAUNT ME

Teen sleuth and true-crime blogger Bea is back in this third and final entry in the Murder, She Wrote series, this time leaving her home in Cabot Cove, Maine, for New Mexico.

Bea is glad when her father invites her to join him on a work trip to Albuquerque. She’s looking forward to the opportunity to meet with a filmmaker who teaches at the University of New Mexico. Professor Vance made a docuseries about a cult called the Starlight Society, which may have targeted Bea’s mother’s family when she was little; Bea’s paternal grandfather was part of a network of cult deprogrammers. The new setting combined with the rapid introduction of many new characters creates an appealing departure from the insular feel of the first two books. Tragedy strikes while Bea is in New Mexico, and her unfamiliarity with the people she’s surrounded by means that she finds herself in strange situations, creating suspense. Once Bea heads back to Maine, however, the story resolves abruptly. Her return to Cabot Cove feels a bit perfunctory, providing a rushed ending to the ongoing mystery of a sort of scavenger hunt she’s been playing with her friends Leisl, Leif, and Carlos. Previous books established some racial diversity among the cast members.

An engaging, if choppy, conclusion that offers an understated end to the overarching mystery.