The latest in Brown's long-running series begins with a body strung up like a scarecrow in a field. Series lead, postmistress Harry Harristeen, her husband, and her indefatigable crew of fellow-sleuth animals find the body as well as another added to a Halloween display. The first is an accountant, but the second is a friend of Harry's who ran a local organic farm stand. The only connection between the two was a shared interest in and ancestry of Native Americans from Virginia. Harry and neighbor Deputy Cooper learn that the state does not recognize many local tribes and that their history has virtually been erased. Maps and land ownership researched by the two victims together point toward a motive. The difficulties of Native Americans in reclaiming their heritage provides an engrossing angle in the case of the gruesome Halloween crimes. As usual, the smart animals provide clues without getting in the way of the human interactions and plot. This is a strong addition to the popular series.--Alessio, Amy Copyright 2010 Booklist

Chapter one of bestseller Brown's enchanting 21st Mrs. Murphy mystery (after 2012's The Big Cat Nap) finds Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen and her veterinarian husband, Fare, enjoying a drive through the central Virginia countryside one beautiful October day. A squabble among their backseat passengers-tiger cat Mrs. Murphy; Pewter, Mrs. Murphy's gray, overweight feline sidekick; and Tucker, a corgi-prompts the couple to pull over by a cornfield. A scarecrow that they spot in the middle of the field turns out, on closer inspection, to be a dead body. While the residents of Crozet, Va., continue to prepare for the Halloween Hayride, to raise money for the town library, the death toll mounts, and Harry resolves to catch a killer. Brown demonstrates once again why she's the queen of the talking animal cozy subgenre. Agent: Wendy Weil, Wendy Weil Agency. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.