Book Review Murder at Pelican Lake

“Murder at Pelican Lake,” by Marjorie Mathison Hance, is tagged as a cozy mystery and the first of a trilogy series in which each story takes place on a different lake.

Set in Minnesota’s lake country, “Murder at Pelican Lake” engages you with a compelling mystery from the first page to the last. The opening scene builds tension when a Pelican Lake girl, Lindsey, 16, is abducted on her way home from school. At the same time as the girl’s kidnapping, a 30s-something woman, Carley, returns to her childhood cabin on Pelican Lake in northern Minnesota. She has recently lost her high-profile job in the city, parted ways with her long-time partner, and is adjusting to the loss of her parents a few years back. Carley looks forward to starting over and forging a new path. But she no sooner arrives at the cabin when several suspicious events increasingly threaten her own safety. It becomes clear to her that her idyllic vacation community has its own share of secrets and someone will kill to keep them hidden. Bitter conflicts between old-time residents and big-time developers highlight the conflicting needs for status quo versus change. The main plot line is complex, involving manufacturing spectrometers and patents. Carley's amateur sleuthing skills are tested through several carefully planted clues and a series of ingenious plot twists, red herrings, and puzzles to be solved. Carley proves herself to be brave and resourceful.

Since the author has a close kinship with the area, her descriptions of the close-knit community are plausible and relatable, and she weaves into the narrative familiar places in the area, such as Pelican Rapids, Vergas, and Fargo. Readers who've enjoyed spending time at the lake will find many elements in this novel that will have a nostalgic appeal to them, with barbecues by the lake shore, scuba diving, dinners and drinks at quaint restaurants, and boating.

A well-written story with a satisfying conclusion for a first-time author, Marjorie Mathison Hance. 

ALL ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Marjorie Mathison Hance is the author of the North Lakes Murder Mystery Series, including Murder at Pelican Lake, Cormorant in the Net, and The Man Three Cottages Down. The novels, all set in Minnesota’s northwestern lake country, were inspired by her time spent on Pelican Lake throughout her life, beginning in 1956 when she first learned to fish and waterski. Growing up, she enjoyed reading and fell in love with mystery books after discovering Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden. In 1968, her family bought a summer home on the lake. She was always intrigued by the people on Pelican Lake and enjoyed stories and mysteries about their lives. With two daughters and sons-in-law, and five grandchildren, the lake has become even more important to her. Ten years ago, she rebuilt the cabin into a lake home as a family gathering place. It is where she wrote her three novels inspired by her love of the lake and the people who come there.