A review by dollycas
Canter With a Killer by Amber Camp

lighthearted mysterious

4.0

Dollycas's Thoughts

Not happy in her marriage or her job Mallory Martin divorces her spouse and moves back to her hometown of Hillspring, Arkansas to take care of her ailing father and open up a horse rescue. Her obsession with horses goes way back as does wanting to make a difference in the world so opening up a rescue on the family farm was an easy choice. But money is not rolling in so Mallory decides to add riding lessons to the rescue. This angers her neighbor Albert Cummings, who owns Champion Performance Horses, a horse breeding and training farm uphill from Mallory's rescue. He called to voice his displeasure the day before he was killed and found in his fourteen-stall show barn. A witness to the conversation and Mallory's iffy alibi make her the prime suspect.

Sheriff Grady Sullivan has known Mallory forever so you would think he would know she couldn't be responsible for the crime but he still is going all out to prove her guilty. Heck, she can think of several others with more motive and even Albert's son believes she is innocent.  So with a little help from her friends, she is bound and determined to find the real killer.

______

Mallory Martin is a strong woman intent on making her dreams come true but she is a bit gruff at times. She tries to use her knowledge learned as a forensic nurse to ferret out the killer but at times she leaps into action before thinking things through and that just gives the sheriff more ammunition against her. He clearly had tunnel vision when it came to Mallory. He also had a problem in his department he failed to address. I was not a fan.

Mallory has two college-age volunteers to help her take care of her rescues. Tanner and Ashley are knowledgeable about horses and love their jobs. They can't believe their "boss" is even considered a suspect. With her daughter away at college these kids help her deal with her empty nest feelings. Her friend Lanie along with her husband Bill truly have Mallory's back and fully support her throughout the whole ordeal. I loved the way Bill stepped up when a supplier was treating Mallory so poorly. It gave her the strength to take the man on too. Mallory's lawyer Andy was great too.

I loved the unique setting of a horse farm with rescues. The horses and a crazy lovable donkey tugged at my heart. Mallory also has a wonderful blue heeler. We have a loveable red heeler and they are great dogs.

The mystery was filled with some nice twists. There were some clear suspects and a couple more that I added to my personal list. I was focused on the wrong person for quite a while so I was surprised when the actual culprit was revealed. I was not sure how Mallory was going to save herself but then her rescuer took care of it in an awesome way.

Canter with a Killer
was a strong debut and a very enjoyable read. A fine mystery with a brisk pace and a smashing ending that was very entertaining. I look forward to getting to know these characters better as the series continues.