Deadly Will

It's amazing what fruits can come out of forming a writer's group. Marion Moore Hill was the mystery writer in her particular group, which met a couple of times a month. But Hill brought a wealth of expertise to her group, including experience as a journalist, teacher, ad copywriter, and legal secretary. Hill has a dog named Aragorn and uses her animals in her mysteries. Her books include: BOOKMARKED FOR MURDER, a cookbook entitled A SECOND HELPING OF MURDER, and now DEADLY WILL. Hill has also published short stories. In 1789 Ben Franklin's neighbor, Nathan Henry, decided to write a will as unusual as Franklin's. Over 200 years later, Millie Kirchner, single mother, student, and nursing home aide, receives a letter inviting her for a week in Philadelphia, where an inheritance will be given. The trip includes a stay at Nathan Henry's home; a drawing for Henry's priceless heirlooms; and the reading of the will. Millie meets her distant cousins; some of whom are intriguing, some of whom are criminals. Then the murders begin, and Millie turns into a sleuth: "She paced repeatedly, circling the table while considering the question of opportunity. Koontz had been in the parlor when she and Brad had left the mansion. Then they'd wandered the yard a while before arriving at the pond. And when she's returned for help, Koontz had been on the patio. If he had come outside just after them, he might have had time to slay Johns, hide among the shrubbery and reappear at the French doors." Marion Moore Hill has obviously researched antiques from Ben Franklin's era thoroughly to add to her saucy tale. It's always fun to have a mansion as a backdrop for a mystery, and when there are so many well crafted characters running around, well it just makes the book hard to put down. Hill paces the mystery nicely, and Millie is a heroine everyone can relate to. She is a doting mother, a rueful divorce' who is afraid to enter into a new relationship, a budding intellectual who is just beginning to develop through her schooling, and a compassionate human being whose emotional attachment to an elderly resident of her nursing home is a touching story. DEADLY WILL has all the elements of a spine-tingling cozy: a deadly murderer lurking around the mansion; suspicious and squabbling relatives; and a darn good puzzle to solve. Excellent! Shelley Glodowski Senior Reviewer

In 1789, Nathan Henry created a will that directed his money and possessions be divided among his living relatives 200 years after his death. In 2001, Millie Kirchner is among the various heirs who gather at the Henry estate to hear the terms of the will. Most of the relatives are meeting for the first time and none were aware of their ancestor until requested to appear. Millie is a struggling single mother who starts to fear for her safety as, one by one, the heirs are being murdered. Is it merely a coincidence or is someone trying to increase his inheritance? This is a delightful traditional-style mystery. Hill lays out the clues and the crimes leading Millie to distrust almost everyone until she gets a little too close to figuring out what is going on. In the meantime, we get to learn a little about antiques and Philadelphia's historical sites. I wasn't surprised when the killer was revealed but I certainly wasn't convinced I had it all figured out. Too many people seemed to have motive. This is a wonderful start to a series that will allow Millie and her son, Danny, to explore historical sites and the mysteries they find there. Armchair Interviews highly recommend Deadly Will for history buffs and fans of traditional mysteries.