MURDER, SHE WROTE: MURDER IN SEASON is the 52nd installment in this long-running and beloved murder mystery series. It is also the sixth to be penned by Jon Land, who took over as the “co-author” with the fictional Jessica Fletcher following the passing of series creator Donald Bain.

Even if I had never read a single Murder, She Wrote tale, I would have been hooked by the quote that opens this latest book, which comes from my all-time favorite story, Charles Dickens’ A CHRISTMAS CAROL. Ebenezer Scrooge accosts two charity men on Christmas Eve by stating, “If I could work my will...every idiot who goes about with ‘Merry Christmas’ on his lips should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart.” As an actor and Anglophile, I was blessed to have played Scrooge for 10 holiday seasons on stage with my old theater troupe in New York and cannot imagine any Christmas without it. Needless to say, this quote immediately pulled me into the story.

"MURDER, SHE WROTE: MURDER IN SEASON should serve as a nice diversion for readers living in a world where a pandemic dominates both headlines and our nightmares, and gives us a great story of hope and Scrooge-like redemption to warm us on the cold winter nights to come."

Jessica Fletcher is eating at Mara’s Luncheonette with one of her best friends, Dr. Seth Hazlitt, and sharing her holiday plans, which include her nephew Grady visiting her along with his wife and their son Frank. They will be staying at her newly refurbished house, which had tragically burned down in a prior novel. Their pleasant meal is interrupted by a phone call from the contractor working on the house, Ben McMasters, who reports a bit of a snag in their daily production. It seems that a body has been found near the septic tank, and the police are already on their way. Jessica heads over immediately with Seth, who doubles as the town’s medical examiner.

While Jessica is at her property, along with Seth and Sheriff Mort Metzger, she is met abruptly by Tad Hollenbeck, a reporter who works for an infamous TV news program aptly titled “Stalker.” He claims to be interested in the high mortality rate of Cabot Cove and wants information from its most famous resident, but everyone is convinced that he is there for some other reason. It turns out that two sets of bones have been found in the ground on Jessica’s property, one of which is fairly recent and the other of which is ancient. Alongside the latter is some written material that goes back to the days of Cabot Cove’s founders.

Jessica and Mort start searching for the descendants of the founders still living in town. Perhaps someone is targeting them, especially since the most recent set of bones shows evidence of a caved-in skull, indicating murderous intent. A great source of Cabot Cove’s history is the owner of the local antique store, Fred Hardesty. Jessica actually gives him the diary notes found with the ancient bones and awaits his findings.

Outside of these murderous goings-on, Jessica is working with other members of the town on both the annual Christmas parade and their staging of “A Christmas Carol.” She is to be the narrator again this year, while Seth is cast as the Ghost of Christmas Past. She also is busy trying to find a “volunteer” to play Santa Claus for various town events.

Things take a deadly turn when Hollenbeck’s lifeless body is found at Cabot Cove’s Surfsider Motel. It was made to look like a suicide, but it is obvious to Jessica and company that it was murder. Then the unassuming Sheila Del Perrio turns up dead. In typical Jon Land fashion, we are fed a number of potential suspects, motives, red herrings and historical data to keep our minds humming with all the possibilities in figuring out these mysteries. It is as if we are allowed to temporarily become a Cabot Cove resident, seeking to leave all worries aside and enjoy Christmas, but with the knowledge and experience that Jessica brings to the table as an expert plotter and creator of murder mystery tales.

MURDER, SHE WROTE: MURDER IN SEASON should serve as a nice diversion for readers living in a world where a pandemic dominates both headlines and our nightmares, and gives us a great story of hope and Scrooge-like redemption to warm us on the cold winter nights to come.