Probable Claws

October 19, 2020 - Probable Claws (Rita Mae and Sneaky Pie Brown). Dogs and cats and spiders and dinosaurs. Oh my! It's a lot for Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen to sort out when one of the local architects is murdered. This book is indeed a sequel to the previous entry in the series, A Hiss Before Dying. The modern timeline picks up just before the start of 2017. The historical timeline resumes in the spring of 1787.

Just before the New Year, Harry stops by the office of an architect who's designing a she-shed for her. Then, just as the architect is showing Harry out, a motorcycle pulls up and the rider shoots him dead on the spot. Who? Why? A few days later, the office is broken into and boxes of building codes dating back to the Eighties are stolen. Again, who? Why? Harry suspects the murder may be tied to big construction projects – past and present – in Richmond.

Meanwhile, back in the 18th century, the Revolutionary War may be over, but the new country still has a lot to sort out if it wants to survive. One of the big issues is money, as even the wealthy worry that they will be crushed by debt. One man's plan to make a quick buck goes awry when a slave makes off with his prize stallion.

I read this book immediately after finishing A Hiss Before Dying so the characters from both timelines were still fresh in my mind. Once again, there's really no overlap between the two timelines. In other words, the events of 1787 did not directly or indirectly lead to the murder of the architect in 2016. But, the author does give more hints that the past will eventually come back to haunt the present. It seems as though that development will be left to a third book in this arc.