The Mortician's Wife by Jody Wenner

 When the business of dying leads to murder. 

About the Book:  In 1912, as the new wife of the local mortician, Beatrice is settling in at the funeral parlor, but soon after, the death of a young boy sweeps a cold chill into the warmth of her new home as well as her marriage.

In 2022, fledgling author Maddy Barton isn’t surprised to discover someone was murdered in her 1912 era home. The old mansion has been giving her bad vibes ever since she moved in. But after learning who the victim was, she is determined to figure out what happened so she can put the unsettled spirit at ease. Maddy’s husband isn’t terribly supportive of her efforts, and many of the people in the small town of Pine Grove, Minnesota have ideas—and secrets—of their own, but she’s determined to solve the gothic crime the only way she knows how—to write about it. 

Our Review: Author Jody Wenner ‘sets the scene’ by introducing Maddy, a young, married woman who is juggling several burdens at the same time: renovating an old home single-handedly, reviving a flagging career, and coping with a devastating personal loss. As she works to take things one day at a time, the new home starts giving off weird vibes which not only don’t cease, but ramp up to sometimes dangerous levels. Suspicious of something along a felony line, Maddy does what she does best: research the home’s history.

          Flashing back to 1912, we meet Beatrice, a hero in her own time, who struggles for justice and the rights of the poor and disadvantaged. With jealousy, envy and misogyny as constant barriers, Beatrice refuses to give up—and the reader is treated to a gothic mystery, set in the perfect location: a funeral home. One of Author Wenner’s many skills is the ability to build suspense. We wonder what she has in store next.

On a scale of 1-5 The Mortician’s Wife merits a 7.

Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews