The Silence of the Llamas (Black Sheep Knitting Mystery #5) by Anne Canadeo
The Black Sheep Knitting group has headed out to the countryside, doing some good farm stand shopping.
The crew is on their way to visit friend’s of Dana’s. Her old college friend Ellie; married Ben Kruegar, sold her successful business, bought a property in Plum Harbor, and created a Llama farm.
Aw, how cute.
This weekend is Ellie ad Ben’s big grand opening of their farm, the Laughing Llama. While the event is fun, full of food and farm animals; somebody isn’t interested in it. In fact, the llamas are attacked by someone with a paint gun, severely injuring them.
It turns out that, that isn’t the only bad thing that has been happening. There have been a series of “pranks” as the couple calls them, ranging from missing items, the animals being released, etc.
It turns out that the idyllic countryside is not that idyllic after all. There is a development company that wants to buy up all the farms, and a group of people are trying to protect the lands. They believe that the Kruegars bought the land, only to turn it over to developers, but Ellie and Ben claim they are here long term.
Their hired hand Dot, is a great help, but not really close to them.
Then one night they find the dead body of the man who was most interested in stopping them from “selling”, Jason Ridley. Now the police are looking at Ben for the murder, and the Black Sheep Knitting group are on the case.
Thoughts After Reading:
So there are two mysteries in this novel. One is the sabotager, and the other is the murderer. This mystery was half good, with the murder being done excellent.
while the sabotage part wasn’t that good. I mean I figured it out immediately.
It wasn’t as bad as A Stitch Before Dying , but not as good as Till Death Do Us Purl or While My Pretty One Knits.
***Spoiler Alert***
So as soon as I read this on page 43:
“Oh, Ellie, what’s the difference? We know who it is. Justin Ridley. He’s the only one who could have done this. The only one who has any reason to harass us. Who believes he has a reason,’ he [Ben] corrected himself.”
I knew it was Ben.
I knew Ben was like the husband in Gaslight and Dangerous Crossing, just after the money and behind the scheme to sabotage so he could get it.
For more Black Sheep Knitting Mysteries, go to Till Death Do Us Purl
For more cases of sabotage, go to A Taste for Murder
For more mystery reviews, go to Just Because You’re Paranoid, Doesn’t Mean a Demon’s Not After You: Storm Front
Mysterious Eats 