The Shaker Murders by Eleanor Kuhns Book Review!

A peaceful Shaker community is rocked by a series of bizarre accidents, but is there more to them than first appears? 

Fresh from facing allegations of witchcraft and murder, travelling weaver Will Rees, his heavily pregnant wife Lydia and six adopted children take refuge in Zion, a Shaker community in rural Maine. Shortly after their arrival, screams in the night reveal a drowned body ... but is it murder or an unfortunate accident? The Shaker Elders argue it was just an accident, but Rees believes otherwise.

As Will investigates further, more deaths follow and a young girl vanishes from the community. Haunted by nightmares for his family's safety, Rees must rush to uncover the truth before the dreams can become reality and more lives are lost. Yet can the Shaker Elders be trusted, or is an outsider involved?

Other Books in the series:
A Simple Murder 2012
Death of a Dyer  2013
Cradle to Grave  2014
Death in Salem   2015
The Devil's Cold Dish 2016

My Review
My first thought, I should have started the series from the beginning that way I would have been able to learn about the Rees family. That said, I was able to catch up as to why the Rees family ended up taking refuge with the Zion community, with a pregnant wife, Lydia, and six adopted children of varying ages.

They had to flee from their farm as Lydia had been charged with witchcraft. Not long after they arrive at the community, there are screams in the night. Will Rees takes it upon herself to prove that it was a murder the Elders say it was an accident and not murder. Will digs in his heels though and along with a sheriff in a nearby town, investigate the murder despite what the Elders want. Are the Elders protesting too much?

As Will investigates, there are more deaths and a young girl vanishes. With all that is going on, Will is determined to move his family to the farm that supposedly belongs to his wife's family but the Zion community wants for their own. 

I have not read any books in this series but I did enjoy it. What I found interesting with the Shaker's is that the women and children are kept separate from the men. Women are to be pretty much seen and not heard. Personally, I can't imagine such a thing but it was in early America, Maine to be exact. I liked the writing style as it was easy to read and like I said, I was able to pick up the history of the Reese family. I think I would like to read the previous books at some point.
I give the book 4 stars and highly recommend it if you are into the Shaker life.

I received a copy of the book for review purposes only.

ELEANOR KUHNS is the 2011 winner of the Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel competition. She lives in New York, received her master’s in Library Science from Columbia University, and is currently the Assistant Director at the Goshen Public Library in Orange County, New York.