I admit, I may like the Scumble River books from Denise Swanson more than some others might, because I grew up, and still live, in the Joliet area, where all of her books are set. I played in a band with the guys who PINK ELEPHANT is dedicated to (their band was called Plastic Santa in real life) and I know the dentist to whom this book is dedicated. The settings are real to me, and become sort of an additional character for me.
But I think these books, and specifically this book, stand on their own merit. In this one, Skye Denison finally has the help she has so often requested when the school board hires a social worker. But this new colleague is a bit over-zealous and soon has Skye feeling pressure to do more herself. So against her better judgement, she becomes the liason between the parent's Prom committee planning Promfest and the school administration, and is roped into volunteering for the haunted house.
It's at this haunted house that the particularly obnoxious chairwoman of the committee is found dead, the victim of an apparent accident where she ran into a rope. But who put up that rope anyway? And might Skye herself have been the intended target?
It's another fun romp through Scumble River, with the usual feisty characters and a good solid plot. It continues Skye's tale quite nicely, and sets up numerous possibilities for the next book. I really enjoyed it, and found it to be an engaging and quick read. It may help that I am intimately familiar with the settings of this book (I had dinner at Merischka's about 2 months ago) but I think any lover of cozy mysteries will enjoy this book immensely.