After reading the first book in the Mrs. Murphy Mystery series last week, this time I dove into the third in the series. The human protagonist is Harry, a post-mistress in a small Virginia town. Her pets provide most of the entertainment, as well as some important clues - Mrs. Murphy is her cat and Tee Tucker is her Welsh corgi dog.
In this book, a skeleton from the days of Thomas Jefferson's presidency is unearthed by archaeologists doing a dig in the euphemistically named "servants' quarters" at Jefferson's estate, Monticello. From the man's size and bone structure, along with his skull fracture, it's determined that he was a white man and had been murdered. One might think that everyone from that time period is dead now, so what danger is there for amateur sleuths investigating this old crime? Well, all the wealthy folks in this area of Virginia still proudly keep track of their relationship to Thomas Jefferson's family, so danger abounds. Several people are suspects when the chief archaeologist is shot as he is closing in on his suspicions. Harry had been working closely with him, going through old family documents, so she is at risk as well. Meanwhile, her pets are paying close attention to the dig site and to the goings-on at the nearby estates.This book differed from the first in the series with its detail from Thomas Jefferson's personal history. I found myself referring to his family tree at the beginning of the book several times. Lest one think one's getting pure history though, be warned that one branch of the family tree was entirely fictitious to make the story work. I continue to enjoy the cat's and dog's interactions and conversations, which is why I'll probably read another book in this series before too long.
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