When tyrannical billionaire Thomas C. Whistler drowns in a Japanese soaking tub in his Chautauqua McMansion in July 2018, was it an accident?
Don’t know, say the police. Don’t care, say his seven guilty-looking, glib and greedy children who include: a glamorous actor, a bullied contractor, a Shakespeare prof, a socialite, a kindly camp “bus mom” and a daughter with Down syndrome.
Whistler, an energy-bar magnate and TED Talk speaker, leaves behind a note saying: “Don’t let my killer get away with it.”
Easier said than done, thinks reporter and relentless snoop Mimi Goldman when she’s on the case.
Assisted by her computer-savvy son Jake and her 92-year-old sidekick (and wheelman) Sylvia Pritchard, Mimi pokes around her usual stomping ground of Chautauqua, a quirky, historic, cottage-filled, lakeside summer arts community in western New York. And beyond, in nearby pawnshops and the spooky Spiritualist community of Lily Dale.
As usual, Mimi faces down lies, threats and an attempt on her life before, with her usual wit and grit (and a little luck this time), she solves this extra-tricky whodunit — in time to say “I do” to her devoted beau Walt.