Murder by Death

This was one of the better ones, story wise, in the series.  Emily and Colin are back on their home turf, and for some reason, I just prefer the home-ground settings.  More of the characters a reader has become used to, I suppose.

I deducted 1/2 a star for two reasons:  some of the plotting was just weak and loose;  characters would lie about their whereabouts and when confronted with reports proving they lied, continue to lie about it and insist upon their story, only to off-handedly admit to lying later on.  The second reason was the revelation of the killer - it could have been brilliant (the motivation was well thought out and strong) but the build up to the denouement blatantly manipulated the reader, leaving at least this reader feeling like I'd been tricked and deceived.

This is the last book in the series that I own.  As far as I know there are at least two more recent ones, and I'll probably pick them up if I find a good deal on them used, but I don't feel compelled to search out the 9th book.