A close game and a coaches’ disagreement nearly cause a riot on the field, but no one expected to find coach Brady Meredith dead of a gunshot wound in his car the next morning. There are several different rumors circulating, all connected with Meredith, and all possible motives for murder. The night of the big game, Meredith was seen talking with Hayes Ford, the local equivalent of a numbers runner. There is also talk of Brady taking up with another coach’s wife and what Rhodes fears most of all, the possibility of steroid use among the players at Meredith’s encouragement. When Rapper, a biker who has had a run-in with Rhodes before, shows up in town and talk of illegal steroids gets turned up, Rhodes knows he must figure out what Meredith was involved with to catch his killer.

When Hayes Ford is also found dead, Rhodes turns his attention to the illegal gambling angle and searches for a connection between Meredith and Ford. During his investigation, a lot of pressure is put on Rhodes to be careful not to step on the wrong toes and ruin the team’s chances for further championship play.

With not a lot more to go on than the butt of a Marlboro cigarette (which everyone in Blacklin County seems to smoke) Sheriff Rhodes works through the different angles of the investigation, while walking the thin line of trying not to besmirch the team’s name or those of any of its coaches.

Winning Can be Murder is a very setting driven mystery. The small town feel of Clearview will appeal to many people, and readers will be able to recall the sights, smells and sounds of Friday night high school football. The difficulties Rhodes runs into investigating a murder in a small, close-knit town are apparent; no one wants to admit one of them could be a murderer and they all become anxious to pin the crime on an outsider.

The mystery is not terribly challenging and one well-placed, though easily over-looked, clue in the first chapter points a finger directly at the murderer. An easy who-dun-it in a charming Texas town that readers will be glad to visit again.

--Jennifer Monahan Winberry