Emily leaves the party before long and returns to her dorm room. Donna, who lives off campus, agrees to be escorted home by Shep Noble, a trip that quickly turns into attempted rape, stopped by hired hand Leroy. When Donna awakens the next morning, she hopes to put the entire evening behind her, but Shep is found face down in a patch of deadly nightshade on her property. Gwen assumes Shep drunkenly stumbled, passed out and then died from a reaction to the plant, and a police lieutenant (and former suitor) is inclined to agree at first, but after investigating, thinks the death looks more like homicide.

Many of Gwen and Donna's neighbors think them odd. Gwen's husband Russell is part Native American and often participates in Revolutionary War reenactments, forgetting to come out of character after they are over. Gwen turns to the one person she knows she can count on - Emily's mom, whose boyfriend Colm is a part-time police officer. Gwen feels Colm will have a more objective view on many things than other officers. While the investigation is underway and while Donna is working on a research paper tracing her family's roots in Vermont, her sociology professor turns up strangled. Even calm, rational Ruth begins to become rattled by some of the things she is learning about her close knit community.

Stolen Honey is a very folksy mystery with the usual unusual personalities. Russell is an eccentric foible to the nature loving Gwen, who has her own peculiarities, but still stays well grounded in reality. Ruth is very level headed; being somewhat removed from the situation allows her to view things with an objective eye. Ruth has successfully learned to be a strong, independent woman and is now able to progress in her relationship with Colm.

The narrative is a bit awkward, as the point of view is closer to Gwen, though the investigation switches to Ruth. The mystery has many strains, which become difficult to follow at times, though by the end they are all neatly tied together. The uniqueness of the setting and the history of the community make this an inviting series, as does the intrepid Ruth.

--Jennifer Monahan Winberry