The Hidden Gate
Book One- Savannah Secrets
This book and the entire series is only available through Guideposts: https://shopguideposts.org
The Savannah Secrets series is a cozy Christian mystery series set in Savannah, Georgia that revolves around two amateur sleuths, Meredith Bellefontaine and Julia Foley. Meredith has been a widow for a couple of years. Her husband was a private investigator. Meredith decides, after much thought, to reopen the private investigator business and partner with her good friend, Julia Foley, who is a retired judge. Their first case involves the legal claim to a plantation. The historical society in Savannah wants to acquire it, but there is a question about who owns it. This question of ownership causes the two sleuths to delve into a historical mystery revolving the plantation, the family who owned the plantation, and the slaves who served that plantation.
Christian fiction does not always dive into the topic of slavery, so I was pleasantely suprised that it did. There was an acknowledgement of how awful that institution was and the novel illustrates how things improved for some of those characters as time progressed. It was also an interesting mystery filled with much surprises . I thought it was nice and refreshing to read a mystery with no dead body.
Additionally, there is the introduction of a lawyer, Arthur “Quinn” Crowley, who has the potential to be a romantic interest for Meredith (Julia is married). Also, it should be noted that Julia and Meredith are older—in their 60s. This is something you rarely see in cozy mysteries (especially contemporary) and it is refreshing.
Rating: 5/5
Next Novel in Series: A Fallen Petal (hoping to get to this in August)
Next Novel to Review: Middletide