Batten Down the Belfry is the fourth in the delightful cozy mystery series from Diane Kelly set in Nashville, Tennessee—where the real estate market is to die for.

Here is the church, here is the steeple…

Carpenter Whitney Whitaker and her cousin Buck have successfully flipped houses, but this is the first time they’ve attempted to renovate a house of worship. Still, the colorful stained glass in the country church has caught Whitney’s eye, and she’d love to breathe new life into the abandoned building. What’s more, the place has perfect acoustics. Could the worship hall be reborn as an entertainment venue with its parsonage repurposed as a pre-show bistro?

Open the doors, and see all the trouble.

The owner of the horse farm next door has asserted a legal claim to the church property, rendering their title uncertain. If that’s not bad enough, while rehabbing the church, Whitney’s cat Sawdust discovers a bombshell in the bell tower—the body of the man who’d delivered their beautiful new replacement windows. What transpired in the spire? Who rang the man’s bell and why?

The steeple is keeping its secrets and, when a second body turns up, things become even less clear. Can Whitney help Detective Collin Flynn solve the crimes before someone else is sent to meet their maker.

4 Stars

 What a fun visit and adventure with Whitney.

Batten Down the Belfry has Whitney and Buck flipping something a little bit different this time. Instead of a house they are transforming a church with beautiful Stained Glass into possibly an entertainment venue.  This fun endeavor takes a turn when a delivery driver is found dead and this becomes all too personal for Whitney when a second body is discovered.

Whitney and her cousin Buck are a great team. I love what they do to the houses and I love that we get a good mystery in there as well. Whitney is smart and beyond capable. I love how she clues in the local detective along the way. We get a bit of suspenseful action with a good storyline and a mystery that I didn’t figure out until the end. Diane Kelly Rights to draw you into the story and gives you and exciting mystery in the end.