“I need you to tell me the truth about something,” Mabel told her friend, Rory. They were out on the path between the new rhubarb fields and the lavender beds, watching Rory’s teen-aged daughter practice for the upcoming skillet toss competition at the county fair.
Rory gave Mabel an appraising glance. “The hard truth or the softer friend truth?”
“Hard truth.” She needed to know for sure if she was letting down the beloved aunt whose garlic farm she’d inherited. “This year’s crop is the first one I’ve been entirely responsible for, from planting to harvest. I need to know if I did it right. One of my regular customers told me she’s found a cheaper source for one of my specialty varieties.”
Rory’s expression went from concerned to amused. “Poor, deluded woman. She’ll soon find out there’s a reason for the discount. Don’t worry. You still grow the best garlic on the east coast.”
“That sounds like friend truth.”
Before Rory could answer, her daughter shouted in frustration and went to collect the skillet that had landed in the lavender bed instead of the path. Pixie, the marmalade cat who ruled the farm, went over to console her, while Rory called out some advice.
Turning back to Mabel, Rory said, “I don’t coddle anyone. Not my daughter, not you. You’re doing a great job with Skinner Farm. If there’s a sales drop, it’s because of the two new local farmers’ markets. They’re tempting a few fickle customers away from us, but they’ll be back.”
“The market manager doesn’t seem that confident.”
“Oh, you know how Darryl is.” Rory gave her daughter a thumbs-up for the latest toss, the longest today. “He’s a really good manager, but he can be a bit of a drama llama despite his macho, ex-football-player image. Trust me, it will all work out.”
“I’m not good with trust.” Mabel couldn’t code an app based on trust, any more than she could run the farm on it. “I need facts and figures.”
“You can gather them for yourself during the West Slocum farmers’ market’s presence at the county fair. You’ll see how pathetic the two new markets are. They’ll fail soon, and in the meantime, your garlic will blow away the competition.” She grinned and pointed at her daughter, who had just tossed her skillet even farther than before. The teen was squealing in triumph while Pixie kept her distance from the over-excited human. “Just like my daughter’s going to do in her first skillet toss competition. Everything will be resolved by the end of the fair. Especially if you’re there with us.”
That too sounded like friend truth. And overlooked Mabel’s terrible social skills. The market might be more successful at the fair if she stayed home. But Rory had set her mind to two things recently: first, her daughter would win her age group in the skillet toss competition, and second, Mabel would be the star of the market’s stall at the fair.
Mabel was nowhere near as confident of either prediction, but she agreed that everything would be resolved by the end of the fair.
For better or worse.
Giveaway: Leave a comment below for your chance to win A FAIR DEATH, the fourth book in the Garlic Farm Mysteries, for either Kindle or Nook. The giveaway will end August 19, 2026. Good luck everyone!
A FAIR DEATH
Series: A Garlic Farm Mystery, Book 4
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release: August 2026
Format: Digital
Purchase Link
It’s August, and the West Slocum farmers’ market is in a battle for its survival as part of a competition among three local markets, taking place at an agricultural fair. When the manager of one of the other markets is killed and the West Slocum market’s manager is implicated in the murder, Mabel reluctantly agrees to take over the market temporarily while her archnemesis, Detective Frank O’Connor, is doing his best to arrest the wrong person.
Mabel juggles her market duties with looking for a better suspect, but is hampered by her anti-social personality and the competition judge’s threat to disqualify her market if she spends more than brief periods of time outside their tent.
Mabel still manages to find several potential suspects, including the victim’s boyfriend, the third market’s manager who’s desperate to prove himself to a disappointedly hovering mother, and a victim of identity theft purportedly committed by the dead woman. In the end though, Mabel may have to choose between saving the market that’s critical to the future of her own farm, and saving the market’s manager from a life in prison. And whatever she decides, she may experience A FAIR DEATH.
About the author
Gin Jones became a USA Today bestselling author after too many years of being a lawyer who specialized in ghostwriting for other lawyers. She much prefers writing fiction, since she isn’t bound by boring facts and can indulge her sense of humor without getting thrown into jail for contempt of court. In her spare time, Gin makes quilts, grows garlic, and advocates for rare disease patients.