Life's A Birch

Life's a birch and then you die in a canal wearing days-of-the-week underpants.

Forty-two-year-old Mia Thorne is settling into her new life in the small riverside town of Newberry, Pennsylvania. Part of her misses the bright lights of the big city, but Mia is determined to make the best of the cottage she inherited and its surrounding gardens, as well as her blossoming love life. Residents like Scarlet and Patrick have welcomed her with open arms and encourage Mia to embrace her special abilities with the same enthusiasm. Even Ophelia seems to have accepted her presence, although Mia's convinced the ornery cat would be perfectly content to suck out her soul if she dared to leave the bedroom door unlocked at night.

When a body is discovered in the canal outside Scarlet's house and the police suspect foul play, Mia rushes to her friend's aid. Between a creepy birdwatching group and an unfriendly neighbor, Mia ends up with a list of suspects as long as Rapunzel's hair. Unfortunately, Detective Derek Fairfax and Chief Tuck are determined to keep Mia away from the investigation under the guise of being, you know, the actual members of law enforcement--but Mia's specialty is denial, and she's more than happy to ignore their orders.

Can Mia identify the killer before it's too late or will Scarlet find herself up a canal without a paddle?