A Flicker of Doubt

Set in Carmel-by-the-Sea, Calif., Agatha winner Gerber’s well-crafted fourth Fairy Garden mystery (after 2022’s A Hint of Mischief) finds Courtney Kelly in her shop, Open Your Imagination, creating fairy garden centerpieces for a charity tea when her best friend, Meaghan Brownie, bursts in on the verge of tears. Meaghan’s ex-boyfriend, artist Nicolas Buley, is in town and wants her back. Meaghan owns an art gallery, along with her partner, Ziggy Foxx, and still represents Nicolas’s artwork. Nicolas doesn’t take rejection well, and following an ugly altercation, he’s found murdered in Meaghan’s yard. Nicolas has enemies galore, including his own brother, so there are suspects aplenty. But when Ziggy, Meaghan’s protective friend and mentor, is accused of the crime, Courtney takes it upon herself to assist the investigation whether the police want her to or not. It doesn’t hurt that Courtney has the help of her intrepid companion, Fiona, a fairy on probation who’s earning her way back to the fairy realm by helping humans solve problems. Readers will keep turning the pages to see what happens next to the appealing leads. Recipes round out this gentle cozy with a touch of magic. Agent: John Talbot, Talbot Fortune. (Apr.)