Peg and Rose Play the Ponies

Berenson’s bewitching third Senior Sleuths mystery (after Peg and Rose Stir Up Trouble) finds septuagenarian sisters-in-law Peg Turnbull and Rose Donovan heading from Connecticut to Kentucky to check in on Peg’s mare, Lucky Luna. Luna’s latest colt is slated for auction at the local yearling sale, which Peg has roped Rose into attending. It’s a straightforward-enough proposition until Peg and Rose arrive at Six Oaks Farm, where Luna is being stabled, and encounter angry yearling manager Jim Grable. Though they sense tension on the premises, Peg and Rose turn a blind eye until Rose reads, in a news bulletin, that Jim has been found dead on the farm. The police pin his murder on Six Oaks employee Lucia Alvarez, but Rose doubts Lucia’s guilt, so she enlists Peg to help her clear the young woman’s name. Together, they unearth deep-seated corruption on the farm. Though Berenson has moved the setting from dog shows to horse stables, series fans will get exactly what they came for: lively banter, a breezy mystery, and plenty of amusing animal antics. This is good fun. Agent: Meg Ruley, Jane Rotrosen Agency. (June)