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Madness in Miniature    by Margaret Grace Amazon.com order for
Madness in Miniature
by Margaret Grace
Order:  USA  Can
Perseverance Press, 2014 (2014)
Paperback, e-Book
* *   Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth

A giant store chain is launching their newest craft branch in a small village in California to mixed reviews. There are merchants who are upset because the cozy town image will be gone. That's what brings customers from far away because the main street looks quaint and inviting with all its diverse shops offering so much. And those customers bringing money to spend can't enjoy the big box stores or they wouldn't be coming to the more personalized shops.

Miniaturist Gerry Porter is of mixed emotions. She loves her village, the shops and the owners. Two of those shops have been closed because the big store needed the space they took up. That does not make for happy proprietors who no longer have a shop to run.

But the miniature goods she won't have to go out of the village to buy will be a boon to Gerry. She is rather caught in the middle. Bad feelings erupt between the new store and the villagers. However, no one expected the furor to go so far. A high-ranking employee of the store is found dead. Though it's pronounced an accident, Gerry cannot buy that theory.

She and her whiz-at-a-computer granddaughter Maddie delve into the dead man's background and the giant store he worked for.

Intriguing plot. I liked the way the miniature theme worked into the story. I had a friend who did some great stuff in miniature and it surprised me how many miniaturists there are. This is a good mystery with a lovable kid. The relationship with her grandmother is a delight.

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