Siblings Liv and Gabe Ahlstrom fly to Chicago after their sister-in-law informs them that their older brother, Mack, has died unexpectedly. Though close in age, Liv and Gabe are not close in life. Successful Liv and seemingly slacker Gabe have gotten along by living a continent away from one another and avoiding communication. Soon after learning of Mack’s death, they each receive an email from him, stating that if they have received the email that he, Mack, has been murdered. Thus begins, Still Waters, a mystery from Edina author Matt Goldman.
In Chicago, Liv and Gabe decide that along with Mack’s ashes, they will drive to the resort on Leech Lake, Minnesota, that their parents ran for decades. Their plan is to have a memorial service and to discover who or what caused Mack’s death. While their uncle warmly welcomes them, not all members of the community are happy about their presence. It grows apparent that to find out how Mack died, Liv and Gabe must learn to work together and have each other’s backs, for no one else will.
In Goldman’s deftly plotted and smartly written chapters, I can smell the coffee, hear the loons and see the chunks of ice on the lake, not to mention the bodies. (What is a great murder mystery without bodies?)
Maureen Millea Smith is a retired librarian and a Minnesota Book Award winning novelist.
