Take a crooked funeral home, then add in some small-town gossip, a family full of suspicious characters, and a witchy detective, and you have everything you need for a compelling mystery. All of this can be found in Shari Marshall’s DUG UP. Emaline Bo Vesper may be new to Gwenwick Creek, but she believes a private investigator is exactly what the place needs. When local coffeeshop owner Gia shows her a mysterious light moving around the cemetery, paired with rumors that the family who owns the accompanying funeral home has stolen jewelry from corpses (and possibly even covered up a murder), Emaline can’t look away.
Emaline is your classic hardened detective with a tragic past, starting over after losing her husband and job with the police force. It doesn’t help that her latent powers as a gemphagist (someone who can access magic for a few hours after consuming powdered gemstones) recently emerged from an attempted poisoning. In a world where magic-users are punished and ostracized, this new power is both a blessing and a curse. The undercurrent of gemphagist lore mainly serves as a subtle backdrop and occasional plot device, with the setting otherwise mirroring our own world.
As Emaline gets to know more people in town, readers get rapid-fire introductions to a large cast of characters. A few of them share distinct moments with Emaline that help build her understanding of the close-knit community (such as the disgruntled former funeral home employee and the teen with multiple dogs), but many others blend together. Gia serves as both a guide and friend, always ready to join Emaline’s investigations with coffee and jellybeans in hand. While most of the novel is told from Emaline’s perspective, a few moments sprinkled throughout come from Silas (owner of the funeral home). His sections explain some things that take Emaline by surprise while remaining vague enough that readers can’t quite pin down whether Silas is the dodgy person he seems to be.
The short chapters and low page count make the story zoom by in a way that may appeal to some while feeling rushed to others. There are multiple smaller mysteries woven into the plot that could easily receive more attention for a bigger emotional impact, especially during a key moment that upends everything for Emaline and is quickly brushed aside. Additionally, while readers are briefly told that gemphagists are shunned, neither this treatment nor its ramifications are ever shown—leaving the magical aspect of the world feeling somewhat underdeveloped.
Overall, though, there is much to enjoy in DUG UP. There is even potential for a series that delves deeper into both Emaline’s past and the town of Gwenwick Creek.
Shari Marshall’s DUG UP is a cozy small-town mystery that features grave robbing, a bit of the paranormal, and plenty of hazelnut coffee. It's perfect for readers who enjoy hints of fantasy that don’t overpower the plot.
~ Cameron Gillespie for IndieReader