This is the second book in the A Merry Muffin Mystery series by Victoria Hamilton.  The series premise is that Merry inherited a “castle” in a rural/small town area, Autumn Vale, and left her New York City career (and scandal) and life behind.   As Merry seeks to prepare the castle for sale, she begins baking muffins as a business.  This book picks up where the second one left off.  Merry and her created family of friends are still working on the castle, including hosting events for prospective buyers, and fending off a new heir who has appeared on the scene.

During the open house event for prospective buyers, someone is killed and the body left on the scene.  Merry is off and investigating, trying to solve the mystery to clear one of her friends and the save the reputation of the Wynter Castle.  The castle itself is more of a focal point of the series than the muffins, so even though it is called the Merry Muffin series, it is not just another food based cozy.  There are several story lines and characters and references to the first book.  This makes for an entertaining and engaging read in a series that I am enjoying.