HOPE, FAITH, AND A CORPSE

In this cozy mystery listeners gain insight into the life of the first female Episcopal priest to serve in Apple Springs in Northern California. When Hope Taylor shows up for her first day on the job, she finds the murdered body of the meanest man in town and decides to channel her inner Trixie Belden to identify the killer. Jennifer Jill Araya helps listeners find Hope highly relatable and sympathetic, more like a friend than a stereotypical stiff and reserved church leader. Araya also gives life to the members of the community, in particular a drug-addled former professional singer who grew up in Apple Springs but affects a Southern belle persona, complete with a thick drawl. V.M.G. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: FEBRUARY 2021]