The Greenleaf Murders : a Historical House Mystery, is the first in a new series by R. J. Koreto and it has a unique focus; the restoration of an old house.

Wren Fontaine is an architect with a focus on the restoration of historic mansions. The company, run by her father, is hired to restore the Greenleaf House. Besides the usual electrical and plumbing problems, Wren must work around Aunt Agnes, a woman in her nineties, who is still living in the house and has the right to live there for the rest of her life.

Stephen Greenleaf is very cagey about the eventual fate of the house and concerns abound that a firm known for cutting corners will take over the renovations and turn the house into a hotel. When the representative of the company is found shot to death with an antique gun, the stakes immediately increase tenfold. Then, in a review of the attic, the skeleton of a young woman is discovered in an old trunk. The body dates from almost a hundred years in the past – but the victim was shot with the same gun.

Greenleaf family secrets and family scandals soon embroil Wren in the investigation. The house holds the answers.

Unusual setting and focus. Recommended.