Wyler attorney Andrew Broome, in his sixth appearance, is pitted against his long time rival, Frank McGough when Stanley Waggoner, the present keeper of the family’s wealth, dies. In his declining years, Stanley, a lifelong bachelor, had lived in another town. Several months prior to his demise, he married a much younger woman, Catherine. McGough thought that he would be the administrator of the Waggoner estate, and that the bulk of the wealth would be distributed among his friends. However, with the appearance of Catherine together with a new will, his power seems to be in jeopardy as well as the potential windfall for many of Stanley’s would-be heirs.

As the story opens, the body of a young woman, Helga Bjornsen, is found in a car in Overlook Cemetery with her throat slashed. The local police force, whose main duties consist of traffic offenses, and an occasional breaking and entering, are more than content to let the more experienced Indiana Bureau of Investigation deal with the crime. Who says nothing exciting ever happens in rural Indiana?

Heirs and Parents is a picture perfect example of a cozy mystery. There are no horrific scenes, gunfights, or other violent crimes on stage. The sleuth, albeit a lawyer, is not a professional law enforcement official. His solution to the crimes comes through his own mental prowess, using information gathered through talking to fellow townspeople. There are no torrid love scenes, or situations with honest citizens needing to be rescued from life threatening circumstances. In short, author McInerney’s latest entry in his Andrew Broome series is a gentle mystery.

Often in cozy mysteries there are several characters that are endearing because of their quirky eccentricities. These folks provide a humorous relief to the gory business of murder, but also add some depth to the story line. Sadly, this is not the case in Heirs and Parents. While all of the characters are adequately described and fleshed out, none of them are sufficiently unique, or cause the reader to develop strong feelings either for or against them (including, in fact, the villain). I found myself not at all curious to see what happened to them next.

The major theme of the plot, that an heir to the Waggoner money is systematically eliminating the other heirs in order to gain a larger inheritance, is potentially an intriguing one. However, in order to sustain interest in this scenario, there needs to be much more suspense, tension, or conspiracy. In its present form, my desire to yawn every few pages became overwhelming.

Mr. McInerny is the author of the popular Father Dowling mysteries with which I am familiar, although I have not read any. However, if the tone of the Father Dowling series echoes Andrew Broome and his friends, I will probably not be tempted to read one. With the possible exception of a few instances of some subtle humor I found little of interest in this title.

--Andy Plonka