The Mountain Monster — J.R. Mathis

Enjoy this Contemporary Small Town Sleuthing Couple Murder MysteryFather Tom and Helen get to play Mulder and Scully in this new mystery.After years of resisting offers to sell his property, old Terrence Boxley finally sells the farm that's been in his family for over 150 years. It's the last piece that the Rayland Development Corporation needs to begin work on it's long-planned ski resort.The Chamber of Commerce is happy.Local businesses are happy.Even the mayor is happy.It seems everyone is happy.And then strange things begin to happen . . . First, construction equipment is sabotaged.Then, a fire burns down the construction company trailer at the site.And then there are the footprints . . . .. . . Very. Large. Footprints.It appears that the legendary Mountain Monster, a Bigfoot-type creature long-rumored to inhabit the forests around Myerton, isn't too happy with the development.Thanks to an article in the Myerton Gazette Online written by Nate Rodriguez, groups of Bigfoot enthusiasts descend on Myerton and tromp through the mountains for the monster. The mayor demands that Helen protect the monster and at the same time ensure development begins on time. Things get more complicated when mysterious holes appear in the field near the old Boxley house . . . holes that appear to form the pattern of a pentagram.And then young Catherine Conway sees a woman standing near the edge of the woods . . . A woman no one else can see.The Mountain Monster is the seventeenth novel in The Mercy and Justice Mysteries, a contemporary small town mystery series. The series is a sequel to The Father Tom Mysteries that began with The Penitent Priest and includes the same cast of characters. It features Father Tom Greer, a Catholic Priest who is also an amateur sleuth in the tradition of Father Brown, and his wife Helen Greer, female Chief of Police and detective in the tradition of Kinsey Millhone.