The Scarecrow Murders — Mary Welk

It's a battle of the sexes in little Rhineburg, Illinois, when Bruck University's fledgling football team butts heads with female rodeo riders during Halloween Homecoming Days. The Bruck Bruins protest President Garrison Hurst's hiring of the Moore Sisters' Rodeo to perform in the school's new stadium the night before the Homecoming game. Joined on the picket line by the town fathers, the Bruins meet resistance from the women of Rhineburg who rally in support of their cowgirl sisters. ER nurse Caroline Rhodes worries when her son and his wife take opposite sides in the argument. Her worries grow when a football player is found dead in a rodeo bullpen and Martin Rhodes is charged with the young man's murder. Caroline looks to Professor Carl Atwater, Maddy Moeller, and the ladies of the Rhineburg Boarding House and Home for Gentle Women for help in catching a clever killer.