Death on a Budget: An Emerson Ward Mystery

Michael W. Sherer
Five Star (2010)
ISBN 9781594148910
Reviewed by Marcy Blesy for Reader Views (05/10)


“Death on a Budget” by Michael W. Sherer is the sixth novel in a series based upon the fictional character Emerson Ward, a freelance writer who tends to find himself embroiled in some sort of mystery.  In this edition Emerson is called away from Chicago to his hometown of Huntley, Illinois to attend the funeral of his childhood friend Lou.  Upon his return back to Chicago his girlfriend Nell decides to take their young daughter to Seattle to care for her ailing mother, and Emerson wonders if their relationship will ever move to the next level.  Called back to Huntley by Lou’s sister Meg to investigate whether or not Lou’s suicide was really something much worse, Emerson finds himself immersed in his forgotten hometown which has now grown greatly but is still full of people who wish he’d never stepped foot back in the town, including his own father and sister.  Emerson discovers secrets of a mall development deal that Lou was involved in with former classmate Pete and others which leads down a twisting money trail.  Warned to leave town, Emerson is threatened with his own life.  Yet he can’t seem to leave Huntley without unraveling all of the details he learns from those people he hasn’t seen since high school.  And always at the back of his mind are the hopes for a future with Nell and their daughter. 

I have not read the first five Emerson Ward novels, yet I could easily place myself into Emerson’s world as I read.  He is a likable, yet flawed character.  And the setting is ideal.  With my own high school reunion looming, I could easily place myself back in the small town that I left so many years ago.  Do we ever really escape the towns in which we grow up?  And should we?  Mr. Sherer has written a fine mystery, “Death on a Budget,” with a large cast of characters that keeps you guessing.  Suspense and intrigue will carry the reader easily until the end.  I look forward to reading the early novels and those that follow.  The writing flows well, and the characters are engaging.

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