A MURDER MOST CAMP

A nepo baby approaching his 30th birthday will lose his trust fund if he doesn’t spend the months beforehand as a camp counselor in upstate New York. The only thing missing from his misery is an unsolved mystery.

Arriving at the command of his grandfather, who’s irate at his having spent $5 million on a house for his best friend, at Camp Lore on Lake George—a place without edible food, private cabins, or indoor plumbing—Michael Hartford IV anticipates a summer worse than anything in the Friday the 13th franchise or any of the other movies he’d rather be studying. Mikey’s idea of nature runs to yachts, resorts, and meticulously maintained suntans. He’s anything but close to Annabelle Hartford, the friendless 12-year-old child of Grandpa and his current wife, Mikey’s old schoolmate Sierra. And he doesn’t take to camp leader Judy Weathers, who couldn’t care less about his complaints. Soon enough, though, the lake view, campfires, and s’mores kindle treasured memories of Mikey’s own tween years, and his joy is completed by the arrival of his dishy bunkmate, medical student and lifeguard Jackson McGraw. The only fly in the ointment is the disappearance of counselor Rose Churchill, who went AWOL from Cabin One 13 years ago in a cold case Annabelle and the buddies she’s instantly bonded with are determined to investigate even if they break every rule in Mikey and Judy’s very different books. As Mikey adapts to the rigors of Camp Lore (remarkably easy) and pursues a romance with Jackson (not quite so easy), DiDomizio dexterously juggles his tiny cast of suspects en route to a climactic reveal that will surprise most readers.

Though the hero’s run through a long arc by the ending, a sequel seems assured. Here’s hoping it’s equally well plotted.