In Bidulka’s novel, the titular detective visits his ailing mother’s Saskatchewan farm and becomes embroiled in an investigation into local malfeasance and murder.

Russell Quant, now approaching his 55th birthday, is confronting the painful fact that his 84-year-old mother, Kay, is showing signs of increasing dementia. He visits her farmhouse to begin sorting out her lifetime’s worth of assorted possessions. Kay is paying a condolence call to her friend Cecilia (CeeCee) Toth, whose husband, Clem, has recently died. Quant heads over to CeeCee’s house, where he learns that Clem left a suicide text on CeeCee’s phone—the message includes a confession about committing some sort of crime. Quant also learns that two weeks before Clem’s death, somebody sprayed poison over all the plants in some greenhouses in the neighboring town. CeeCee also owns a greenhouse, and when the police discover empty containers of Roundup in CeeCee and Clem’s yard, they assume that Clem was getting rid of the competition and, feeling guilty, died by suicide—but CeeCee is convinced he was murdered. And so, Quant and his investigative partner, JP Taine (who’s also his husband), have their next case. Bidulka’s ninth entry in his Russell Quant detective series offers a twisty mystery with enough red herrings to keep readers engaged. It’s also a touching tale of an adult coming to terms with the gradual mental decline of a beloved parent. The author sensitively limns well-observed small lapses—like ingredients missing in Kay’s much-loved recipes—and larger ones, as when she mistakes Quant for his deceased father. (“I’ll always remember that moment, the first time my mother misidentified me. Part of me wanted to turn and run away. Part of me wanted to engulf Mom in a hug until she knew it was me. I did neither.”) Despite the tale’s inherent poignancy, Quant’s edgy and often self-effacing sense of humor adds giggles and a delightful positive energy to the mix.

Entertaining and tender, with a charming protagonist.