Book excerpt: Tragedy strikes the Geauga County Maple Festival when a local judge is found murdered. Although the event is crowded with townsfolk, one man says the wrong thing and ends up the county's most wanted. He is president of the maple festival, Fred Newman, and he suddenly finds himself under arrest by the Chief of Police. Fred is an attorney in the small town of Chardon, and although he may be a prime suspect, he's thankfully not alone. Several of the townspeople are called before the court, and Fred takes it upon himself to represent his fellow citizens. However, he soon seems even more suspicious when he represents another attorney, which only causes additional small town trouble. Despite the cloud that has settled over Geauga County, Fred continues his duties as President of the maple festival. He takes his responsibilities seriously, but how can he run a successful event when half the attendees think he might be a murderer? It'll take further investigation and the help of a local police officer to clear Fred's name and save the famous celebration.