A Very Woodsy Murder

Sitcom writer Dee Stern has seen her career spiral slowly downward until she’s writing for a kids’ show. She’s so depressed that she gets in her car and just drives until she comes across a rustic motel in Foundgold at the foot of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. There, she’s excited to discover that she has a new dream: restoring the Golden Motel to its 1940s glory, with the assistance of her first ex-husband and best friend, Jeff. He’ll be the tech side, designing the inn’s website and taking reservations, while she cleans and renovates the cabins and lodge. Dee is suspicious when their first guest is Michael Adam Baker, a fellow sitcom writer who sabotaged her career. He’s a favored son from the neighboring town of Goldsgone, so why is he staying in Dee’s rundown motel? When a neighbor finds Baker’s dead body, Dee and Jeff are suddenly murder suspects. They’re desperate to save their investment in the motel, so they turn amateur sleuths, but they’re only a little better at investigating than they are as motel owners.