Dear Folks, You know me and my passion for murder mystery books and my passion for genealogy. Well, tonight I finished one book that combined the two. It was "Bloodroot" by Susan Witting Albert. It was one of her China Bayles mystery series. I couldn't believe I'd be treated to such a combination. It's about China Bayles and her return to her childhood roots in rural Mississippi that takes you back to before the Civil War. But first off, the book contains a family tree/pedigree chart that shows who China's ancestors were. Trust me, I couldn't have followed her discoveries about the secrets of her ancestors without it. I'm certainly not going to go into the whole story but just let me tell you this. I've never read a murder mystery book that was so intertwined with genealogy. It was a real delight. However, I must admit that none of us would REALLY like to bring up the ghosts of our families like the ones she dug up literally. On another note, I could certainly relate to the fear of the genetic disease Huntington's Disease that had been passed down from one generation to the other in the book. We had similar fears of inheriting the disease in our DeWees family inasmuch as my gr-gr-grandmother Mary (Clark) DeWees died of it in Gettysburg shortly after the Civil War, and then my gr-grandfather DeWees died of it but instead of my grandfather dying of it, the disease was inherited by his brother Lafayette DeWees. Therefore, my mother, none of my aunts or my uncle inherited it. Ah, yes, a very exciting book that I can really relate to. vee