The provided excerpts introduce Samantha Sweet, a baker who also works as a caretaker for abandoned properties, and follows her involvement in multiple mysteries in Taos, New Mexico. The main plot focuses on the death of Riley Anderson, later identified as the famous reclusive artist Pierre Cantone, whose body is discovered buried in his yard, leading to a murder investigation involving Deputy Sheriff Beau Cardwell. Samantha's duties at Cantone’s house uncover valuable possessions, including a hidden mural and a sketchbook, and evidence that Cantone was poisoned with deathcamas, implicating his nephew, Bart Killington, and the art dealer, Carolyn Hildebrandt, who attempts to kill Samantha and Bart. A secondary, ongoing supernatural element involves a mysterious wooden box given to Samantha by a dying woman, Bertha Martinez, which seems to grant her unusual clarity or a healing touch, while Samantha is also navigating a burgeoning romantic relationship with Beau and managing the unexpected return of her daughter, Kelly.