Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Assault and Beadery (A Cora Crafts Mystery #4)

Author:  Mollie Cox Bryan
Genre:   Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #:  9781496716446
Kensington Publishing
299 Pages
$5.62; $5.92 Amazon
September 25, 2018

⭐⭐


All of Cora Chevalier's dreams are coming true.  Since moving to Indigo Gap, North Carolina, the busy crafting maven has been blessed with a great boyfriend, a lovely home, and a booming craft retreat business.  But on the eve of her first Crafty Mom's Escape Weekend, tragedy strikes again in Indigo Gap.  This time, it's curtains for Stan Herald, the disagreeable director of the local theater group, who's murdered on the opening night of their new production.  Worse, Cora's friend Zoe is accused of the crime.

Cora is determined to prove her friend's innocence, but Zee's mysterious past is making that difficult.  And with a list of suspects longer than a double spool of cording, getting a bed on the real culprit won't be easy.  With her friends Jane and Ruby at her side, Cora must string together the clues and solve Stan's murder before the killer gives an encore performance.

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Cora Chevalier owns an old Victorian home which she's turned into a crafting retreat.  Women sign up for classes and stay at her home for a few days while learning a new skill.  Right now, though, she and her friend Jane are decorating a stage for the local playhouse.  The director is not a well-liked man, and they're doing it as a favor to their friend Zee, who is also the owner of a B&B.  One night while waiting for Zee, Cora receives a frantic telephone call from the woman who informs her that the director is dead and she's been accused of the murder.  Now Cora, along with Jane and her other friend Ruby, are determined to find the real killer instead of watching Zee go to jail for a crime she didn't commit.

I used to enjoy this series, but this fourth and last one, not so much.  Honestly, people read to get a bit of an escape from reality, and I'm getting tired of Cora.  She has panic attacks and anxiety and never seems to take her medication so she doesn't have them.  That just seems stupid, and when she's involving herself in a murder investigation (as we know she will) wouldn't it make sense to make sure she's on her top game?  I can't help but wonder a bit about the author, though: I read the first in another series she has and that protagonist was suffering the after-effects of Lyme Disease.  Is she interested in writing about a protagonist who doesn't have one affliction or another?  Because this isn't interesting, just depressing.  I've never really warmed up to Cora because of this.  I've also said this, before, too: I don't like Adrian, he seems really dull.  I like Cashel much better; he, at least, has a personality.

I also wasn't invested in the mystery.  The victim died after speaking one or two lines, and we never got to know anything about him.  We never saw him interact with anyone, so I didn't really care about the victim one way or another.  I much prefer when the victim actually has interaction with people, so I can get a sense of the type of person they were - not told, but shown.

Then, and this is where the book pretty much had me rolling my eyes, was the fact that Cora receives the telephone call from Zee, and one of the guests for the retreat arrives early.  So she just up and leaves the woman alone in her house without knowing anything about her.  Who in their right mind would do that?  What if the woman had sticky fingers?  What if she wasn't really who she professed to be?  She could have robbed her blind and just walked out before Cora got back.  How dumb is she?   

But not long after that we find out that Cora, with a murderer on the loose, leaves her back door unlocked.  Cora mentions as how there have already been three murders in this town, but she doesn't lock her doors?  Seriously?  Who does that?  But I guess I didn't expect much else from her.  You'll lose me right away with messy details like that.  She leaves home with a stranger in it, and leaves her back door unlocked so anyone can walk in.  Sure, that makes sense.

I also get that she has a crafting retreat, but I've never understood why she's just allowed people to run rampant in her house and take whatever they want in the kitchen.  It's not their home, it's hers.  She should treat it as such.  It's not that difficult to make a pot of coffee or a pitcher of iced tea and offer them to someone.  It also doesn't make any sense that she's hiring a caterer instead of a cook.  It would be cheaper all around, people could eat together and talk (and the guests wouldn't be running through her kitchen).  She also might save some money by hiring a part-time cook while the retreats were taking place.  Caterers are expensive.

Okay, now here's a personal opinion, but since it's my review, I'm allowed this:  I also get really tired of characters who constantly drink.  How does that help?  It doesn’t take away the problem, it only makes it harder for your body to recover.  I much prefer mysteries where they don't sit drinking all night.  There are other ways to relax without it.   Things that happen when you stop drinking:  Your heart and liver get healthy, and it eases depression, anxiety, and raises self- esteem.  Cora might want to put down the booze for awhile.

Also, how are they crafting while getting drunk?  Go ahead and try stringing those beads when you can't see properly.  I wouldn't want to see the finished product, that's for sure.  I'm a huge crafter, and staying sober is probably a very good idea. I get so tired of them always opening a bottle of wine like they can’t have a conversation without it. Have a glass of iced tea or water once in a while.  Your body will thank you.  

At any rate, this book was the only one of the four that couldn't hold my attention - especially after what I mentioned above.  I just didn't care who the killer was, or the reason why.  I just wanted it to end.

https://www.amazon.com/Assault-Beadery-Cora-Crafts-Mystery/dp/1496716442/ref

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2955729431

More on Mollie Cox Bryan's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/b/mollie-cox-bryan/

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