Genre: Mystery
Trade Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #: 9781516103096
Lyrical Underground
175 Pages
$15.95; $7.19 Amazon
March 16, 2021
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
As the owner of Coffee, Books, and More, Jill Gardner likes to support other Main Street businesses, so she attends a paint-and-sip event where, sadly, her brushstrokes look more like blobs. It's still fun, though -- aside from some disruption by a couple doing more sipping than painting. Jill's police-detective boyfriend is on alert, but a designated driver volunteers to take the drunken pair back to their bed and breakfast, and everything seems resolves. Until the wife's body turns up the next morning back in the studio.
The victim, Nan, is from out of town, so it's hard to imagine who'd have a motive aside from her spouse. Now, in between puzzling over her fortuneteller neighbor's strange behavior, preparing for her best friend's wedding, and pouring cups of java at the bookstore, Jill must uncover the secrets of Nan's life and find out who wanted her out of the picture...
✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽
Jill Gardner has her hands full with a new employee, running her store, and getting ready for her best friend Amy's wedding, which is in a couple of weeks. At one of her Business-to-Business meetings, she's invited to attend a paint-and-sip event at a new business in town, run by Meredith Cole. During the evening, a woman named Nan Gunter is very drunk and causing scenes. Assured by Neal, Meredith's husband, that he will take them back to the B&B, Greg and Jill enjoy their evening.
The next morning, Nan's body is found inside the art studio, and now Greg has a murder on his hands. While Jill is sure Meredith couldn't have had anything to do with it, she doesn't know who would kill the woman. More problems arise with Esmeralda, Jill's neighbor and Greg's receptionist. With Jill stuck in the middle of both work and personal problems, trying to help solve a murder just doesn't seem to fit in with her time. But she can't sit still with a killer on the loose, one who might be just around the corner...
This is the twelfth book in the series, and I have read them all. This is one of my favorite series, and I do like Jill quite a bit. South Cove is a nice little tourist town, but just like all towns it has its share of both nice and not-so-nice people. This time out, we have a frantic bridezilla in the form of Amy, who keeps changing her plans about things even so close to her wedding, and has problems of her own that Jill can't help her with. Jill's aunt, who just got back from her own honeymoon, hasn't any time to spend with Jill, so she's depending on her employees, Toby, who's also a police officer, Deek, and newbie Evie, who now lives in the apartment above the coffee shop. I do love Deek, with his aura-reading abilities and studying hard to be a writer; Jill got lucky with him and he's one of the most interesting characters in the book.
Back to the murder: with Jill trying to figure out who killed Nan, she goes to her usual place of visiting Doc Ames, who gives her a surprise regarding the woman. Then Jill is off again, trying to put the clues together. It actually doesn't come until late in the game, which is distinctly what a good mystery should do anyway. Ms. Cahoon is a talented writer who can bring people into the world of her characters and enjoy being there.
When the ending comes, the murder is solved nicely (as we know it will be) and it leaves us with waiting for the next book eagerly. I hope that it comes soon. Highly recommended.
More on Lynn Cahoon's Books: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/c/lynn-cahoon/
No comments:
Post a Comment