Author: Lynn Cahoon
Genre: Mystery
Trade Paperback; Digital Book (Audiobook Available)
ISBN #: 9781516111084
Lyrical Underground Publishing
208 Pages
$15.95; $7.19 Amazon
March 1, 2022
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
In the California coastal town of South Cove, Jill Gardner, owner of Coffee, Books, and More, becomes more engaged in sleuthing than wedding preparations when there's a murder in a dress shop.
Jill couldn't love police chief Greg King more -- so why does that engagement ring still feel funny on her finger? At least she'll have a chance to show it off this Saturday at their engagement party. Just in time for the event, a new dress shop has opened in town, Exquisite Gowns for You, specializing in designer wedding gowns and other custom-fit dresses.
But Jill's excitement turns to shock when she comes by to pick up her dress for the party and discovers a dead body in the shop. New owner Harper Sanchez is behaving strangely and becoming more mysterious than anyone expected. Despite Greg's warnings to leave the case to him, Jill can't help looking into the murder. Somebody in South Cove is dressed to kill -- and if Jill's not careful, she may not live to wear her wedding gown...
✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽
Jill Gardner, owner of Coffee, Books, and More, is finally engaged to longtime love Greg King, chief of police in South Cove, California. While they haven't yet set a wedding date, they are having their engagement party this coming Saturday. As a gift to Jill, her aunt Jackie has bought a custom-made gown for her to wear to the party, courtesy of new business Exquisite Gowns for You, owned by Harper Sanchez. But when Jill goes to pick up her gown, she finds Harper dead in the back of the shop...or at least she thinks it's Harper at first. But when the body is identified as someone else, there's a new mystery to be solved, and Greg wants her to stay out of it.
Jill plans to do so, until she starts to find things that don't make sense -- like Harper not remembering things she recently did, or the appearance of the dead woman's husband in town. First it looks like a random killer, but then someone in town is accused of the crime, and even Jill knows they didn't do it. So what is going on? And where is a killer going to hide in South Cove? Just as Jill thinks she can't figure it out, some secrets are spilled like blood from a killer's knife...
This is the thirteenth in the series, and I have read every one of them. While I am glad to see that Jill and Greg are engaged, I am also glad to have found a great new mystery to delve into. I know that when I open the pages of Ms. Cahoon's books, I am able to step inside easily and join the action, being a visitor to this town, albeit one who isn't a part of the direct action.
Unfortunately, with Jill being the one to find the body, she's involved even though Greg doesn't want her to be. And she has a lot on her plate right now -- the engagement party, of course, but also the 24-hour readathon for children that her employee Deek has put together (and I do love Deek so hope to see him stay there for awhile). With kids and some of the parents staying overnight at the store, Jill has to make sure that there are enough employees and food to keep everyone happy. She even has volunteers to make sure the readathon is successful.
But she can't get the murder out of her mind, nor the fact that Harper has been acting strangely since it occurred. Or that Harper's boyfriend Colton seems to be pulling her strings and telling her what to say and what not to say. She knows something is being kept secret, but she can't put all the pieces together. Greg is being more tight-lipped about the murder than usual, and that also sparks her curiosity, but she's not going to say anything.
It's an interesting conundrum that Jill has, and it's more than intriguing to watch her sift through the suspects and the clues and try to come up with the answers. Especially since they are well-hidden, and not even Toby, a cop and part-time employee at Coffee, Books, and More will spill the beans.
The tale is puzzling and enjoyable, and a couple of times I thought I might have the answer, but I didn't, and that made it even more pleasurable as I love being surprised. And surprised I was with the ending, which was put together splendidly, leaving the reader with answers that were unexpected, but altogether perfect. It was a wonderful tale of suspense, loss, deceit, and secrets that this reader appreciated and enjoyed.
I truly loved reading this book and hope to see the next in the series soon. Highly recommended.
I was given an advance copy from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.
More on Lynn Cahoon's Books: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/c/lynn-cahoon/
No comments:
Post a Comment