Friday, May 3, 2024

Murder at the Rusty Anchor (A Cozy Capers Book Group #6)

Author:    Maddie Day
Genre:     Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book (Audiobook Available)
ISBN #:    9781496740571
Kensington Cozies
336 Pages
$8.99; $6.99 Amazon
June 25, 2024

⭐⭐⭐⭐


A rainy July weekend in Westham means the beaches are empty and business is dead at Mac's Bikes but couldn't be livelier inside the Rusty Anchor Pub.  But come Monday morning one patron is no so lively when the chef opens up and finds a body behind the bar.  It's last call for Bruce Byrne, an elderly high school teacher who's been around so long it seems like he taught everybody.

When Mac's friend Flo, the librarian, makes the list of suspects, Mac gathers the Cozy Capers Book Group to clear her name.  With no end in sight to the rain, the group has plenty of time to study the clues and sort through a roll call of suspects to determine who decided to teach Mr. Byrne a lesson.  But with a killer desperate to cover their tracks, Mac and the group will be tested as never before...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Mac Almeida is happy in her new marriage to Tim, the local baker, and her bike shop, which unfortunately, isn't doing a lot of business because it's been raining.  Since it's slow, she's out and about when chef Yvonne of the Rusty Anchor is in a panic and asks for her help.  When Mac arrives inside the pub, she notices a dead man behind the bar.  Not any dead man -- this man was a high school teacher named Bruce Byrne, and not a popular man at that.  After calling the police, Mac figures out that someone had poisoned him.  But when she discovers her friend and member of the book group, Flo, is a suspect, she's determined to find a killer, even if it costs her...

This is the sixth book in the series, and I have read them all.  Mac is very good at finding out information from people; they seem to gravitate toward her personality.  She's pleasant and outgoing, and obviously cares about others, which stands in her stead well.  Unfortunately, it also draws the attention of a killer, who isn't above using her to find out just how much she knows.

The mystery is done well, and the clues are there if you care to look for them.  I discovered the killer before Mac, but then again, I read a lot of mysteries so know what to look for.  It is apparent that Mac cares for family as well, when she's quickly roped in to help plan her parents' 40th anniversary -- in two days.  Is it enough time?  Will she be able to solve the murder first?

I do like the fact that when she comes across information she shares immediately with the police.  It is so unnatural when a sleuth decides to keep it to themself, and then gets upset when the police get angry.  Yean, so.  Mac is smart enough to do the right thing, and I appreciate that.

What I don't appreciate, however, is the social justice warrior running around telling me how to think.  I read books to escape from the real world for a little while and not be preached to.  Unfortunately, as these books progress, so does the preaching.  Just being truthful here.  This is why I can't give it more than three stars.  Please get back to telling the tale and keep social issues at bay.

Now that I've done my own little rant, I will say that the ending was very good, and everything occurred just as it should.  The killer was caught in a nice climax that held together well.  The book itself was well-written and has very good characters.  

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review.



More on Maddie Day's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/d/maddie-day/

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