Death a Sketch (A Paint & Shine Mystery Book 3)

Author:    Cheryl Hollon

Genre:     Mystery

Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781496725288

Kensington Cozies

288 Pages

$7.16; $6.80 Amazon

July 26, 2022

⭐⭐⭐⭐

In eastern Kentucky, Miranda Trent runs a unique tour company called Paint & Shine, but sometimes the peaceful mountains play host to murder...  

Miranda's business -- combining Appalachian adventure tours with art and a bit of moonshine -- is the perfect place for an outdoor sporting goods company to hold an employee retreat.  It'll be a challenge, but the money they're paying will definitely help with building her new distillery.

Miranda has lots of teamwork fostering activities planned, from sketching classes to Southern cooking, but the executive running things prefers a more competitive spirit.  In fact, after the workers are split into teams, they're told that only the winners will keep their jobs, and tensions begin to spike.  Even after a participant is found dead, the contest continues -- while Miranda starts drawing her own conclusions about the ambitious attendees.  Now she just has to find the proof...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Miranda Trent inherited her uncle's farm -- with a stipulation.  She has three months to make her business (formerly his) profitable.  The business?  Making moonshine (legal, of course).  The problem?  She's an artist, and has never done this before.  So, she came up with a unique hook: While making shine and cocktails out of it, she hosts company events -- tours around the Daniel Boone Forest, and so far, it's been working well.

Currently, she's hosting a group from a sportswear company, and thinks things are going well.  That is, until one of the group is killed, and now the man's replacement not only has divided the group into two teams, but the losing team will go home -- without a job.  While she knows it's unfair, she's being paid to do her job, and continue with the plans.

But something goes wrong along the way, and someone in the group is being suspected of murder.  Also, Miranda notices what she suspects is someone not wanting anyone to do well.  But how can she figure this out by herself?  With the sheriff's blessing Miranda works to keep an eye on her people, and hopes to find out the truth and stay alive in the process...

This is the third book in the series and I have read them all.  I have found that I love the premise of this book, that our protagonist isn't exactly broke, and has decided to keep her uncle's legacy going while living in a lovely farmhouse.  Although I'm not all that interested in the shine part (I don't drink), I still find it quite intriguing to read about.  It's a detailed process and Miranda has her hands (and time) full doing both.

The people on the two groups are competing for management positions, and there's in-fighting which isn't pleasant to anyone; but there are also the meals that her two kitchen helpers provide which sound delicious.  But we're here to find a killer, and it's not as easy as it sounds.  There are very few clues, but you have to put together what everyone is saying to get it right.  And our Miranda does just that, with the help of Forest Ranger Austin.

When the murderer is discovered, everyone is surprised, and none more so than the person who trusted them the most.  It's a nice climax, and the epilogue is done well also.  I highly recommend this book and look forward to the next in the series.

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

https://www.amazon.com/Death-Sketch-Paint-Shine-Mystery-ebook/dp/B09KP3TJ8F/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5512460694

More on Cheryl Hollon's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/h/cheryl-hollon/

Draw and Order (A Paint & Shine Mystery Book 2)

Author:    Cheryl Hollon

Genre:     Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book

ISBN #:    9781496725264

Kensington Publishing

336 Pages

$8.99; $6.99 Amazon

June 29, 2021

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Appalachian artist and local guide Miranda Trent opens a new murder investigation after her Paint & Shine tour group discovers the remains of a missing hiker along an ancient trail...

For her latest excursion, Miranda is thrilled to take a close-knit group of rock climbers, the Risky Business Adventurers, up the challenging Battleship Rock Trail to paint and sample moonshine.  But the outing is cut short when they discover a skeleton near the trailhead.  Even more startling, the bones belong to Howard Cable, Miranda's cousin...and a former classmate of the Risky Business group.

The sheriff chalks it up to a hiking accident, but Miranda isn't convinced that Howard, an experienced woodsman, died within sight of a well-marked trail.  So, with the help of Ranger Austin Morgan, Miranda sets out on her own investigation and discovers that the Risky Business group is keeping plenty of secrets.  But is one of them hiding the truth about Howard's death?

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

Artist Miranda Trent returned home from New York after her Uncle Gene died and left her his farmhouse and moonshine distillery, which isn't able to be used until she installs new equipment.  Unfortunately, if she doesn't have it all up and running by New Year's, she'll lose everything.  So while trying to get that in order, she also needs an income, which she does by leading groups of people up the mountain to paint scenes of their surroundings.

Luckily, she's taking an experienced group who has been here before - The Risky Business Group - and they want to paint the scene where they first traveled.  But unfortunately, it ends early when one of the group trips and injures herself, then Miranda discovers that it's the bones of a human which caused the accident.  When the sheriff is called by Ranger Morgan, Miranda fears that the bones belong to her cousin Howard who disappeared five years ago.

When Howard's mother, her Aunt Ora, asks her to investigate, she can't say no, especially when her own mother Dorothy, who's visiting Miranda, agrees.  Now Miranda is in the middle of yet another murder investigation, this one albeit closer to home.  But someone doesn't want her investigating, and they'll go to great lengths to snuff her out...

This is the second book in the series, and I enjoyed it much more than the first (although I did think that telling us three times how she turned her uncle's bedroom into an office was a bit much).  I do like the addition of her mother, who isn't a nag, isn't pressuring her to marry and give her grandchildren, and actually loves her daughter and wants to help.  It's refreshing and reminds me so much about my own mom, who was a terrific cook and taught me how to cook -- and I love it.  Memories are best when they're shared with others and bring out memories in them (smile).

The mystery itself is well-drawn (see what I did there?) giving us more of a glimpse into Miranda's life and what her future is turning out to be.  She doesn't attack people when she questions them; nor does she accuse them of being the murderer.  She gleans information and turns it over to the sheriff right away.  I do like the fact that the almost-boyfriend isn't a cop this time, but a forest ranger, who's actually a likable person himself.  

Miranda is trying her best to get her distillery up and running, but also needs to give her aunt closure, which is the reason for her questions.  When the climax comes and we discover who the murderer is, the motive is as old as time, but the ending is a bit of a surprise, which is nice.  I really enjoyed reading this book and look forward to the next in the series.  Highly recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Draw-Order-Paint-Shine-Mystery/dp/1496725263/ref

Goodreads:    https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3999417448

More on Cheryl Hollon's Books:    https://www.fantasticfiction.com/h/cheryl-hollon/

Still Knife Painting (A Paint & Shine Mystery Book 1)

Author:  Cheryl Hollon
Genre:   Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #:  9781496725240
Kensington Publishing
352 Pages
$7.99; $6.89 Amazon
June 30, 2020

⭐⭐⭐⭐

After inheriting her uncle's Red River Gorge homestead in Eastern Kentucky -- smack dab in the middle of the Daniel Boone National Forest -- Miranda comes up with a perfect business plan for summer tourists: pairing outdoor painting classes with sips of local moonshine, followed by a mouthwatering sampler of the best in southern cooking.

To Miranda's delight, Paint & Shine is a total success -- until someone kills the cook.  As the town's outsider, suspicion naturally falls on Miranda.  Murdering the best biscuit baker of Red River Gorge is a high crime in these parts.  Miranda will have to prove her innocence before she's moved from farmhouse to jail cell faster than she can say "white lightning"...

✽✽✽✽✽✽✽✽

When Miranda Trent discovers she's been left her Uncle Gene's farmhouse and belongings in Eastern Kentucky, she's surprised as can be.  But then she decides it can be an opportunity for her to start her own business, and not have to struggle to make it as an artist.  She opens Paint & Shine, where people can learn to paint and then return to her farmhouse for an authentic country meal, accompanied by moonshine tastes for each course.  However, not everyone is glad she's starting her business, since a lot of people are still against consuming alcohol in this town.

The first outing seems to go well, with six customers who are enjoying it.  But when they go back to the farmhouse, Miranda has an argument with one of the cooks, Mrs. Childers; and when Miranda goes to check on the meal a few minutes later, she finds the woman lying on her kitchen floor, stabbed with a butcher knife. 

Now Miranda's business is dwindling, and she's the main suspect in the murder.  If she's going to survive -- and keep the farmhouse and land -- she needs to find out who killed the woman and why.  But only if she can stay alive long enough to do so...

This is the first in a new series, and I really enjoyed it.  There were only a few things that bothered me, so I'll get those out of the way first.  I would have liked to know why Miranda didn't confront the reporter after the newspaper came out, but she ignored it, which couldn't be a good thing in anyone's book; she didn't even mention it to Austin, which I thought she at least might have done.  Then, she stated how Austin was going to stay at her place while a killer was on the loose, but we never saw any indication of this happening, so I'd like to know if he did or not.  The first deputy who passed out seemed ridiculous -- if you're going to pass out seeing a dead body, you need to find another profession -- I can't even imagine an officer like that stopping people to give them tickets. 

I also didn't get the scene between Dan and Miranda when she grabbed at him; it seemed out of character for the person she was starting to be portrayed as, since she never acted this way and the comment he made shouldn't have set her off like that.  But as Miranda states as how she's an introvert it didn't make sense; I am too, and I would never react this way to anyone.  I also control my tongue a lot better, since I'd rather not draw attention to myself.

Aside from that, I liked some of the secondary characters.  Mrs. Hobb grew on me early even though she's not in the book much, and I hope to see more of her in the next one.  I also like the idea that our protagonist isn't mooning over a police detective, which usually happens in most cozies.  Since I realize this is the first in the series, hopefully there will be more character development of Miranda and the others in the next one.

The plot is written well, and it's an interesting decision to make her an artist who will also offer moonshine from a local distillery instead of wine pairings.  While I've never heard of this, that's probably because I'm a city girl through and through.  We don't get a lot of descriptions of the countryside, but we do get some, and I look forward to learning more about the area in future books.

While I guessed the murderer early on (I read a lot of mysteries), I enjoyed moving along with Miranda as she put the pieces together and discovered the reason for the murder.  While it was sad, we can't ever decipher motives from a killer or the future victim that they face.  Sad indeed, but believable just the same.  I did like the ending and look forward to the next in the series.  Recommended.

https://www.amazon.com/Still-Knife-Painting-Paint-Mysteries/dp/1496725247/ref

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3377577674

More on Cheryl Hollon's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/h/cheryl-hollon/

Cracked to Death (A Webb's Glass Shop Mystery)

Author:  Cheryl Hollon
Genre:  Mystery

Paperback, Ebook
ISBN #:  9781617737640
Kensington Publishing
320 Pages
$7.99, $5.99 Amazon
June 28, 2016

Five Stars

When a treasure hunts leads to deadly plunder, it's up to glass shop owner Savannah Webb and her trusty investigative posse to map out the true motives of a killer...

It's the dog days of summer in St. Petersburg, Florida, and Webb's Glass Shop proprietor Savannah Webb has an eco-friendly plan to help locals escape the heat -- a recyclable bottle-crafting workshop taught by reticent store manager Amanda Blake.  Turns out, the class is a bigger smash than expected, thanks in part to a pair of staggeringly old bottles brought in by snorkeler Martin Lane...

 Linked to a storied pirate shipwreck, the relics definitely pique Savannah's interest.  But intrigue turns to shock when Martin's lifeless body washes ashore the next morning, another glass artifact tucked in his dive bag.  With cell phone records connecting Amanda to the drowning, Savannah must voyage through uncharted territory to exonerate her colleague and capture the twisted criminal behind Martin's death...

********

Treasure hunting in Florida doesn't always end the way it should...

Savannah Webb has finally opened Webb's Glass Studio, where advanced students can create their works of art.  In her original Webb's Glass Shop, she is still conducting classes for beginners, and her friend Amanda Blake is all set to teach the first class.  Even though Amanda is eager, she's nervous and asks for Savannah to stay for a time until she feels confident.  Even though Savannah agrees, she's sure Amanda will be fine.  When almost all the students have arrived, one latecomer, Martin Lane, arrives with an extra - two old cobalt blue bottles, and asks for help in determining the age, and if they are worth anything.

The next day, a couple out walking their dog stumble across the body of a dead diver, who also happens to have the fragments of another cobalt blue bottle in his dive bag.  Homicide Detective Parker takes the fragments to Savannah and asks her if she can determine anything about the bottle.  After putting two and two together, Savannah realizes the diver is none other than Martin.

Once it is also determined that Martin's death was a homicide, the next question is who is the killer, and why anyone would want him dead.  She's not getting any help from Captain Collins, who was a friend of his, nor from his ex-girlfriend, Vicki.  One would go so far as to say that she's even being warned away from asking any questions at all.

But something else is in the works, and even Savannah couldn't have guessed this:  Amanda is slowly becoming the prime suspect in Martin's death, even though she swears she had nothing to do with it.  So this leaves Savannah and her 'crew' - Edward, her neighboring pub owner and maybe-could be-boyfriend, and Jacob, a teenager with Asperger's syndrome and an uncanny ability to decipher things - to help her clear Amanda and find out who the true murderer is.

I really enjoyed this book, the third in the series (following Pane and Suffering and Shards of Murder).  It is filled with a cast of characters who have become fast friends in a short amount of time.  One can't help but like them, quirks and all.  It's also fun to watch Savannah's growing fondness for Edward, and listening to her inner voice give us her  clues to the type of boyfriend he'd be if she decides to move forward with the relationship (along with other things she's thinking about at any given time).

When the killer is finally revealed, it happens rather quickly but all makes sense.  Yet it is the fact of what seems to be finding more about the bottles - which are rumored to be part of Gaspar the Pirate's treasure - and how it becomes the key to the murder - that holds this mystery together, and shows us that true friends will always believe in you, even though you may disappoint them sometimes.  But it also brings their friendship to new levels, and brings Savannah closer to the person she was meant to be.  Highly recommended.

http://www.amazon.com/Cracked-Death-Webbs-Glass-Mystery/dp/161773764X/

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1660020146

More on Cheryl Hollon's books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/h/cheryl-hollon/

                                                                                               

Shards of Murder (A Webb's Glass Shop Mystery)

Author:  Cheryl Hollon
Genre:  Mystery

Paperback; Ebook
ISBN #:  9781617737626
Kensington Publishing
304 Pages
$7.99; $5.99 Amazon
February 23, 2016

Five Stars

As the new proprietor of Webb's Glass Shop, Savannah has been appointed to fill her late father's shoes as a judge for the Spinnaker Arts Festival, held in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida.  With her innovative glass works, the clear winner is Megan Loyola, a student of Savannah's former mentor.

But when Megan doesn't show up to accept her $25,000 award, rumors start flying.  And when Savannah discovers the dead woman's body on festival grounds, the police immediately suspect her of murder.  To keep from appearing before a judge herself, Savannah sorts through the broken pieces of glass scattered around the victim for clues as to who took this killer competition too far...

********

Savannah Webb lives in St. Petersburg, Florida, and is the owner of Webb's Glass Shop, having inherited it after her father's recent murder.  She has been asked to take her father's place as a glass judge for the Spinnaker Arts Festival.  Happily for Savannah, her former instructor, Keith Irving is also in town to support one of his proteges in the competition, Megan Loyola.  When Savannah sees Megan's work, she has to agree that she is the hands down winner for Best in Show.

But when it comes time to distribute the awards, Megan is nowhere to be found.  The next day, while running with her dog Rooney near Tampa Bay, she sees Megan's body floating in the surf.  When she is told by her friend Detective Parker that she is high on the suspect list - having been seen with the victim right before she died, Megan had her business card on her person, and finding the body - well, it all seems to be circumstantial evidence, but evidence nonetheless.  So what can Savannah do but try and find the murder herself?  She gathers together her "posse," Amanda Blake and Jacob Underwood, who work for her, and Edward Morris, the pub owner from next door, and together they devise a plan to try and find the truth.

They make a list of possible suspects and then agree to try and find information regarding their whereabouts during the time Megan was killed.  But this is easier said than done when one of their potential suspects doesn't want to speak with them and another has seemingly disappeared.  What makes her even more determined to find the murderer is the fact that Savannah herself seems to be in the killer's crosshairs...

I enjoyed the book and thought it was well written with the author well able to give us characters who are both unique and likable.  There are no real villains in the fact that there isn't a character who is just a hateful person (I really get tired of reading about the one person in town that the protagonist hates and appears in every single book).  But although, of course, there are 'villains' as it were, none of them seem to be of the evil type - which makes it harder to pick out the person who actually was the killer, and this is as it should be.

We also have the burgeoning (slowly) relationship between Savannah and Edward; and in this book he shows a bit of jealousy, while you get the idea that Amanda may be on the verge of having an admirer herself in the guise of one of Savannah's students (or not, although it seemed so to me).  There is also a nice subplot involving Rooney, Savannah's dog and Suzy, Jacob's helper dog, which should please dog lovers as well.

Ms. Hollon manages to write characters that have depth, not just the protagonist, but everyone who plays a major part in the story.  They are all part of an ensemble, with their friendship toward each other clearly playing out.  This is the second book in Webb's Glass Shop Mysteries, the first being Pane and Suffering, which explains more on how Savannah came to leave Seattle and arrive back in St. Petersburg.  I think you will find it as delightful as this story.  Highly recommended.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1617737623?keywords=shards%20of%20murder&qid=1456261229&ref_=sr_1_1_twi_mas_2&s=books&sr=1-1

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1560550800

More on Cheryl Hollon's books:  http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/h/cheryl-hollon/

http://joannesbooks.blogspot.com/2015/09/pane-and-suffering-webbs-glass-shop.html                                                                       

Pane and Suffering (A Webb's Glass Shop Mystery #1)

Author:  Cheryl Hollon
Genre:  Mystery

Paperback; e-book
ISBN #:  978-1617737602
Kensington Publishing
320 Pages
$7.99; $5.84 Kindle
September 29, 2015

Five Stars

To solve her father's murder and save the family-owned glass shop, Savannah Webb must shatter a killer's carefully constructed facade...

After Savannah's father dies unexpectedly of a heart attack, she drops everything to return home to St. Petersburg, Florida, to settle his affairs--including the fate of the beloved, family-owned glass shop.  Savannah intends to hand over ownership to her father's trusted assistant and fellow glass expert, Hugh Trevor, but soon discovers the master craftsman also dead of an apparent heart attack.

As if the coincidence of the two deaths wasn't suspicious enough, Savannah discovers a note her father left for her in his shop, warning her that she is in danger.  With the local police unconvinced, it's up to Savannah to piece together the encoded clues left behind by her father.  And when her father's apprentice is accused of the murders, Savannah is more desperate than ever to crack the case before the killer seizes a window of opportunity to cut her out of the picture...

********

Savannah Webb returns home to Florida from Seattle when her father dies of a heart attack.  She is planning on staying long enough to oversee the transfer of her family's glass shop to her father's assistant, Hugh Trevor, and then leaving.  But before she can do so, Hugh's body is found in the back of the shop, also apparently dead of a heart attack.  At this point, Savannah is convinced that both her father and Hugh were murdered, and since the police officer she speaks with doesn't believe her, she knows she must try and find the truth for herself.

It seems her father once worked for the government, and when she was growing up, he would leave riddles in code all around St. Petersburg for her to figure out.  So when she finds a piece of paper with a code on it, and it directs her to a park, she encounters another.

Soon she has enlisted the aid of the owner of the pub next door, Edward, a British transplant, to help her find the truth.  Then Jacob Underwood, her father's young apprentice who has Asperger's Syndrome and uses a service dog, is accused of the crime and she knows she must find the answer before he spends even one night in jail.

Let me first tell you that I figured out the killer within the first few chapters.  But, since I pretty much am able to do that on a regular basis, I will also tell you that I didn't allow it to hinder my enjoyment of this book.  For enjoyable it was.

Savannah is a breath of fresh air.  And we find out early on that she has a great fear of heights (which we know will be tested later in the book, as the fears always are); she's intelligent, strong, isn't afraid to ask for help, not a pushover and stands her ground.  I love that.  I hate women who are wishy-washy and afraid to make decisions.

The plot is different and interesting in the fact that there are codes to be broken in order to find the truth, and Savannah, sometimes with the help of Jacob, is able to do just that.  She puts the pieces together nicely while managing to keep herself relatively safe in the process.  Even when she finds out something disturbing about Edward, she's smart enough to listen to explanation and figure things out for herself, not run away feeling betrayed; another trait of maturity.

When we find out the reasons why her father and Hugh were killed, it all seems such a waste, but is believable enough that someone who has convoluted ideas could do this.  Ms. Hollon brings to us a protagonist that is clever and straightforward, someone whom I would like to spend time with, and hope to do so by further books in the series.  Highly recommended.

http://www.amazon.com/Pane-Suffering-Webbs-Glass-Mystery-ebook/dp/B00RRT32HK/

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1395284426