Even the beauties of Alaska can’t make up for the slow-paced not-such-a-mystery. The recipe for coleslaw is a winner, though.
An Alaskan diner owner takes on yet another case of murder.
Charlie Cooke, her BFF Annie Jensen, and reporter Chris Doucette have helped their lawman friend Cody Graham, fondly known as Trooper, in the past. So they don’t hesitate when Trooper asks for help again. Charlie’s been reluctant to visit the Alaska State Fair, but when Trooper, whose vast territory keeps him constantly short-staffed, tells them that one of Charlie’s produce suppliers has been killed there, the three take off for the fair. Though Charlie’s not a fan, at least there are numerous food stands whose offerings may give her ideas for her diner fare. The dead woman, KC, was an inoffensive schoolmate of Charlie’s, and it’s hard to imagine who would want her dead. Feeling that their success depends on uncovering a motive, Charlie and her buddies start digging into KC's current life and her past. They find a dicey boyfriend, a nasty property dispute with a current neighbor, and an ancient lawsuit from the plane crash that killed her sister and brother-in-law, leaving KC to raise their son, Milo, who’s just turning 18. Although Charlie doesn’t think they’re making much progress, apparently the killer does, for he starts sending her warning notes. In the absence of her vacationing parents, she relies on Chris for help, and their all-but-romance is complemented by the support of Charlie’s adored feline companion, Benny.
Even the beauties of Alaska can’t make up for the slow-paced not-such-a-mystery. The recipe for coleslaw is a winner, though.Pub Date: June 1, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593100-48-6
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A weird tale of crime without punishment.
The return of a deadbeat dad throws a Downeast Maine town into a tizzy.
Hayley Jordan’s father, Dwight, took off from Salmon Cove when she was just a girl, leaving her mother to raise Hayley and her brother, Randy, with no support. Hayley’s best friend Mona’s father, Bubba, stuck around to raise his family, satisfying his need for adventure with a yearly solo ice-fishing trip. But this year, Bubba’s forgotten his blood pressure medication, and when Mona and Hayley drive out to bring it, they get the shock of their lives: Bubba’s excursion isn’t a one-man jaunt after all. For the past few years, he’s invited his old friend Elmer Crawford—the amicably divorced dad of Hayley and Mona’s third best friend, Liddy—and Dwight Jordan, who is kinda-sorta hoping to worm his way back into the bosom of Salmon Cove society. None of these players are spring chickens (Hayley just had her first grandchild), but they react to Dwight’s surprising return the way a bunch of middle schoolers would treat a new kid in town. Some folks see him as the flavor of the month; others are still stung by the way he mistreated them before he left. After a lot of bickering and side-choosing, the stakes go way up when people start getting killed. Carroll Flood is poisoned shortly after losing the town’s gingerbread house contest to Dwight. Then someone starts taking potshots at Dwight. There’s no dearth of suspects who might want to harm him: Hayley assembles a list of more than 100 people he’s hurt. Though ultimately Hayley cracks the case, the biggest mystery is why folks remain so enamored of someone who has done nothing but harm his whole life.
A weird tale of crime without punishment.Pub Date: Sept. 24, 2024
ISBN: 9781496743510
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Kensington
Review Posted Online: Aug. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Intrepid, compassionate sleuths unravel a tangle of cold-blooded crimes.
Brutal acts and baffling mysteries threaten the peace of an idyllic mountain community.
Colorado deputy sheriff Mattie Wray and her sister, Julia, have ventured south to the Mexican village of Pueblo del Sol to visit their mother, Ramona. Given Mattie’s pending wedding to veterinarian Cole Walker, this should be a celebratory occasion, but it turns tense when Ramona’s friends greet her suspiciously and explain that their mother is missing along with her husband, Juan Martinez. Could the unsolved murder of Mattie’s felonious father decades ago be connected to Ramona’s disappearance? When Mattie gets back on the job, a missing person report sends her, with K-9 sidekick Robo and her friend Stella LoSasso, a detective in the local sheriff’s office, into the Colorado pine forest, where they make a horrifying discovery: Juan’s corpse, roped to a tree. Someone has apparently followed Mattie north from Mexico with vengeance on their mind. On the heels of this bizarre crime, Cole discovers another: the apparent poisoning of several horses. The eighth entry in Mizushima’s series is distinctive as ever in its authentic Western flavor and its affection for animals. Robo is an integral part of an investigative team, ferreting out valuable evidence, and the poignant equine mystery is a major plot thread. After Mattie receives a creepy letter from someone identifying themselves as “a friend of your father’s” that confirms a connection to Ramona’s disappearance, more twists and dangers await. Though Mizushima front-loads her tale with multiple backstories, an abundance of supporting characters, and a handful of mysteries, her lucid prose and caring cast should again captivate readers, new and old, and keep them engaged in the complex mystery.
Intrepid, compassionate sleuths unravel a tangle of cold-blooded crimes.Pub Date: March 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781639102440
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Crooked Lane
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2023
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