A Premonition of Murder

Is everyone having a wonderful Sunday?  It is the last week of June.  The month went by so very quickly.  I have been trying to fix a leak I discovered.  Plumbing fixes are not as easy as they might seem (the hard part seems to be figuring out the size of the pipe I need to replace).  If you enjoy paranormal mystery novels, Tonya Kappes has the Ghostly Southern Mysteries.  She will coming out with the fifth book in the series A Ghostly Reunion in December. Take a moment to check them out.

A Premonition of Murder by Mary Kennedy is the third book in A Dream Club Mystery series.  Taylor Black is living in Savannah, Georgia helping her sister, Allison “Ali” Black with her shop Oldies but Goodies.  Taylor and Ali have been invited by Abigail Marchand to her home Beaux Reeves.  Abigail has been having a disturbing dream, and Abigail believes it means her death is imminent.  Taylor and Ali are members of the Dream Club and Abigail was hoping they could assist her.  Taylor reassures her that the dream could mean many different things.  She promises to discuss it at their very next meeting and get back in touch with her.  Unfortunately, Abigail is found dead at the bottom of her stairs before Taylor can get back in touch with her.  Abigail was pushed down her stairs.  The Dream Club sets out to find Abigail’s killer.  It certainly helps when Ali and Taylor are contacted by Abigail’s attorney.  Abigail had left a letter requesting that the sisters take a complete inventory of the house.  They will finally get a chance to see inside Beaux Reeves (very few people ever get inside the house) and, hopefully, find some clues to help their investigation.  Will the Dream Club be able to find the killer before there is another victim?

A Premonition of Murder is the third book in the series, but it can easily be read as a stand-alone. The author did a good job with the mystery. I liked the clues and her misdirection.  I was able to pick out the killer early in the book (as soon as I read about the murder), but, thanks to the clever writing, I was starting to doubt myself a little bit (which I liked).  I am not sure about the dream interpretations (my parents always taught be that it is hogwash), but I liked the candy shop Oldies but Goodies.  It is interesting to see how the group used dreams to help solve the murder. A new concept for cozy mysteries.  How they make any money, though, is beyond me. It seems their intern, Dana (who is supposed to be part-time) does all the work. They are barely breaking even so I do not know how they can afford a part-time employee (we are probably not supposed to think about that).   I also wondered about the amount of frozen food they use to serve to customers (instead of fresh every day).  Of course, they are too busy sleuthing to make fresh.  Another anomaly is the cats that are allowed in the store.  You would think they would not be allowed cats in the shop since they serve cooked/prepared food as well as candy (yum).  I give A Premonition of Murder 4 out of 5 stars. A Premonition of Murder is well-written and entertaining.  I will definitely be reading the next book in A Dream Club Mystery series.

The first two books in A Dream Club Mystery series are Nightmares Can Be Murder and Dream a Little Scream.  I received a complimentary copy of A Premonition of Murder from NetGalley (courtesy of the publisher) in exchange for an honest evaluation of the novel.

I am currently reading All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda (its awful). It is supposed to be a suspense thriller, but I have found it to be one boring book (no suspense and definitely no thrills)!  I will, of course, be reviewing it in the future. If you like period shows, PBS has some great new shoes on.  Home Fires is playing at 7 p.m. and a new mini-series at 8 p.m. titled Dancing on the Edge.  May all of you have a nice, relaxing evening.  Take care and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader