It's Friday once again. The week just flew by so quickly. On March 31, Susan Boles new novel Cherry Cake and a Cadaver will be released. It is the second book in A Lily Gayle Lambert Mystery series. The first book is Death of a Wolfman. I hope you will take a moment and check out Cherry Cake and a Cadaver.
Single Malt Murder by Melinda Mullet is the first book in A Whiskey Business Mystery series. Abigail “Abi” Logan has returned to England
upon hearing about the death of her uncle, Bennett Logan. Abi is a photojournalist and was in Africa on
assignment when she received the call that he was dying. Ben suffered from lung cancer and the end
came quicker than expected. Abi heads to
Scotland with her friend, Patrick (associate editor for Wine and Spirits
Monthly) for Ben’s funeral and the reading of his will. Before leaving London, Abi receives a
threatening note. Someone is not happy
that Abi is inheriting Abbey Glen, Ben’s single malt whiskey distillery. About fifteen years prior, Ben retired and
sold Haven, his home. He relocated to
Balfour, Scotland where he renovated an old distillery and house for
himself. This is Abi’s first visit to
Ben’s home (she held a grudge with Ben for selling Haven). They arrive at Ben’s
home to find another warning (a very nasty one which I am not describing). Abi discovers that someone has also been
sabotaging the distillery. Abi and
Patrick decide to check on the distillery before retiring on the day of the
funeral (worried that someone would take advantage of the place being empty). They are in the Yeast Room and find a body in
a washback. It seems that the saboteur has
escalated to murder. Abi is planning on
selling Abbey Glen, but she cannot move forward with her plans until she finds
the person responsible. She does not believe the local police are up to the
task. But the locals do not appreciate
Abi’s presence and prefer to keep their secrets hidden. It will take all of Abi’s investigative
skills to uncover the offender and remain alive to see the wrongdoer brought to
justice.
Single Malt Murder contained an
interesting and complex mystery. A good sleuth
will be able to identify the wrongdoer if they pay close attention (one
sentence provided me with the identity).
The novel is easy to read (for the most part), but I did find the pace a
little slow at times. I had trouble
liking Abi. She is an acquired taste
(just like whiskey). I did like her approach
to investigating the crime, though, I quickly tired of her three words for each
person. I give Single Malt Murder 4 out
of 5 stars. The setting sounded
beautiful. I would love to visit the
area. The whiskey making process is
described in the book. It is complicated
and involves many steps (this is one area where the flow is slow). I do not drink so I was unaware of the
different types of whiskey. I believe
the book could have done with just a little more editing. I found it to be a little too long. I wish the author had not made the romance
element so prevalent. I did tire of Abi
admiring Grant’s appearance and personality as well as debating the merits of
getting involved with him. Single Malt Murder is a good first book and it will be interesting to see where the author
takes the series in the future. Death Distilled is the next book in the series. It will be released on September 5.
I am off to take my mother to a doctor's appointment. Wish me luck on actually getting her to leave the house. I might have to resort to bribery (I keep a stash of items hidden away for this purpose). I will reward myself with chocolates if I am successful. May you have a very special day. I will be reviewing Shipyard Girls at War by Nancy Revell tomorrow. Take care and Happy Reading!
Kris
The Avid Reader
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