Greetings! I hope everyone had a pleasant and relaxing weekend. Tonya Kappes will be releasing Mocha and Murder on June 16. It is the second book in A Killer Coffee Mystery series. Scene of the Grind is the first book in the series and the kindle version is only $.99. I hope you will take a moment to check out these novels. You might discover a new series to read and enjoy!
Ghostal Living by Kathleen Bridge
is the third book in A Hamptons Home and Garden Mystery series. Meg Barrett is quickly vacating the yacht (where
she has been living) with her cat, Jo before the hurricane hits the area. Meg is going to stay at the Bibliophile Bed
and Breakfast that she has been decorating for Franklin Hollingsworth (I would
love to stay in the Louisa May Alcott room).
Franklin is a rare book collector and recently acquired the unpublished
manuscript of The Heiress and the Light written by F. Scott Fitzgerald for $5
million dollars. The publicity
surrounding the manuscript has helped promote the first Sag Harbor Antiquarian
Book and Ephemera Fair. After settling
into her room, Meg decides to take a walk around the grounds before the
hurricane hits (who doesn’t love to walk around in the wind and rain when a hurricane
will arrive within an hour). She finds
an F. Scott Fitzgerald book on the path to Violet Hollingsworth’s pagoda studio
where she seeks shelter when the hurricane arrives. When Meg returns to the B&B, Randall
McFee is missing. Randall is the authenticator for Franklin’s F. Scott
Fitzgerald manuscript. The next day,
Randall is discovered on the rocks below Scrimshaw House. The police rule Randall’s death accidental,
but Meg has her doubts. She immediately
starts looking for clues as to why someone would Randall dead. Meg then discovers books missing from the
bedrooms at the bed and breakfast and wonders if the thefts are related to
Randall’s death. Franklin is finally
going to read a selection from the Fitzgerald manuscript to the public, and he
discovers it has been stolen. Meg has
gathered the clues and almost has all the pieces fitting together when there is
another death. How will Meg uncover the
killer? Will she be able to find the
missing manuscript?
Ghostal Living is the first book
that I have read in this series. I was
able to read Ghostal Living, but I felt that some background details on Meg
were missing. I was curious as to how
Meg ended up wearing hearing aids (and why she would go out without them). I found the novel to be slow-moving and
lacking in action. The authors detailed
writing did not help. While I did enjoy
the descriptions of the rooms at the B&B, this type of detail can get
monotonous. Readers are provided descriptions
of meals, buildings, people, rooms, vehicles as well as numerous book quotes,
information about authors (this was interesting, but not relevant to mystery),
and old movies. It is a fine line
between just the right amount of detail and too much. There is also some repetition of information
(details about the book fair and the clues Meg discovered for example). I felt that the book lacked substance. I give Ghostal Living 3 out of 5 stars. The mystery was slightly complex. My favorite part was how the manuscript was
concealed. If you pay close attention to
the details, you can easily solve this one.
I was disappointed that this cozy mystery contained a love
triangle. It is an overplayed
contrivance, and I was happy to see it resolved by the end of the story. I do not mind a mild romantic element in cozy
mysteries (if I wanted more I would pick up one of the numerous romance novels
on the market). I will (when I have an
opportunity) go back and read Better Homes and Corpses (first book in
series). It might give me a better
understanding of Meg.
I appreciate you reading my review of Ghostal Living. I am off to the grocery store today to pick up a few items. I will, hopefully, make it back before it starts raining again. My next review will be of Shine Like the Dawn by Carrie Turansky. May you have a very pleasing day. Take care and Happy Reading!
Kris
The Avid Reader
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