Sunday, June 10, 2018

Rockets' Dead Glare: A Tourist Trap Mystery

Hello!  I hope everyone is having a lovely weekend.  An Amish Family by Kathleen Fuller comes out on June 12 along with The Love Letter by Rachel HauckBuried in the Books by Kate Carlisle releases on June 26.  It is twelfth A Bibliophile Mystery.

Rockets’ Dead Glare by Lynn Cahoon is A Tourist Trap Mystery novella.  Jill Gardner is the owner of Coffee, Books and More in South Cove, California.  The town is getting ready for the annual Fourth of July Festival, but new volunteer fire chief Barry Gleason is putting a crimp in the plans.  He has created a stir with his list of violations for each business along with the threat of closing them down for the holiday weekend.  Barry has scheduled a controlled burn of an old barn on Beal Street.  The volunteer fire fighters complete the training exercise but get a shock when they find Barry dead inside the barn.  Jill, with her natural curiosity, cannot help but look into the case.  Come along to South Cove for the Fourth of July and Jill’s latest case in Rockets’ Dead Glare.

Rockets’ Dead Glare is satisfying cozy mystery.  It is a short novella (only 77 pages), but the author packed a lot into those pages.  We get to catch up on our favorite characters as they plan for the town’s Fourth of July.  The characters are well-developed and are relatable.  South Cove is a charming small town with quaint shops and festivities for every holiday.  I thoroughly enjoyed the cunning mystery.  I believe some of you will be surprised with the solution.  The mystery was not neglected in this short story (it was not rushed or incomplete).  I do wish that Greg King, Jill’s boyfriend, would get on board with her sleuthing.  Jill’s inquisitiveness is a part of her and he needs to be more understanding.  If he is worried about her being in danger, then he needs to teach her self-defense (I cannot see Jill carrying a gun).  Rockets’ Dead Glare is well-written and has a nice, steady pace.  I can relate to Aunt Jackie wanting to use walkie talkie’s for communicating with her off-site employees (they do come in handy when you have a technologically challenged person in your life--I do own walkie talkies for communicating with my mother when I am outside).  There are delightful cozy moments in the book with Emma (Jill’s dog), talking about books, food, time with friends, and walking on the beach.  While Rockets' Dead Glare can be read alone, I recommend reading the series in order.  You get to see the characters grow throughout the series.  Rockets’ Dead Glare is a gratifying cozy mystery that will tide me over until the next A Tourist Trap Mystery (which is A Deadly Brew on September 4).  Guidebook to Murder (Book One) is currently $1.99 on Amazon.

Thank you for reading my review of Rockets' Dead Glare.  I will be featuring A Deadly Eclair by Daryl Wood Gerber tomorrow.  The paperback version of the first A French Bistro Mystery comes out on June 12.  I hope you have a auspicious day.  Take care and Happy Reading!


Kris
The Avid Reader

1 comment:

  1. I have a Tourist cozy. It's an old one. I wonder if it's the same author. I like your review of this one.

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