Kayaks, Kickbacks, and Kidnapping by Tonya Kappes

Book Summary

Kickbacks, Kayaks, and Kidnapping by Tonya Kappes has Mae West gearing up for Paddle Fest in Normal, Kentucky.  Mae has added water activities to the list of services offered by Happy Trials Campground.  Happy Trails will host the opening ceremony with activities available at camps around the Daniel Book National Forest. There will be a kayak competition that Bryce Anderson is hoping to win and get a coveted spot on the Olympic team.  Mae is proud that Happy Trails is up for the Campground Hospitality Award.   They are distributing ballots to all arriving guests.  Mae has been asked to join the Daniel Boone National Park board.  She would be the first female member.  After the opening ceremony for Paddle Fest, Mae heads over to the board meeting.  Just as she is about to accept the position, the receptionist announces that there was a murder at Happy Trails.  Mae rushes back to the campground to learn that Bryce Anderson was found dead at the lake.  The news of his death is spreading rapidly which has people fleeing Happy Trails.  Mae and the Laundry Club gals quickly gather and start working on their suspect list.  Mae needs to solve this case before everything she has achieved for Happy Trails and the town of Normal disappears.  

My Thoughts

Kickbacks, Kayaks, and Kidnapping by Tonya Kappes is the 12^th A Camper & Criminals Cozy Mystery.  It can be read as a standalone as the author provides all the background information needed on Mae, the town, and the campground.  I always enjoy visiting Normal, Kentucky with its friendly residents and Southern hospitality.  Mae West turns out to be quite the entrepreneur.  She has added water activities (canoeing, white water rafting, fishing, kayaking) to the services offered at Happy Trails Campground.  Mae also dreamed up Paddle Fest to launch her latest brainchild.  She coordinated with campgrounds around the Daniel Boone National Forest so there will be water happenings throughout the event.  In addition, there is a kayak competition where the winner hopes to get a coveted spot on the United State Olympic kayak team.  Bryce Anderson is the leading competitor and he is staying at Happy Trails with his agent.  When Bryce turns up dead after the opening ceremony, Mae must work quickly to solve the case.  Mae and the ladies from the Laundry Club get out the notebook and commandeer the write on/wipe off board in the Happy Trails office.  There are a variety of suspects, misdirection, and some good clues.  I like how Mae works with her friends to gather intel and question suspects.  Dottie Swaggert is a hoot.  She is recovering from hip surgery and is cranky.  Dottie made some humorous remarks that had me chuckling.  I enjoy Tonya Kappes’ conversational writing style.  Tonya provides an amusing Southern cozy mystery with quirky characters and small town charm.  It is wonderful what Mae has created at Happy Trails.  She has given the place a cozy, family feel.  Thanks to the authors word imagery, I can envision what the campground looks like with the trailers, cabins, the fires, the trees, and the lake.  I love what Mae has done to her cozy camper home.  It makes me want a small trailer that I can turn into a she shed.  A Camper & Criminals Cozy Mystery series has friendship, family, small town charm, sweet dogs, romance, humor, and, of course, murder victims.  I look forward to Mae’s next adventure in Gear, Grills, and Guns.  Kickbacks, Kayaks, and Kidnapping is an entertaining cozy mystery with tempting trails, committee conundrum, walker woes, naughty “nekkidness”, and killer kayaks.  

Kayaks, Kickbacks, and Kidnapping is available from Amazon*.  It is on Kindle Unlimited along with the other novels in A Camper & Criminal Cozy Mystery series.  You can read the first chapter of Kayaks, Kickbacks, and Kidnapping by clicking here.  You can find Tonya Kappes' other novels here.  Tonya Kappes' next release is Gear, Grills, and Guns which will be out on October 27.  Thank you so much for stopping by today.  I will be back tomorrow with Goodnight Moo by Mollie Cox Bryan.  It is the 2nd novel in A Buttermilk Creek Mystery series.  I hope that you have a cheerful day.  Take care, be kind, and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader

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