A Whisker in the Dark by Leighann Dobbs

Happy last day of July!  The Women of Mulberry Lane by Rosie Clarke will be out tomorrow along with The Healing Jar by Wanda E. Brunstetter.  The Cat Caper by Molly Fitz releases on August 8.  It is the fifth book in Pet Whisperer PI series.  

A Whisker in the Dark by Leighann Dobbs returns readers to Oyster Cove.  Josie Waters, owner of the Oyster Cove Guesthouse, has the entire Biddeford clan staying with her for the town’s 250^th anniversary celebration.  Josie is serving breakfast when she hears an urgent meow coming from the west wing that is under construction.  She rushes to the ballroom, with the Biddeford clan on her heels, to find Ed O’Hara, her carpenter, staring at a skeleton in the newly exposed section of wall.  The skeleton is identified as Jedediah Biddeford, shipping tycoon, who disappeared three hundred years ago.  The Biddeford clan believes that the old curse must be true about hidden treasure on the property and they rush to the local hardware store to purchase shovels.  That night the Biddeford clan along with many local townspeople are digging up the grounds using flashlights and headlamps.  The next morning, Mike Sullivan finds Bob Biddeford dead by the pond with a shovel laying nearby.  Josie worries that her guesthouse will get a bad reputation with a second murder occurring on her property.  Josie with her two sidekicks, Millie and Rose, dig in to expose the killer.  Thankfully, Marlowe and Nero are also on the case along with their feline friends. 

A Whisker in the Dark is the second book in The Oyster Cove Guesthouse series.  I recommend reading A Twist in the Tail before starting this latest tale.  Josie Waters needed a new start after her divorce and purchased the guesthouse from Millie Sullivan even though she cannot cook (plus cannot keep the books and lacks marketing knowledge).  Josie’s cooking skills have not improved despite having Millie’s recipes (she really needs to invest in a timer too).  I enjoy Leighann Dobbs relaxed writing style and the fact that the story progresses at a zippy pace (which makes for an easy to read story).  I enjoy the sections told from the cat’s perspective.  They are intelligent and perceptive felines who are working to train Josie.  The cat’s sniff out clues that they share with the humans.  It is cute that there is a network of cat’s around town who help to solve the mysteries.  The modern whodunit has multiple suspects (the whole Biddeford clan) and misdirection.  Flora, Josie’s maid who prefers to watch television to cleaning, is at the top of the suspect list.  Millie has known Flora for decades and knows she would not commit murder.  But they need solid proof for Sheriff Seth Chamberlain. Solving the mystery is child’s play, but readers will enjoy following the characters as they work to expose the truth.  We are left to wonder, though, about what really happened to Jedidiah Biddeford and is there a treasure.  We will have to wait for A Purrfect Alibi to get answers.    A Whisker in the Dark is a lighthearted caper with quirky characters, zany antics, and madcap humor.  A Whisker in the Dark has old bones, hidden treasure, friendly felines, bickering Biddeford’s, burnt bread, and three nosey parkers.

A Whisker in the Dark is available through Amazon plus it on the Kindle Unlimited program.  The first book in The Oyster Cove Guesthouse series A Twist in the Tail.  The third novel A Purrfect Alibi will be out on September 18.  Thank you for stopping by today.  I will return tomorrow with my review of The Healing Jar by Wanda E. Brunstetter which is the third book in The Prayer Jar series.  I hope you have a stellar day.  Take care and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader

  

A Twist in the Tail by Leighann Dobbs

Hello!  May is going by so quickly.  The Book Supremacy by Kate Carlisle releases on June 4.  It is the thirteenth A Bibliophile Mystery involving Brooklyn Wainwright.  Died in the Wool by Melinda Mullet comes out June 18. It is the fourth A Whiskey Business Mystery.    Toxic Toffee by Amanda Flower, Down in Flames by Cheryl Hollen and Bite Club by Laurien Berenson publish on June 25.  So many books and so little time to read.

A Twist in the Tail by Leighann Dobbs is the first The Oyster Cove Guesthouse Mystery.  Josie Waters has moved back home to Oyster Cove, Maine after her divorce and has purchased the Oyster Cove Guesthouse from Millie Sullivan.  The guesthouse is a beautiful 250 old Victorian mansion that needs extensive renovations.  Barbara Littlefield, the town’s building inspector, has been a pain in the backside since the very beginning.  Josie promised Millie to care for the inn’s two resident cats, Marlowe and Nero who take offense when Josie states she owns them (big mistake).  She inherited Flora, the maid, who spends more time watching soap operas than cleaning.  Josie might not have thought through the cooking part of the operation completely.  It is a good thing that Millie tends to drop by regularly and takes over the kitchen.  Josie has invested all her savings into this venture, and she is determined to make a go of it.  But then the cats start howling and lead Josie into the dilapidated west wing where one of her guests is dead at the bottom of the collapsed stairs.  Maybe this was not one of Josie’s best ideas. 

 

A Twist in the Tail is a lighthearted, engaging tale.  Josie Waters is recently divorced from her chef hubby and has returned to her hometown where she can keep an eye on her mother plus start over.  She has purchased the Oyster Cove Guesthouse which needs massive amounts of renovations (a beautiful yet rundown Victorian).  I like that the protagonist is in her 40s and starting a new chapter of her life.  The chapters alternate between the human and the cat’s point-of-views.  The cat chapters are entertaining and will have you chuckling.  Marlowe and Nero are not certain about the new human in their lives.  They are working on training her, but they have a long road ahead of them.  Josie fails to understand them, and she actually believes she owns the felines (she has not been around cats before this as we can tell).  Josie’s mother, Rose and Minnie Sullivan have a police scanner app on their cell phones and usually arrive at crime scenes before Sheriff Seth Chamberlain (who should have retired years ago).  Mike Sullivan, Millie’s nephew, is doing the renovations on the guesthouse.  He broke Josie’s heart back in high school and Josie would rather avoid Mike especially since the old attraction is still present between them.  It does not help that Stella Dumont, her high school nemesis, seems intent on flirting with Mike and keeps popping up in her kitchen.  Now Josie has a dead guest which can ruin her new business venture before it begins.  It does not help that Sheriff Chamberlain considers Josie his prime suspect and Barbara Littlefield, the town building inspector, has issued another fine.  Josie must investigate the murder to clear her name and save the guesthouse from ruin.  Millie and Rose are determined to help along with Marlowe and Nero (want to guess which pair are the better sleuths).  The mystery was straightforward with the murder occurring in first chapter.  There are good clues to aid readers in solving the crime before the reveal.  There are multiple suspects, misdirection and plenty of action.  Avid cozy mystery readers will have no problem solving this whodunit.  I would have liked less repetition of case details and speculation.  There are recipes at the end of the book.  There is a hint at what will happen in A Whisker in the Dark.   A Twist in the Tail is a humorous cozy mystery with sleuthing cats, meddling seniors, a handsome handyman, a clueless sheriff, scintillating secrets, and one new guesthouse owner who is in over her head.

A Whisker in the Dark releases on July 31.  Both books are a part of the Kindle Unlimited program on Amazon.  Thank you for reading my review.  Tomorrow I am the stop of the Celebrate Lit Tour for On a Summer Tide by Suzanne Woods Fisher.  It is the first book in the Three Sisters Island series.  I hope you have a exemplary day.  Take care and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader