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Trouble Follows You–starting over as a PI
Trouble Follows You
By Bonnie Edwards
Barbara Black is the protagonist of Trouble Follows You and she tells her story from a first person point of view. Thirty-five and recently divorced from a philandering husband, she strikes out to become a Private Investigator with financial survival as her goal. She works part time following up potential insurance cheats for a larger investigations company. She drums up her own first PI case when the wife of an author Barbara had heard speak at an event is shot and the husband is accused of the murder. The husband is a creep, but claims his innocency, and Barbara takes the case.
While involved in searching out background information for her first case, she gets a second case. Her ex-husband wants her to do a deep background check on his current wife. With the promise of good monetary compensation served up with a side of potential revenge, Barbara takes the case and soon finds herself following some shady characters from Tucson to Oklahoma.
I enjoyed this cozy mystery. The plot is good with threads and motivations that keep the reader guessing. While the investigation of murder is serious, the author manages to inject humor throughout. From time to time, in cozy mysteries, the actions of the protagonist do occasionally step over the legal line and sometimes are not quite believable. Trouble Follows You drifts into these territories increasing the reader’s enjoyment. The book is, after all, fiction and a great escape from more serious tomes. The author lives in Tucson, Arizona, which is the major setting for her books.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Mystery
Notes: 1. #1 in the Adventures of Babs Black series which currently has 3 books in the series.
2. Clean cozy mystery with exactly 5 offensive words in the whole book.
3. There is another author by the same name who writes erotic romances.
Publication: December 6, 2019—Deadly Press
Memorable Lines:
I know teachers. If the plan was a cooperative one among them, they’d still be arguing about who got to pull the trigger.
“Confident, a little brassy, quite sure that she was right about everything. What I mean to say is over-confident and obnoxiously brazen, but my original statement seemed so much more proper.”
There is not much in this world that chocolate won’t solve. The combination of ice cream and chocolate is the universal cure for whatever ails you.
Tea & Treachery–new cozy mystery series
Tea & Treachery
by Vicki Delany
People who enjoy the experience of indulging in a specially prepared tea at a tearoom will also enjoy reading about it in Tea & Treachery, the first book in Vicki Delany’s new cozy mystery series Tea by the Sea. Lily has left behind the fast paced life of a Manhattan pastry chef to fulfill her dream of owning her own teahouse. It is located in a restored house next to Lily’s grandmother’s B & B. As part of their agreement, Grandmother Rose lets Lily live in a cottage on the property. Lily prepares breakfast at the B & B in addition to doing all the cooking for her own tearoom.
The property overlooks the Cape Cod Bay, but its appeal is marred when Jack, a local developer, is found dead at the bottom of a bluff. Unfortunately, Rose previously had a very public disagreement with Jack. The lead detective is focused on pinning the murder on Rose so Lily, of course, has to find the real killer.
The plot is inventive, and the author’s descriptive powers shine. We are introduced to a number of interesting characters. Some are employed at one of the two businesses. Others already are or become friends of Rose and Lily. Lily’s best friend Bernie (aka the Princess Warrior) is a spunky, red-headed, aspiring writer. Simon hires on as a gardener; he is not only handsome, but is talented in horticulture, has culinary skills and a British understanding of tea, and rides a motorcycle. The locals include police officers along with town councilmen and a mayor who have interests in rezoning issues that affect Rose and Lily and their businesses.
There are lots of suspects to keep the reader guessing, some romance in the air, and dangers that arise from the ladies’ investigations. You will be exhausted just reading about Lily’s efforts to juggle her two jobs. Rose and Bernie add some humor to the tale. The book ends with hints of future developments for the tearoom, the B & B, and the main characters.
I would like to extend my thanks to Netgalley and to Kensington Books for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Mystery
Notes: 1. #1 in the Tea by the Sea Mystery Series
2. Recipes included for scones, coconut cupcakes, and tea-scented bath salts
Publication: July 28, 2020—Kensington Books
Memorable Lines:
It was a day full of promise: the sun was a huge yellow circle in a pale blue sky, and the lightest breath of wind carried the scent of salt off the ocean.
A wave of warm sugar and spicy cinnamon goodness washed over me, and I almost groaned in pleasure. No matter how many pastries I’ve made over my lifetime, I never get tired of these scents. Or of the pleasure in producing beautiful food and having it enjoyed.
More than once, people have complained when they saw the prices. We never apologize. Good food, well prepared with excellent ingredients, much of it sourced locally, costs money. Not to mention fresh flowers on the table and real china and silver and linen at every place. Afternoon tea isn’t an everyday thing, not even in the UK and certainly not in America. It’s a treat, an indulgence, and I believe it needs to be presented accordingly.
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