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meezcarrie's review
4.0
All Cat Latimer wants is for her first Writer’s Retreat at her still-a-work-in-progress Bed and Breakfast (the one she mysteriously inherited from her philandering ex-husband) to go off with a hitch.
We don’t always get what we want.
The sisters who have booked a stay at the B&B are hilarious! I envisioned them perfectly in my head while I was reading their antics and arguments, and I do hope they make an appearance in future books in the series. Seth – Cat’s high school sweetheart – is uber swoony, though he was ready to resume their relationship a bit faster than I was expecting. A bit faster than Cat was expecting too I think lol. I enjoyed the best-friendship between Cat & Shauna too, and I look forward to seeing where both Cath’s romance with Seth and her friendship with Shauna go in the rest of the series.
As far as the mystery goes, there is much to love here as well! Not only do we have to solve a murder mystery – one with lots of twists and turns and suspects – but there’s also another mystery brewing just beneath the surface that I expect will play a larger role as the series progresses. I am anxiously waiting for the next book, Fatality by Firelight, which releases early next year to see if I’m right...
All I wanted was a great cozy mystery, with a dash of romance & characters I could hang out with & a setting I would want to visit. Though things might not have worked out exactly the way Cat Latimer wanted, fortunately for me, sometimes we do get exactly what we want.
Lynn Cahoon is one of my go-to authors in the cozy mystery genre – her Tourist Trap series is one of my faves – and this new series does not disappoint! She has a knack for creating settings that appeal directly to my book nerd heart so it’s easy to immerse myself in the story, while fighting pangs of regret because physically traveling into the pages/setting of a book has not yet been mastered. Her mysteries are well-plotted, and her characters are people I’d want as friends. A Story to Kill is no exception.
Reviewer’s Note: While this is definitely what I would classify as “clean” fiction, it does contain a few profanities scattered throughout. It’s a little spicy in places but – again -still well within the bounds of “clean fiction”.
(I received a copy of this book in exchange for only my honest review.)
See my full review at Reading Is My SuperPower
We don’t always get what we want.
The sisters who have booked a stay at the B&B are hilarious! I envisioned them perfectly in my head while I was reading their antics and arguments, and I do hope they make an appearance in future books in the series. Seth – Cat’s high school sweetheart – is uber swoony, though he was ready to resume their relationship a bit faster than I was expecting. A bit faster than Cat was expecting too I think lol. I enjoyed the best-friendship between Cat & Shauna too, and I look forward to seeing where both Cath’s romance with Seth and her friendship with Shauna go in the rest of the series.
As far as the mystery goes, there is much to love here as well! Not only do we have to solve a murder mystery – one with lots of twists and turns and suspects – but there’s also another mystery brewing just beneath the surface that I expect will play a larger role as the series progresses. I am anxiously waiting for the next book, Fatality by Firelight, which releases early next year to see if I’m right...
All I wanted was a great cozy mystery, with a dash of romance & characters I could hang out with & a setting I would want to visit. Though things might not have worked out exactly the way Cat Latimer wanted, fortunately for me, sometimes we do get exactly what we want.
Lynn Cahoon is one of my go-to authors in the cozy mystery genre – her Tourist Trap series is one of my faves – and this new series does not disappoint! She has a knack for creating settings that appeal directly to my book nerd heart so it’s easy to immerse myself in the story, while fighting pangs of regret because physically traveling into the pages/setting of a book has not yet been mastered. Her mysteries are well-plotted, and her characters are people I’d want as friends. A Story to Kill is no exception.
Reviewer’s Note: While this is definitely what I would classify as “clean” fiction, it does contain a few profanities scattered throughout. It’s a little spicy in places but – again -still well within the bounds of “clean fiction”.
(I received a copy of this book in exchange for only my honest review.)
See my full review at Reading Is My SuperPower
wildflowerz76's review against another edition
4.0
I had read this author's other series and liked it well enough. So when a customer brought this series in the other day, I decided I'd read it too. This one focuses on an author in a small cottage town who has inherited a house from her dead ex husband. She decides to open it for one week a month for writer's retreats.
This wasn't bad. I don't really care much for the love interest, but he's not TOO terrible. I'll keep reading.
This wasn't bad. I don't really care much for the love interest, but he's not TOO terrible. I'll keep reading.
xkay_readsx's review against another edition
2.0
Couldn't get into this one. Love the [b:Guidebook to Murder|21869865|Guidebook to Murder (A Tourist Trap Mystery, #1)|Lynn Cahoon|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1397395095s/21869865.jpg|40162983] series though. Could be the audio that made a difference for me.
girlonthecsaw's review against another edition
4.0
Loved this! I was fortunate enough to receive an ARC of this book and now I don't know how I'm going to wait until the next title in the series is published.
gotoboston's review
3.0
It took me awhile to get into this book. Maybe partly because it was third person and I prefer my cozy mysteries in first person. But, I also think I had a hard time connecting with Cat, the main character. Her behavior towards her ex-boyfriend, who she dumped and basically broke his heart, was just so rude and callous. It was such a disconnect from her thoughts about wanting him and loving him that I just wanted to strangle her. The mystery and the mysteriousness surrounding her late ex-husband's death is really what saved this book for me. I'll definitely be reading the second one since I own it and we'll see after that if I want to continue the series.
bookwyrm_lark's review
Welcome to the world of Cat Latimer, a YA fantasy novelist unwillingly embroiled in murder. When a famous author is killed while Cat is hosting her very first writer’s retreat, Cat’s curiosity and her desire to protect her guests and her business lead her to start digging into the author’s past. And what she finds is disturbing.
Anyone familiar with Lynn Cahoon’s Tourist Trap series knows: You can always count on Lynn for a light but down-to-earth cozy mystery featuring realistic, engaging characters and a believable small-town atmosphere. A Story to Kill essentially blends two stories: the mystery itself, and Cat’s own past and present. Divorced from a philandering husband, she was shocked both by his death and his bequest to her: the house they had shared. But it’s the perfect place to start a writers’ retreat. And her friend Shauna is the perfect person to help her; Shauna’s cooking is incredible and she knows how to run a B&B. Too bad the necessary renovations mean Cat has to hire her first love, Seth, as a carpenter and handyman. Cat isn’t immune to Seth’s charms, nor to the fact that he still seems interested in her, but she’s wary of involvement after her disastrous marriage. The novel spends as much time on Cat’s personal life and emotions as on Tom Cook’s murder and the search for his killer. The balance of the two worked well for me, and sets up the relationships between the central, recurring characters—Cat, Shauna, Seth, and Cat’s Uncle Pete, the police chief—in a way that left me feeling I know them, while still leaving plenty of room for character development and new discoveries.
One of my pet peeves in classic and cozy mysteries is inaccurate or unbelievable depictions of police, or of the amateur detective’s relationship to them. That’s not a problem here, for the most part. Since the police chief is Cat’s uncle, and he’s a very likeable, down-to-earth guy, it’s natural for her to tell him things and even ask about the case, and for him to tell her what feels able to divulge. The only unbelievable part is that Pete doesn’t hand the case over to another investigator, given his niece’s potential involvement and the risk of conflict of interest. (In fact, the point is never even raised, but you can bet it would be in real life.) But I’ve lived in small towns, so it was easy for me to rationalize that a policeman who knows his niece well, and believes in her veracity, might prefer to protect her by keeping the investigation in local hands—i.e., his own.
One thing I was not expecting was the introduction of a secondary mystery which will clearly take more than one book to unfold. I’m not sure whether it is setting up the plot for the second book, or if this other mystery will remain a subplot throughout several mysteries, but I’m definitely intrigued and want to know more… just as I want to know where Cat and Seth’s relationship is going, and how the differences between Cat’s and Shauna’s views of Shauna’s role in the business, which are so far under the surface, will be resolved.
Cahoon made me care about these recurring characters, and about Tom Cook’s widow Linda as well. There is also a delightful pair of sisters, probably in their 60s, whose good-natured bickering and obvious love for each other made me smile. One of them offers a bit of comic relief without ever stepping over the line into caricature. And she entertained me with a solid mystery, a believable field of suspects, and a satisfying conclusion… even if I did manage to figure out the culprit before the big reveal. I’m definitely looking forward to my next venture into the killer world of writers’ retreats.
Review originally published on The Bookwyrm's Hoard.
FTC disclosure: I received a review copy as part of a blog tour. All opinions are entirely my own.
Anyone familiar with Lynn Cahoon’s Tourist Trap series knows: You can always count on Lynn for a light but down-to-earth cozy mystery featuring realistic, engaging characters and a believable small-town atmosphere. A Story to Kill essentially blends two stories: the mystery itself, and Cat’s own past and present. Divorced from a philandering husband, she was shocked both by his death and his bequest to her: the house they had shared. But it’s the perfect place to start a writers’ retreat. And her friend Shauna is the perfect person to help her; Shauna’s cooking is incredible and she knows how to run a B&B. Too bad the necessary renovations mean Cat has to hire her first love, Seth, as a carpenter and handyman. Cat isn’t immune to Seth’s charms, nor to the fact that he still seems interested in her, but she’s wary of involvement after her disastrous marriage. The novel spends as much time on Cat’s personal life and emotions as on Tom Cook’s murder and the search for his killer. The balance of the two worked well for me, and sets up the relationships between the central, recurring characters—Cat, Shauna, Seth, and Cat’s Uncle Pete, the police chief—in a way that left me feeling I know them, while still leaving plenty of room for character development and new discoveries.
One of my pet peeves in classic and cozy mysteries is inaccurate or unbelievable depictions of police, or of the amateur detective’s relationship to them. That’s not a problem here, for the most part. Since the police chief is Cat’s uncle, and he’s a very likeable, down-to-earth guy, it’s natural for her to tell him things and even ask about the case, and for him to tell her what feels able to divulge. The only unbelievable part is that Pete doesn’t hand the case over to another investigator, given his niece’s potential involvement and the risk of conflict of interest. (In fact, the point is never even raised, but you can bet it would be in real life.) But I’ve lived in small towns, so it was easy for me to rationalize that a policeman who knows his niece well, and believes in her veracity, might prefer to protect her by keeping the investigation in local hands—i.e., his own.
One thing I was not expecting was the introduction of a secondary mystery which will clearly take more than one book to unfold. I’m not sure whether it is setting up the plot for the second book, or if this other mystery will remain a subplot throughout several mysteries, but I’m definitely intrigued and want to know more… just as I want to know where Cat and Seth’s relationship is going, and how the differences between Cat’s and Shauna’s views of Shauna’s role in the business, which are so far under the surface, will be resolved.
Cahoon made me care about these recurring characters, and about Tom Cook’s widow Linda as well. There is also a delightful pair of sisters, probably in their 60s, whose good-natured bickering and obvious love for each other made me smile. One of them offers a bit of comic relief without ever stepping over the line into caricature. And she entertained me with a solid mystery, a believable field of suspects, and a satisfying conclusion… even if I did manage to figure out the culprit before the big reveal. I’m definitely looking forward to my next venture into the killer world of writers’ retreats.
Review originally published on The Bookwyrm's Hoard.
FTC disclosure: I received a review copy as part of a blog tour. All opinions are entirely my own.
jbrooxd's review
4.0
Enjoyed this mystery. There were several layers to the main mystery which kept it interesting all the way through. The author also set up a larger mystery - either book two or an overarching one for the series - in this, which makes me really want to read book 2 to see what happens!
My only "issue" is I didn't feel like I got a great sense of the main character and her best friend. Characters really pull books together for me. I would like to get more of a sense of their relationship, their history, and their personalities than I felt like I got this time around. I'm looking forward to the next book so I can hopefully get more of that.
My only "issue" is I didn't feel like I got a great sense of the main character and her best friend. Characters really pull books together for me. I would like to get more of a sense of their relationship, their history, and their personalities than I felt like I got this time around. I'm looking forward to the next book so I can hopefully get more of that.
morticia32's review
3.0
A great start to a new series.
Cat Latimer is back in Colorado after surprisingly inheriting the home she used to share with her cheating ex-husband. Cat and her friend Shauna work to turn the house in to an inn of a sort, hosting writer's retreats one week a month.
In this book, the past really can come back to haunt you.
When Cat finds a guest murdered in his room, she has to dig in to his past to figure out who killed him. While Cat has to deal with the murder of a guest, there's also a mystery within the mystery. Cat also starts to come to terms with her ex-husband's cheating ways, while finding out new information about her ex. Was he really the cad he acted at the end of their marriage? Why did he have a secret room in the attic? And who is messing with Cat?
Normally, I am not a huge fan of the ongoing mystery within a mystery deal, but the mystery of Cat's ex is a subtle strand woven through out the book, rather than an in-your-face cliffhanger designed to get you to buy the next book. It didn't detract from the main whodunnit, and in this case, actually gives the reader more insight into Cat.
I'm ready for the next book in the series. I'm curious as to how Ms. Cahoon plans to continue the series without turning the writer's retreats into the Murder Inn!
*I was provided an ARC of this book by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.*
Cat Latimer is back in Colorado after surprisingly inheriting the home she used to share with her cheating ex-husband. Cat and her friend Shauna work to turn the house in to an inn of a sort, hosting writer's retreats one week a month.
In this book, the past really can come back to haunt you.
When Cat finds a guest murdered in his room, she has to dig in to his past to figure out who killed him. While Cat has to deal with the murder of a guest, there's also a mystery within the mystery. Cat also starts to come to terms with her ex-husband's cheating ways, while finding out new information about her ex. Was he really the cad he acted at the end of their marriage? Why did he have a secret room in the attic? And who is messing with Cat?
Normally, I am not a huge fan of the ongoing mystery within a mystery deal, but the mystery of Cat's ex is a subtle strand woven through out the book, rather than an in-your-face cliffhanger designed to get you to buy the next book. It didn't detract from the main whodunnit, and in this case, actually gives the reader more insight into Cat.
I'm ready for the next book in the series. I'm curious as to how Ms. Cahoon plans to continue the series without turning the writer's retreats into the Murder Inn!
*I was provided an ARC of this book by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.*
lunifur's review
5.0
**I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review**
Ooooh my gosh. Wow. Every time I thought I knew where the story was going – boom, plot twist. There was a whole lot going on throughout the entire story, but I had absolutely no trouble following everything. It was a really strong start to a brand new series, and the ending left me wanting book two to be out right now. Seriously, I have to know what happens next.
Ooooh my gosh. Wow. Every time I thought I knew where the story was going – boom, plot twist. There was a whole lot going on throughout the entire story, but I had absolutely no trouble following everything. It was a really strong start to a brand new series, and the ending left me wanting book two to be out right now. Seriously, I have to know what happens next.