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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Nina (nine-a) Fleet has retired early at age 41 to small town, Cymbeline, Georgia. She bought an old Queen Anne house in hopes of opening a bed-and-breakfast. imagine her surprise when a penguin shows up on her step claiming to be the rightful owner. Harry Westcott is an actor working odd jobs to survive until he makes it big. He claims that his aunt intended to leave the house to him and has a letter to prove it. The next time Nina sees the penguin costume, the person inside has a knife in his chest. Instead of Harry, the man is Gregory Bainbridge, a shifty land developer. So many hated him that the array of suspects is long and varied.
This is an excellent start to the series. I've enjoyed Ms. Gerard's writing as Ali Brandon. The Black Cat Bookshop series was one of my all time favorites and I miss Hamlet. I'm pleased that this series also has a furry side kick in Matilda, "Mattie", the Australian shepherd.
The characters are very well written. I felt at home in Cymbeline. The shops were described in a manner that I felt I could step inside and greet the owners.
The mystery is solid and I was surprised by the killer. I went in a different direction.
The nuns were a wonderful addition to the story. Nina's wish to become a B&B happens faster than she expects after being told there were plenty in town. The nuns were displaced by Bainbridge and the town's mayor knew just the place for them.
This was a great afternoon read and I look forward to continuing the series to see what happens.
Nina (nine-a) Fleet has retired early at age 41 to small town, Cymbeline, Georgia. She bought an old Queen Anne house in hopes of opening a bed-and-breakfast. imagine her surprise when a penguin shows up on her step claiming to be the rightful owner. Harry Westcott is an actor working odd jobs to survive until he makes it big. He claims that his aunt intended to leave the house to him and has a letter to prove it. The next time Nina sees the penguin costume, the person inside has a knife in his chest. Instead of Harry, the man is Gregory Bainbridge, a shifty land developer. So many hated him that the array of suspects is long and varied.
This is an excellent start to the series. I've enjoyed Ms. Gerard's writing as Ali Brandon. The Black Cat Bookshop series was one of my all time favorites and I miss Hamlet. I'm pleased that this series also has a furry side kick in Matilda, "Mattie", the Australian shepherd.
The characters are very well written. I felt at home in Cymbeline. The shops were described in a manner that I felt I could step inside and greet the owners.
The mystery is solid and I was surprised by the killer. I went in a different direction.
The nuns were a wonderful addition to the story. Nina's wish to become a B&B happens faster than she expects after being told there were plenty in town. The nuns were displaced by Bainbridge and the town's mayor knew just the place for them.
This was a great afternoon read and I look forward to continuing the series to see what happens.
Newest Adventure Details:
Where: Cymbeline, Georgia
Who: Nina
I was excited at the prospect of heading to Georgia, meeting Nina, and more than anything checking out the historic Queen Anne home she just purchased. I arrived kind of late and missed what I thought was a joke...when she told me a penguin showed up @ the house claiming he was the rightful owner. After she was done messing with me...Nina filled me on the real situation with Harry Westcott. I felt for both of them. Nina also filled me on the fact that she wanted to turn her home into a B&B but hadn’t got approval. However; things (zoning approvals) changed quickly when the mayor wanted her to house a group of nuns from the Sisters of perpetual Poverty. Their lease was up on the convent, and the landlord wanted to develop the land their home was on. He refused to let them stay. The nuns were set to arrive soon, and I hoped Nina with last minute preparations.
The nuns were as pleasant as expected and they immediately got to work making signs and getting permits to protest the land develop that was taking away their home. Gregory Bainbridge. He sounded like a dreadful man. When everything was ready, we headed toward downtown to help the nuns exercise their first amendment rights...we weren’t their long when we heard screaming coming from an alley. There was a body in the alley….a body in the alley wearing a penguin suit. Harry Westcott the man that had come to Nina’s claiming he was filing a lawsuit to reclaim his great-aunts home was dead. Upon further inspection and removing the penguin head...it wasn’t Harry, but Gregory Bainbridge the nun's landlord. Nina and I were determined to find out the truth of who offed the penguin…
My thoughts:
I listened to this book for my “hooked on books” feature of my blog. Check it out!! I thought overall the narrator was good but should not try to do men’s voices. It was not done well and distracting to the listener. As for the book...I loved it! The setting was great, and the mystery was fun and entertaining. Yet again I was guessing up until the end...although that may say more about me then the writing lol. My only concern for this series is the characters. I loved Nina, but really most of the secondary characters in this book were the sisters. Whom I loved….LOVED, LOVED, LOVED...but if they are not in the series as regulars (hint hint) i'm afraid it will take away from the magic. I'm looking forward to the next book and am interested to see what the author does with this series moving forward!
Cozy mystery lovers this book is a peach of a good time!
Don't forget to go to and subscribe to my blog @ http://beachbumbookworm.com. As mentioned above...this book is featured on my “hooked on books” section….check out pictures of the blanket that accompanied this book!
A very good start for a new series! It's well written, full of humour and engrossing.
I loved the likable and fleshed out cast of characters, the lovely setting and the entertaining and fund to read plot.
The mystery was good, no plot hole, and it kept me guessing till the end.
I look forward to reading the next installment in this series.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Crooked Lane and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
I loved the likable and fleshed out cast of characters, the lovely setting and the entertaining and fund to read plot.
The mystery was good, no plot hole, and it kept me guessing till the end.
I look forward to reading the next installment in this series.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Crooked Lane and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
This book was just ridiculous and after a point I found it to be annoying. This is the first book in a cozy mystery that is set in a small town in GA. I appreciated the small town vibe and the Georgian setting. However, it seemed as though everything was an exaggerated take and that started to frustrate me. Not for me and I will not be continuing in the series.