Reviews

Canter With a Killer by Amber Camp

theavidreaderandbibliophile's review against another edition

3.0

Canter with a Killer by Amber Camp is the first A Horse Rescue Mystery. Mallory Martin owns a horse rescue in Hillspring, Arkansas. Her cantankerous neighbor, Albert Cunningham is murdered. The victim had called Mallory the day before and they had a heated conversation. Unfortunately, someone overheard the phone call and spilled the beans to the police. Mallory is not about to let herself stay at the top of the sheriff’s suspect list. She quickly begins asking questions and taking notes. The situation is not looking good for Mallory as the evidence mounts. She will need to narrow in on the guilty party or Mallory will soon need a change of address form. Mallory Martin is a difficult character to like. She is in her 40s and has started a horse rescue. She has a donkey who loves attention as well as a playful dog. Mallory is her own worst enemy. All her actions just made her look guilty. Mallory finds ways to justify her bad behavior and questionable actions. She also has a quickfire temper and takes out her frustrations on people who are trying to help her. The mystery was straightforward. It was obvious who would die and who would take the blame. Mallory has her suspects list which focuses on people she does not like. Mallory is the type of person who leaps before she thinks. She jumps to incorrect conclusions and, of course, acts on them. Mallory treated several kind people terribly. She even blocks someone on her phone because they did not get back to her quick enough. Mallory is her own worst enemy. The mystery can be solved early in the book. One detail is all it takes to solve the crime. I wish the author had portrayed Hillspring in a better light. The townspeople come across as unwelcoming and mean. The story does contain mild foul language. I loved Mallory’s donkey, Biscuit and her dog, Banjo. There is a love interest for Mallory, but I am shocked the man wants to be with her after the way she treated him. The pacing could have used improvement. I believe part of it is due to the author’s detailed descriptions, especially on what people are wearing and the day-to-day details of what it takes to run a horse rescue. I did not enjoy my first visit to Hillspring, and I am not planning to return. Canter with a Killer is country cozy with a braying Biscuit, a murdered grumbler, a handsome hunk, police problems, a barking Banjo, helping horses, and a scrutinizing amateur sleuth.

houdini117's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

srash's review

3.0

More like 2.5 stars. The book is fun and breezy--and has a lot of great in-jokes if you live in NWA--but I clocked the endgame (both who the killer was and who the love interest would be) pretty early. The characters were mostly pretty likable, but I did find the protagonist's inept investigative efforts, despite being a professional forensic nurse, pretty exasperating. It's a big part of what knocked down the rating for me. That being said, it's an engaging, compelling read, and I really enjoyed a lot of the other characters, as well as the horse barn setting.

karen_the_baroness's review

5.0

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Canter with a Killer by Amber Camp is a new cozy animal mystery that features Mallory Martin, an owner of a horse rescue farm in a small town in Arkansas.

Can Mallory steer the police in the right direction?

Mallory Martin

Mallory Martin is a 42-year-old woman who has been living her dream of owning a horse rescue (since she was a little girl) for a bit. She has a college-bound daughter who wants to be a vet and an ex-husband who might still like Mallory. Mal sounds like a fantastic character, and she brings a lot more oomph to a sleuth than some of the others I’ve had the opportunity to read. I love how she does her murder board and how, despite everything mounting against her, Mallory still wants to prove herself innocent.

The Mystery
Mallory argues over the phone with her next-door neighbor, who ends up getting murdered, and the police are looking at her as their only suspect. Everyone else seems to have pretty much good alibis while she doesn’t. So much goes on from the story’s beginning to right when Mallory confronts the killer. I have to say sadly that I fell for a red herring, but that red herring was a pretty good suspect.

Five Stars

Canter with a Killer by Amber Camp is getting five stars, and a recommendation to anyone that loves horses to give this story a try. It also has a pet donkey named Biscuit. Biscuit is awesome! Ms. Camp has written a great first story for a new series.

Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Canter with a Killer by Amber Camp. Check out the other stops and giveaway if you have time.

Until the next time,



Happy Reading!

This review was originally posted on Baroness' Book Trove

dollycas's review

lighthearted mysterious

4.0

Dollycas's Thoughts

Not happy in her marriage or her job Mallory Martin divorces her spouse and moves back to her hometown of Hillspring, Arkansas to take care of her ailing father and open up a horse rescue. Her obsession with horses goes way back as does wanting to make a difference in the world so opening up a rescue on the family farm was an easy choice. But money is not rolling in so Mallory decides to add riding lessons to the rescue. This angers her neighbor Albert Cummings, who owns Champion Performance Horses, a horse breeding and training farm uphill from Mallory's rescue. He called to voice his displeasure the day before he was killed and found in his fourteen-stall show barn. A witness to the conversation and Mallory's iffy alibi make her the prime suspect.

Sheriff Grady Sullivan has known Mallory forever so you would think he would know she couldn't be responsible for the crime but he still is going all out to prove her guilty. Heck, she can think of several others with more motive and even Albert's son believes she is innocent.  So with a little help from her friends, she is bound and determined to find the real killer.

______

Mallory Martin is a strong woman intent on making her dreams come true but she is a bit gruff at times. She tries to use her knowledge learned as a forensic nurse to ferret out the killer but at times she leaps into action before thinking things through and that just gives the sheriff more ammunition against her. He clearly had tunnel vision when it came to Mallory. He also had a problem in his department he failed to address. I was not a fan.

Mallory has two college-age volunteers to help her take care of her rescues. Tanner and Ashley are knowledgeable about horses and love their jobs. They can't believe their "boss" is even considered a suspect. With her daughter away at college these kids help her deal with her empty nest feelings. Her friend Lanie along with her husband Bill truly have Mallory's back and fully support her throughout the whole ordeal. I loved the way Bill stepped up when a supplier was treating Mallory so poorly. It gave her the strength to take the man on too. Mallory's lawyer Andy was great too.

I loved the unique setting of a horse farm with rescues. The horses and a crazy lovable donkey tugged at my heart. Mallory also has a wonderful blue heeler. We have a loveable red heeler and they are great dogs.

The mystery was filled with some nice twists. There were some clear suspects and a couple more that I added to my personal list. I was focused on the wrong person for quite a while so I was surprised when the actual culprit was revealed. I was not sure how Mallory was going to save herself but then her rescuer took care of it in an awesome way.

Canter with a Killer
was a strong debut and a very enjoyable read. A fine mystery with a brisk pace and a smashing ending that was very entertaining. I look forward to getting to know these characters better as the series continues.

 

akolb51's review

mysterious slow-paced

3.0

 

Mallory Martin moved back to her hometown of Hillspring, Arkansas, and started a horse rescue. But when her neighbor and longtime critic, Albert Cunningham, is found murdered in his show barn, Mallory becomes a suspect, and decides to take matters into her own hands, and investigate. With her horse rescue on the line, can Mallory find the truth before she loses everything? 

This cozy mystery was very interesting. The characters were well written and appealing. The plot was intriguing enough to keep me interested. And, the setting was different, I never read about a horse rescue mystery. But I felt that the story was too long, and it took too long to finish. I also guessed the perpetrator from the second chapter. I want to thank NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this advanced reader’s copy. This review is my unbiased opinion. 

annarella's review

4.0

A good start for a new cozy series. I liked the unusual setting (horse rescue) and the characters. The solid mystery kept me guessing.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

melmo2610's review

3.0

A solid start to a new cozy series. I really liked the horse theme of this series and Mallory is a fun character. I also liked the Arkansas Ozarks setting as I live not far from that area in the Missouri Ozarks. The mystery is good although the fact that Mallory was basically the only suspect from the standpoint of the police for pretty much the entire book was a little much for me. I look forward to book 2.

yabooks4me's review

lighthearted mysterious relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Super cute cozy mystery. Loved the characters and setting and all the animals. 

msrichardsreads89's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

 I loved this so much! It's set in Arkansas, and it doesn't play into the stereotypes of Arkansans. The protagonist was very endearing, and I loved the horse rescue theme! I cannot wait for book 2!