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kungelbach's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed the storyline but the narrator was so stilted I had to listen to it at 1.25x speed. I think I've only listened to one other book on a faster speed. The mystery was good and I'm curious enough to listen and/or read the next one.
katreader's review against another edition
4.0
A STORY TO KILL by Lynn Cahoon
The First Cat Latimer Mystery
Leaving California for Colorado, Cat Latimer has returned to the home she once shared with her husband. Surprised that her ex left the house to her when he died, Cat is nonetheless excited to start a new chapter in her life. Along her her best friend Shauna, Cat is converting the Victorian into a writer's retreat. Inheriting the house is only the first unexpected event for Cat. She soon discovers that the handyman Shauna hired is none other than her old flame. Not wanting to appear rattled at his appearance, Cat busies herself preparing for her first set of guests, which include a famous author. Life has more curve balls for Cat, however, as she discovers that her guests are not quite what she expected and that while one guest is a major fan girl another another has a major grudge against that famous author. Cat goes to his room in an attempt to warn him only to find his murdered body!
Lynn Cahoon has started a great series with interesting characters. The writing is crisp and taut, yet time is taken to develop the characters. I sense a huge back story with Shauna and I hope more will be revealed in future books. One of Cahoon's more interesting characters doesn't even appear in the book, Cat's ex-husband. Through comments both subtle and direct we get a somewhat conflicted image of the man. If he was just a womanizing heel who tired of marriage, why leave the house to Cat? As for the house, the wonderful thing about using it as a writer's retreat is the ever changing guest list, new characters to like and dislike. It's especially nice knowing the ones you dislike probably won't be return! This changing cast of characters make more viable suspects and bring fresh blood to the victim/murderer pool.
An interesting note about the Cat Latimer Mystery series is that the books let us glimpse into the real life of writers. We witness the alone time needed to write, the little things necessary for writers-certain snacks for example, and most importantly, the fact that generally authors can't survive solely on the income they earn from writing, Another source of income is generally needed to pay the bills.
While the mystery is complete in A STORY TO KILL, Cahoon sets the stage for future books with her open ending. Readers will be satisfied, yet left wanting more-to see just what Cat's ex got himself into! I had a great time delving into this world. A STORY TO KILL is a smart, well written mystery that left me with great expectations for the next chapter in the Cat Latimer Mystery series.
FTC Disclosure – The publisher sent me a copy of this book in the hopes I would review it.
The First Cat Latimer Mystery
Leaving California for Colorado, Cat Latimer has returned to the home she once shared with her husband. Surprised that her ex left the house to her when he died, Cat is nonetheless excited to start a new chapter in her life. Along her her best friend Shauna, Cat is converting the Victorian into a writer's retreat. Inheriting the house is only the first unexpected event for Cat. She soon discovers that the handyman Shauna hired is none other than her old flame. Not wanting to appear rattled at his appearance, Cat busies herself preparing for her first set of guests, which include a famous author. Life has more curve balls for Cat, however, as she discovers that her guests are not quite what she expected and that while one guest is a major fan girl another another has a major grudge against that famous author. Cat goes to his room in an attempt to warn him only to find his murdered body!
Lynn Cahoon has started a great series with interesting characters. The writing is crisp and taut, yet time is taken to develop the characters. I sense a huge back story with Shauna and I hope more will be revealed in future books. One of Cahoon's more interesting characters doesn't even appear in the book, Cat's ex-husband. Through comments both subtle and direct we get a somewhat conflicted image of the man. If he was just a womanizing heel who tired of marriage, why leave the house to Cat? As for the house, the wonderful thing about using it as a writer's retreat is the ever changing guest list, new characters to like and dislike. It's especially nice knowing the ones you dislike probably won't be return! This changing cast of characters make more viable suspects and bring fresh blood to the victim/murderer pool.
An interesting note about the Cat Latimer Mystery series is that the books let us glimpse into the real life of writers. We witness the alone time needed to write, the little things necessary for writers-certain snacks for example, and most importantly, the fact that generally authors can't survive solely on the income they earn from writing, Another source of income is generally needed to pay the bills.
While the mystery is complete in A STORY TO KILL, Cahoon sets the stage for future books with her open ending. Readers will be satisfied, yet left wanting more-to see just what Cat's ex got himself into! I had a great time delving into this world. A STORY TO KILL is a smart, well written mystery that left me with great expectations for the next chapter in the Cat Latimer Mystery series.
FTC Disclosure – The publisher sent me a copy of this book in the hopes I would review it.
auntbopp's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
hugbandit7's review against another edition
5.0
This may be a new series (although we met Cat in the author's other series and I even thought it would be a good series with this author) but it is not short on developed characters and a twisting plot.
I love the premise - a writer's retreat at another author's B&B in CO. However the first retreat doesn't go well when a famous author is killed in the B&B. Of course that victim had ties to the town and the local college.
The sequence of events kept me jumping from one character to another trying to pin it on the right character. I think I had guessed right at the beginning, but couldn't figure out why and there were many red herrings thrown out there that it was easy to think it was someone else.
There is even a potential new love interest in her old boyfriend, so I can't wait to see what Cat and Seth. However, her ex-husband who left her the house when he died (guess he didn't have any other family or just didn't think to change his will) left a few surprises and I can't wait to see how certain things are explained in future books.
I love the premise - a writer's retreat at another author's B&B in CO. However the first retreat doesn't go well when a famous author is killed in the B&B. Of course that victim had ties to the town and the local college.
The sequence of events kept me jumping from one character to another trying to pin it on the right character. I think I had guessed right at the beginning, but couldn't figure out why and there were many red herrings thrown out there that it was easy to think it was someone else.
There is even a potential new love interest in her old boyfriend, so I can't wait to see what Cat and Seth. However, her ex-husband who left her the house when he died (guess he didn't have any other family or just didn't think to change his will) left a few surprises and I can't wait to see how certain things are explained in future books.
git_r_read's review against another edition
4.0
I like Lynn Cahoon. She has quite a few series and I am always entertained when I read one of her books.
I like the premise and the characters and setting. Bed and breakfast storylines are pretty popular in the cozy/amateur sleuth genre. It's a bit Love Boat-y or Fantasy Island-y in that you get new guests each book and who knows what mischief will ensue. This one is a writer's retreat, so you have quite a few guests with huge imaginations and some with huge egos, all enclosed in a B&B...
This one was a bit choppy, but I like the characters and the chemistry clicked and the story will smooth out as the rest of Lynn Cahoon's books do.
The wee cliffhanger at the end of this one has me intrigued enough to download the next in series, FATALITY BY FIRELIGHT, as soon as I finish this review...and it's not even on sale....
I can recommend this book and definitely recommend this author.
I like the premise and the characters and setting. Bed and breakfast storylines are pretty popular in the cozy/amateur sleuth genre. It's a bit Love Boat-y or Fantasy Island-y in that you get new guests each book and who knows what mischief will ensue. This one is a writer's retreat, so you have quite a few guests with huge imaginations and some with huge egos, all enclosed in a B&B...
This one was a bit choppy, but I like the characters and the chemistry clicked and the story will smooth out as the rest of Lynn Cahoon's books do.
The wee cliffhanger at the end of this one has me intrigued enough to download the next in series, FATALITY BY FIRELIGHT, as soon as I finish this review...and it's not even on sale....
I can recommend this book and definitely recommend this author.
peggyemi's review against another edition
5.0
This was a terrific book. I read the entire thing in one day. This book has wonderful characters. I felt that the characters were well written and very dimensional. They jumped out from the page and I instantly liked the main character. Cat Latimer is a strong, independent woman. Although she is returning to the home she shared with her now deceased ex-husband, she is determined to make a go of her new writers retreat venture with her best friend Shauna. I liked Shauna as well. She is a terrific friend in all the ways that count to Cat. The writers attending the retreat and Cat's Uncle Pete round out the cast and prove to be very interesting in their own right.
I thought the mystery was well done. The author provided the reader with many good suspects, a lot of clues, twists and turns and a couple of minor mysteries, one of which is connected to the murder of the famous writer attending the retreat. I thought the author did a fantastic job of weaving all of the clues throughout the story along with some red herrings to throw the reader off the trail. While the culprit is not a surprise, I thought Ms. Cahoon did a great job of tying up the loose ends as to motive for this suspect. There was one minor mystery that was not tied up at the end of this book, but I wouldn't call it a cliffhanger. I can see this mystery unfolding over the course of the next few books as it weavers it way into Cat's next adventures.
There is a bit of romance thrown in as well, as Cat reconnects with her high school boyfriend and the sparks are still there. I don't think the romance in any way overpowered the mystery and was well written into the plot.
I was provided an ARC of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not influence my opinion as the thoughts expressed are my own.
I thought the mystery was well done. The author provided the reader with many good suspects, a lot of clues, twists and turns and a couple of minor mysteries, one of which is connected to the murder of the famous writer attending the retreat. I thought the author did a fantastic job of weaving all of the clues throughout the story along with some red herrings to throw the reader off the trail. While the culprit is not a surprise, I thought Ms. Cahoon did a great job of tying up the loose ends as to motive for this suspect. There was one minor mystery that was not tied up at the end of this book, but I wouldn't call it a cliffhanger. I can see this mystery unfolding over the course of the next few books as it weavers it way into Cat's next adventures.
There is a bit of romance thrown in as well, as Cat reconnects with her high school boyfriend and the sparks are still there. I don't think the romance in any way overpowered the mystery and was well written into the plot.
I was provided an ARC of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not influence my opinion as the thoughts expressed are my own.
darbyart's review against another edition
4.0
It hits all the marks, for me, for this genre. Good characters, plot, and intrigue.
caitkom's review against another edition
4.0
Cat Latimer, a wrter and ex-professor has inherited her ex-husband's house after his death. She and her best friend have decided to open a writers retreat one week per month to make ends meet until the royalties from her novels kick in. This is a great way for her to help other aspiring authors to work on their books and with Covington College in town they will have access to the library and speakers at the college. When one of the attendees, a best selling author, Tom Cook is murder in her house she seems her retreat slipping away from her. She, her best friend, her Uncle and police Chief and her ex-boyfriend/handyman work together to solve the mystery. This was a great read. I enjoyed the characters and the character development. I am looking forward to reading the next one!