kellshaw

Acts of Violets by Kate Collins

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


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I had but two short chapters of my work book to read, so I brought it home and finished it this evening. It was Acts of Violets by Kate Collins, and it’s the 5th in the “Flower Shop” series of cozy mysteries, starring florist Abby Knight.

While attending the Pickle Fest parade, Abby gets into a confrontation with Snuggles the clown. When her boyfriend, Marco, has words with him, and Snuggles later turns up dead, Marco becomes the prime suspect in the clown’s death. Marco asks Abby to do some sleuthing on the sly, reasoning that people tend to open up to her. Abby isn’t sure she’s the woman for the job, but she’ll do anything to clear Marco’s name, including having lunch with odious Greg Morgan, interviewing other clowns, and stooping to a little breaking and entering. Abby’s investigation, however, has drawn the attention of the killer, and now she’s the one who’s in danger.

I typically find myself rolling my eyes at how damned dumb Abby can be in this series, but in this book, Marco was the dumb one. Honestly, what was he thinking?! Eh. Abby was a bit more circumspect this time around, not that it spared her winding up in mortal danger at the end of the book. Mystery authors, please rethink this overdone trope. I mean, how many times can your main character narrowly escape death? I know it’s meant to be exciting, but it actually becomes tedious after about the third book. All that aside, characterizations were good, plot was well-paced and proceeded in an orderly fashion. I could have done without Abby’s airhead of a mother and Marco’s overbearing one.

Favorite lines:
♦ “Snuggles the Clown threatened you?”
♦ Ordinarily, I don’t eat ice cream before lunch, but after being shoved and threatened and stained with mustard, I felt a strong need to soak my irritated nerves in butterfat.
♦ “Never trust a clown. They’ll toss you into a burning building without giving it a second thought.”
♦ At the front door we were swarmed by small, whimpering bodies with oozing orifices and sticky fingers, making my ovaries shrink up in fear.
♦ I loved it when men thought they’d come up with an original idea.
♦ A remorseful, bad-tempered, raving stilt walker. Was there any worse kind?
♦ “I think your mother would understand that finding a killer to save your backside is a little more important than her lasagna.” // “You don’t know my mother.”
♦ “Do me a favor. Hold the pillow over my face and end my misery.”
♦ You did it, you clever, multitalented cat woman!
♦ “You hung in there, even when there was nothing left to hang on to.”

Good enough to earn four stars.

A Little Taste of Murder by Carolyn L. Dean

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


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Finished an ebook last night. It was A Little Taste of Murder by Carolyn L Dean, and it’s the first in the “Brightwater Bay” cozy series. The main character is widowed Claire.

Claire wants to visit the San Juan islands over the holidays before she needs to return home to AZ and get a job. There’s nothing for her back home except a too-empty apartment. On her way to catch the ferry, however, her car breaks down and leaves her stranded in Brightwater Bay with her dog, Roscoe. Fortunately, the sheriff gives her a ride into town and introduces Claire to Daisy, who has some cottages to rent. What was meant to be an overnight stay until her car is fixed becomes a longer stay when a man is murdered on the doorstep of Claire’s cottage. Now the detective in charge is telling her to stay in town, and Claire’s funds are running low. New friends step up to help. Molly introduces Claire to her aunt, who just so happens to need some help in the local bakery. Soon Claire is feeling more at home here than she ever did in AZ, and handsome Scott is one more reason she may wish to stick around longer.

I liked the story. Claire was a resilient character. All characters were portrayed well, even the less than savory ones. I appreciated that Claire wasn’t doing any overt investigating. When she recalled something or overheard information, she dutifully passed it along.

Favorite lines:
♦ “Best thing about being an adult is being able to eat dessert first.”
♦ “I took a no-fruitcake vow years ago.”

Charming and seasonal...four stars.