Chanticleer Book Reviews

Tag: female sleuth

STRIKING BLIND: A Sorrel Janes Mystery by Lonna Enox – Mystery, Thriller/Suspense, Female Detective

All Sorrel Janes wants to do is vanish. And for a while, she does just that.

As a former television crime reporter in Houston, Sorrel is surrounded by danger, but after her husband’s murder by a drug cartel, she flees her life of minor stardom, changes her name, and moves to the usually quiet town of Saddle Gap, New Mexico.

After opening a small shop selling consigned crafts and beginning a career as a nature photographer, Sorrel thinks she finally has what she wants most: a peaceful life. It doesn’t hurt that she’s caught the eye of handsome sheriff’s deputy Chris Reed, either. But when an old photograph from her days as a reporter shows up on a body found murdered “cartel-style,” she is suddenly thrust back into her old life. Soon the violence spreads. She receives a mysterious package, and though she fears for her fragile new existence, her curiosity won’t let her rest until she knows the truth about her connection to the victim. This adventure, however, may be more than she can handle.

Striking Blind has a depth of characters that please and intrigue. Even characters not featured in the main storyline have significant development. From Teri, Sorrel’s pregnant best friend and star employee to the murder victim in the prologue, characters have extensive backstories, creating round, believable personas that enhance the featured mystery. As Chris Reed points out, Sorrel, like her equine namesake, is stubborn and feisty, the trademark of a great protagonist and detective.

The extensive history given in the previous two novels won’t be overwhelming if this is the reader’s first experience with the series. With the descriptions of Sorrel’s everyday-life, her inability to cook and her cantankerous cats, the reader feels a real connection to Sorrel. Persistence and curiosity make her a believable former reporter and a victim unwilling to stand still while someone threatens her and her new life.

Lovers of romance and paranormal won’t be disappointed either. The flirty banter and interaction with hunky cop Chris Reed make for a pleasant distraction in the action, and with the promise of more romance to come, readers will want to continue this series. To add supernatural flavor, Sorrel is commanded by a dream entity to help the “weeping child,” and though she never fully finds the answer to this midnight task, it haunts her until the end.

From the gruesome death in a mysterious cave at the opening until the very end, this edge-of-your-seat mystery will keep readers following the Sorrel Janes Mysteries series just as the lead character follows every clue – to the end.

Striking Blind by Lonna Enox won 1st Place in the 2016 CLUE Awards.

September 9, 2018
A GIRL LIKE YOU: A Henrietta and Inspector Howard Novel by Michelle Cox – Woman Sleuth, Romantic Suspense, Mystery

Welcome to Chicago, 1935 in the midst of the Great Depression where the beautiful and vivacious Henrietta Von Harmon, the oldest of eight children, fights to save her family and solve a crime. Her father has recently committed suicide, and her mother is bitter and fretful about making ends meet. Henrietta does all she can to help, working at a local tavern and then in a dance hall as a “taxi girl,” dancing with any man who has the price of a ticket. She’s earning a modest salary when the job ends abruptly because her boss, the formidable and acerbic Mama Leone, is murdered.

Opportunity knocks when the detective working the case, Inspector Howard, suggests that Henrietta apply for work as an usherette at a burlesque theater, The Marlowe. He needs someone on the inside to report back to him on shady activities. The pay is twice that of a taxi girl, but the job is far more dangerous. Some of the dancers and an usherette have gone missing—and all the employees are afraid of Neptune, the theater’s owner.

Because one of the missing girls is a friend’s sister, and because Henrietta wants to prove her worth to the detective, she agrees to the job. Detective Howard, a handsome but inscrutable man, is secretive about his personal life. In his mid-thirties, Henrietta fears he couldn’t possibly be interested in her the way she is interested in him, unless, of course, she could dazzle him with her amateur detective skills.

It’s a challenge given Henrietta’s naivety. She sees things at The Marlowe that make her jaw drop. The dancers perform a seductive choreography in scanty costumes, and some of the usherettes are sexually intimate with one another, though none of these scenes are graphic in nature. She learns fast, however, and presents herself as more assured than she feels. There’s a marvelous camaraderie amongst the usherettes, sweet women who look out for one another and are also trying to put two and two together about the missing girls. They caution Henrietta about “the green door,” each believing there are goings-on behind it that point a link to the disappearances. Determined to crack the mystery and impress Inspector Howard, Henrietta is willing to put herself in the most dangerous of situations.

There is so much to admire about Cox’s romantic mystery novel and even more to enjoy. Readers will feel that they’re walking the streets of Chicago in the 1930s, the author conveys the neighborhoods, the people, the sights and sounds so convincingly. She’s equally adept with her portrayal of a large family living in cramped conditions, Henrietta, a substitute mother to her youngest siblings because her own mother is often emotionally absent. Even if a mystery didn’t enfold, this would be a thoroughly satisfying novel because of the historical details and the excellent characterization of the very sympathetic main character. The embedded mystery, however, takes this book to another level, a feat of successful merging of genres.

A Girl Like You will appeal to those who relish romances, mysteries, historical fiction, and especially to those for whom all three hit the jackpot! Great news for fans of Henrietta and Inspector Howard, two more titles in the series, A Ring of Truth and A Promise Given, already grace the booksellers’ shelves.

May 11, 2018
HOT SCHEMING MESS: MADISON CRUZ, Book 1 by Lucy Carol – Cozy Mystery, Female Sleuth, Humorous Mystery

Madison Cruz wants a breakthrough acting job, money in her purse, and fun with the sexy guys vying for her attention. Instead, she delivers singing telegrams for a living. Then her grandfather gives her mysterious evidence that must be kept sealed and hidden, he disappears, and now, spies are watching her every move. In other words, Madison’s life is a hot scheming mess!

Estranged from her FBI mother, Madison feels her family ties are confusing. Recent attempts by mother and daughter to bond often result in awkwardly hilarious scenes. Also, when her beloved grandfather disappears and Madison begins investigating, her creative problem-solving skills are downright laugh-out-loud funny. As luck would have it, she’s up against some organized bad boys. Fortunately, she’s got some willing and loyal friends she can count on as things begin to heat up. Among those friends is one particularly appealing hot interest nicknamed ExBoy with his dangerously handsome looks. He and Madison become entangled in the mystery and much, much more. But he’s not the only guy interested in knowing Madison better.

Spenser, Madison’s best girlfriend, repeatedly advises her to use more caution – a piece of advice that never lasts for long. The two gals have a relationship where they not only have good times together sharing jokes and stories, they also look out for each other in this wild, Los Angeles life.

This story, the first book in the Madison Cruz Mystery series, is an entertaining whirlwind that will keep readers breathless with plot twists and turns, and roaring with laughter. The funny situations the characters find themselves in are so imaginative, and their innovative solutions will delight and thrill cozy mystery fans. Best of all, at the core of this fun story is a very well plotted, intricate mystery to solve, about cleverly fleshed-out characters who will tug at your heart.

Author Lucy Carol is an entertainer and a storyteller. Her background is in the performing arts as an actress, voiceover artist, choreographer, and even a singing telegram performer. She married the love of her life, enjoys martinis, flowers, dancing, a good lipstick, cake, and of course fun and fast-paced mysteries. She lives in the Pacific Northwest, and has three books in this series, with the next one out soon.

Madison Cruz demonstrates that a sharp mind, a sense of humor, and a full purse can work wonders. Never be caught without them.

March 19, 2018
The SECRET LIFE of ANNA BLANC by Jennifer Kincheloe – Mystery Thriller, Female Sleuth, Victorian

An intractable and pampered debutante with plenty of pluck turns detective in Jennifer Kincheloe’s award-winning debut The Secret Life of Anna Blanc.

The year is 1907 in Los Angeles. Anna Blanc may be privileged and beautiful, but the one thing she lacks is freedom. Escaping from her possessive father is more difficult than she thinks since she keeps getting caught in humiliating circumstances, which only taints her social status. Regardless, Anna has a mind of her own and determines to get involved in one area that is entirely unladylike: police work.

Finding an ad in a local paper, Anna finagles her way into an assistant matron position at the LAPD. While on her first assignment at a local brothel, Anna overhears a conversation between of a police officer and a coroner as they examine the corpse of a prostitute. Although the men rule the young woman’s death a suicide, Anna is convinced that the cause of death is murder, especially when she learns that the harlot’s death is just one in a string of murders.

Anna commences undercover investigations, which she keeps under tight wraps. In the meantime, the LAPD sets up a sting operation to catch a rape fiend. Anna volunteers, working alongside the handsome but unpredictable Joe Singer. While romance seems to brew between the unlikely pair, Anna’s father makes plans for her to marry a wealthy banker, Edgar Wright. Amid the strange love triangle, Anna hopes to nab both the rape fiend and prostitute murderer. Whether or not she can convince the LAPD of her sleuthing capabilities before another murder occurs remains to be seen.

Kincheloe does a killer job keeping her audience hooked from one page to the next as her protagonist heroine whose insular life evolves as she faces perils of one kind or other. Kincheloe’s highly-developed cast includes only a handful of supporting characters while the bulk of her cast is made up of colorful foils and red herrings, coming in every shape, size, sex, and demeanor imaginable that befits an early 20th-century setting.

Tight sentence structures dripping with rich metaphorical descriptions and hyperbole laced with sarcasm, wit, and humor grace the pages of this award-winning debut novel. Scenes heavily peppered with romantic tension, sexual innuendoes, replete with unremitting twists and turns shift between characters resulting in a mighty fine read.

A top-rate novel “inspired by police matron Alice Stebbins Wells, who in 1910 became the first woman police officer in Los Angeles,” The Secret of Anna Blanc has all the elements of going beyond the bookshelf and onto the Silver Screen.

March 5, 2018
COMMUNITY AFFAIRS, A JERSEY SHORE MYSTERY by Michele Lynn Seigfried – Cozy Mystery, Female Sleuth
Bonnie Frattori, the heroine of Michele Lynn Seigfried’s latest Jersey Shore installment, has it all: a handsome neurosurgeon husband, two lovely little girls, and a big house right on the beach. Things couldn’t be peachier—until Lemon Face moves in next door.

Lyla (aka Lemon Face) and her husband, Senator Cason Spratt, are the neighbors from hell. Before they even settle in, Bonnie overhears Lyla accusing Cason of dropping his trousers in all the wrong places. It soon becomes apparent that Lyla is consumed with jealousy and sure Cason is after anything in a skirt.

Seeing that her own natural, innocent tendency to flirt bugs Lyla, and having gotten on the wrong side of her new neighbor’s temper without even trying, Bonnie goads Lemon Face on by humorously pretending she’s planning an affair with Cason. It isn’t long before Bonnie’s adoring spouse begins to suspect it’s true and stomps out in a rage. Poor Bonnie is left alone to deal with the increasingly insane, enraged Lemon Face who sends over poop bombs, paints WHORE on Bonnie’s garage door, and makes sure everyone in the community knows what a home-wrecker she is. See how quickly playing games can get you into trouble?

The book begins, though, on a far more sinister note with Bonnie sitting in a dank cell, with no memory of how she got there. She hears another woman’s screams through the walls. As Bonnie scours her memories of the past few weeks before she wound up in this terrifying situation, she recalls how she and her friend Chelsey, a private investigator, tried to find some connection between Lyla, Cason, and a girl named Polly Pitcher whose disappearance has the community in an uproar. Digging ever deeper, even neglecting her new job as a Municipal Clerk to hunt for dirt on Lyla and her philandering senator husband, Bonnie makes herself the target of thugs who will not stop at threats, but plan to murder her and the woman in the next cell. Flashbacks from Bonnie’s captivity to her attempts to ferret out the truth about her neighbors and restore peace on her little piece of the Jersey Shore make for moments both hilarious and harrowing.

Author Michele Seigfried has created Bonnie from a knowledgeable perspective, as she herself has worked as a Municipal Clerk in the State of New Jersey. Her up-close look at life behind the scenes in a local government office rings true. Chelsey, Bonnie, and others are recurring characters in this third of the Shore mystery series.

Seigfried knows how to cook up a multi-flavored stew with lots of surprise ingredients. Despite the imminent threat, her charmingly conceived heroine has more than her fair share of attitude and keeps comedy constantly on the boil.

A whodunit played for laughs as well as suspense, Community Affairs runs the gamut from gossip to greed to gore when neighbors clash on the posh Jersey Shore.

“Bonnie Frattori’s hijinx land her and her marriage in peril as she digs up dirt on her new neighbor. Cozy Mystery fans unite for Michele Seigfried’s 3rd book in The Jersey Shores Series: Community Affairs, a mystery with plenty of twists and turns staring a heroine with a penchant for designer shoes and trouble!” – Chanticleer Reviews
February 19, 2018
MURDER OFF the BEATEN PATH (A Search and Rescue Mystery) by M.L. Rowland – Female Sleuth, Cozy Mystery, Women’s Adventure, Search and Rescue

It’s an uncommon mystery novel that delivers a really good whodunit and yet makes the central character’s passion for her avocation, in this instance the world of mountain search and rescue teams, an equally good reason for reading a book from cover to cover.

M.L. Rowland knows her stuff in the field of S&R and authorship. You’ll never again see a TV news report of someone caught in a mountain disaster—trapped after a rock slide or pinned in their car after plunging off a high-altitude road—without remembering the riveting account of Gracie Kincaid as she and her experienced, professional rescue team make their way down a dangerous cliff at night to recover the body of a crash victim, only to discover that the victim is a dear friend of hers.

It’s a dark portrait.

You’ll know everything Gracie sees, feels, hears. Virtually no detail escapes her, whether it’s the seedy Christian camp where she works in the mountains of Southern California as a rope climbing instructor, on the trail of the suspicious, nasty, even venal brothers who run the camp, or her heartbreaking chores as an experienced senior member of a mountain search and rescue team. But it’s her experiences as a senior member of her team at work, that sets this book apart from other cozy mysteries. It’s possible to get these details from book-learning, but the writer’s personal experience in this field clearly shines through.

While Gracie excels in her public service passion, not the same can be said about the rest of her life. A former advertising exec, she’s wandered from place to place until she has settled into a small cabin in the mountains of Southern California. A rich Brit that she rescued on a previous mission wants to wrap her up with a bow. They have great passionate sex—only hinted at here—but his world is not her world. And then the fellow Searcher, who captures her mind, but, alas, not her heart.

The third man in her life, certainly not by choice, is an utter creep. Her scary encounter with him, richly detailed, is a convincing portrayal of a monster.

The mystery itself is rich and satisfying: the story of a woman, told in the third person as a narrative, who obsesses over the suspicious death of a friend and co-worker at the camp and her search to uncover the terrible secret her friend discovered before she died when her car plunged over a cliff on a tortuous narrow mountain road. What she discovers is a web of drug-dealing, parental abuse, and the dark secret of what is really going on with the children attending the camp. A strange and sorrowful juxtaposition the camp makes against the pristine surrounding landscape.

The portrait that emerges is of a smart, well-trained but hardly invulnerable woman whose occasional forays into her personal life seem less successful than her dedication to her work. Her life may be messy, but, isn’t everyone’s? Murder Off the Beaten Path manages the literary trick of being both a good mystery and a well-drawn portrait of a woman any reader might want nearby if found in dire need of being rescued in the mountains.

Recommended.

January 8, 2018
The BODY NEXT DOOR by Gay Yellen – Cozy Mystery, Female Sleuth, Romantic Thriller

Samantha’s lost practically everyone important in her life, her self-made career now lay in ruins, the romantic dream man she’d found had suddenly disappeared, and then, of course, there’s also The Body Next Door.

As Samantha Newman ponders the steps to put her life back on track, murder and intrigue come knocking close to home. Now she’ll need to follow her instincts and gather clues, like a child tracks a summer ice cream truck, and lick this mystery.

As the girl next door to the body, Samantha’s intelligence, generosity, and engaging humor combine to delight all amateur sleuths reading along. First, she wants to help calm and soothe others living in the condominium. That leads to some interesting clues and suspects begin to surface. But with the police investigation in full swing, will Samantha and her mystery man/love interest be able to coax their relationship into full bloom? That’s a lot to handle when your life is in tatters.

Readers will fall for Yellen’s wonderfully light, conversational writing and fall for Samantha as she tells the story. Of course, she doesn’t always come to the right conclusions, but she’s a very honest spirit who always reaches out to do the right thing. Wherever Samantha goes, she goes with all her heart. While you can certainly dive right in with this second book in the Samantha Newman series, the recommendation is to start at the beginning with The Body Business because you won’t want to miss any of Samantha’s exciting adventures, and romantic entanglements.

Yellen creates dynamic and interesting characters, a skill, no doubt she honed as she gained her start as an actress in theater and film. Later she moved behind the camera as Assistant to the Director of Production at the American Film Institute. Her writing background comes as a former magazine editor and national journalism award winner, now an award-winning novelist. The best news is that she’s currently working on the third book in this series.

A cozy mystery with exceptional heart. A satisfying read to curl up with this Fall.

November 27, 2017
ENGAGED in DANGER: A JAMIE QUINN MYSTERY by Barbara-Venkataraman – Cozy Mystery/Thriller & Suspense, Amateur Sleuth

Did I really lose my guy to a Hairy-Nosed Wombat … a Northern Hairy-Nosed wombat? That’s the question that plagues attorney Jamie Quinn while she lays awake and stares at the ceiling every night. But it’s not too long after her boyfriend, Kip, drops his Save the Wombat bomb and flies off to Australia, that she has more immediate issues to keep her awake—secret business machinations, a hint of Russian collusion, blackmail, and murder, for starters.

In Engaged in Danger – A Jamie Quinn Mystery by Barbara Venkataraman anything is possible. And even though Hollywood, Florida where Jamie lives and practices family law is a small, quiet town surprising things happen there.

Three days after Kip announced his temp job and is packing for a three-month stint in Australia, an elegant, older woman walks into Jamie’s office seeking a divorce. Someone is trying to kill her spouse, but she doesn’t care—she just wants a divorce, and money is no problem. Interest piqued, Jamie soon learns the husband in question is the most “famous/infamous” (translated, rich, powerful, and politically connected) attorney in town. He also proves to be a crafty, dangerous opponent with fingers in many pies. On the home front, Jamie’s neighbors who are caring for their orphaned niece, ask Jamie to look into the details surrounding the recent plane crash that killed the child’s parents.

Enlisting the assistance of her BFF, corporate attorney Grace Anderson, along with that of the charming PI, Duke Broussard, a good old Louisiana boy who has one foot on either side of the law, Jamie simultaneously takes on the high-profile divorce case and the suspicious airplane crash. What ensues is an intriguing mix of characters and events interwoven into a mystery that satisfies even the pickiest fan.

While written as a stand-alone, this book is like a gift of Babushka dolls. Allusions to backstories and Jamie’s history with Kip, with her dad in Nicaragua whom she’s never met, with Grace, and with Duke can at times be distracting, at other times, tantalizing.

Engaged in Danger is a fast-paced, well-written cozy with its complex, quirky characters, and unique plot brings unexpected twists and turns and has more than a bit of romance tucked between its pages. Venkataraman tempers the story with wry, self-deprecating humor that entertains and engages the mind, tickles the funny-bone, warms the heart, and leaves the reader ready for more.

October 23, 2017
The DEEP END by Julie Mulhern – Woman Sleuth, Thriller/Suspense, Cozy Mystery

It’s 1974 and Ellie Walford Russell is doing fine, except for the fact that her husband is missing and his girlfriend is dead.

Ellison Walford Russell is a married housewife and artist living in Kansas City during the early summer of 1974. Following her desire to paint has left her in the midst of an unpleasant marriage, held together for the sake of her young teen daughter, Gracie. Ellison was raised in the upper fringe of society, where expensive designer clothing and tennis games at the club are the usual topics of discussion, the place where her domineering mother Frances and her estranged husband Henry would like her to stay. But when something happens to one of the least-liked women in town, even Ellison’s passion for art won’t be able to protect her from the dark and swirling clouds of gossip and intrigue.

Julie Mulhern’s book is a well-handled whodunit cozy mystery that thoroughly entertains. The main character, Ellison, or “Ellie,” sees colors and patterns and as an artist describes things using a rich and vivid vocabulary. It’s 1974, a time period when many wives struggled to be independent of their husbands and some husbands, like Ellie’s, didn’t like the change. Mulhern does a great job in setting an accurate sense of the historic period, complete with references to drinking a specific diet soda, discussing Watergate at cocktail parties, and women who might wear purple Muumuu dresses. But the era doesn’t become the centerpiece. Rather, it’s more like important background discussion, never distracting from the plot at hand but reminding readers of the changes for women during that time period, changes mirrored in Ellie’s personal growth. Ellie’s mother, Frances, and young daughter, Gracie, serve as other fine and subtle examples of society’s shift across a single generation.

The men in Mulhern’s work also have an interesting time. Ellie’s husband, unable to accept her growing artistic skills and independence, turns his controlling impulses into ones of humiliation and infidelity. Is it any wonder that Ellie’s world begins to spin out of control when her husband’s mistress is murdered and he is nowhere to be found? It seems everyone has something to say and advice to give, as more and more things go wrong.

Two men, in particular, are at odds each certain they know what Ellie should be doing. One is an old friend, a lawyer, a handsome man her mother would like to see her date. His name is Hunter Tafft, a tall and distinguished fellow who is a member of the same club. The other is a police detective, Officer A. Smith, with deep brown eyes and deeper convictions, a man who makes her blush when she’d least like to. Using this trio of characters, Mulhern sets Ellie not only in the middle between two strong-minded men but between two levels of society and two levels of the law. The tension is fruitful.

Overall, The Deep End is a book that will engage the reader in every chapter as they seek to solve the many crimes, both present and implied. Ellie Russell is a colorful person in more ways than one, and the other characters are more than a background to her, adding depth to the story in unusual ways.

Funny, compassionate and endearing “The Deep End” is a well-crafted cozy, with just a touch of the exotic life, murder and mayhem, and the Bundt cake brigade to hook readers into devouring the rest of Julie Mulhern’s series, The Country Club Murders.

October 5, 2017
DEAD SILENT: An ELIZA GORDON MYSTERY by Amy Beth Arkawy – Cozy Mystery, Amateur /Woman Sleuth

Cleverly plotted and well-paced, Amy Beth Arkawy’s Dead Silent: An Eliza Gordon Mystery will satisfy the appetite of cozy mystery readers and gourmets alike, especially those who enjoy an occasional side of gossip with their novel.

The story picks back up in the small town of Goodship, New York, where Eliza Gordon, former soap star, serves up the daily specials at her restaurant dutifully named “Soup Opera.” A popular eatery, she and her sidekick, Midge Sumner, can’t help but overhear the daily drama spilled by the town locals as they argue and bicker about the latest rumors posted on The Goodship Grapevine, the town’s toxic new gossip site.

Eliza’s life outside work is on the up-and-up, as she and her boyfriend, Tom Santini, the town’s police chief, entertain the idea of moving in together. But things get put on hold when ill-received radio jockey Paul Hackett is found strangled to death with his headphone cord wrapped around his neck in the studio of WHSP. The only evidence police have to go on are the initials V.O.S. scrolled on the studio mirror in red lipstick.

Was it Victoria Salinger, Hackett’s third ex-wife, who scrolled her initials at the scene of the crime? Or were they written with the same lipstick worn by his latest fling, the young and alluring studio assistant, Ashley Hoyns? From there the list of possible suspects only grows, and the table is set for a classic whodunit mystery, as Eliza and Midge get back into their usual swing of finding clues.

Hackett’s murder isn’t the only mystery in the story, either. A secretive cult is going around releasing fliers that urge people to join “The Silent.” What’s more, Jonas, the mysterious playboy brother of Eliza’s late husband, is back in town and his motives seem to be beyond the scope of simply collecting the family estate – it doesn’t help that Eliza is beginning to grow feelings for her newly arrived brother-in-law.

Dead Silent makes for a great cozy read, perfect for the beach or any occasion when you have a couple of hours of free time. The plotline and ongoing suspense will keep fans of the genre quickly turning the pages and leave them satisfyingly entertained.

This is the second book in the Eliza Gordon Mystery series, between Killing Time and Murder, She Tweets. Arkawy is also the author of several plays, including Psychic Chicken Soup (McLaren Comedy Award nominee) and Listening to Insomnia: Rage Amongst Yourselves. Her work had been produced in New York City and featured in several anthologies.

Arkawy’s skills as a playwright sit center stage as she effortlessly seams together fast, witty dialogue between the colorful characters who make up the town of Goodship. The culinary delights described throughout the novel are brilliantly provided in a recipe file at the end of the book. A smart move that is sure to leave readers’ mouths watering and clamoring for next book in the Eliza Gordon Mystery series.

“If you’re hungry for a fast, fun and deadly cozy mystery, Amy Beth Arkawy’s Dead Silent, the second book in the Eliza Gordon Mystery series is what’s on the menu.” – Chanticleer Reviews

September 6, 2017