Chanticleer Book Reviews

Tag: humorous mystery

DARED to RETURN: A Kate Anderson Mystery (Book 2) by J.J. Clarke – Cozy Mystery, Female Sleuth, Humorous Mystery

Kate Anderson has an exciting new life in Tampa Bay, Florida. An aspiring writer with a new book recently released, she’s left behind her old life as a court investigator in Kingseat, Missouri. But when she receives a frantic call from her ninety-two-year-old grandfather, Theodore, she hops on a plane back home.

Just five weeks earlier, Kate’s step-grandmother, Helen, died. Not long after Helen’s death, Kate’s grandfather was thrown out of his house and sent to the Squaw Valley Nursing Home, a place where old people go to die. Unbeknownst to Kate, most of Helen’s two-million-dollar estate has been left in trust – and not to her husband of twenty-five years. The trustee is a corrupt secret society known as HOGG, a group of important town officials who con elderly citizens out of their money, distribute it to charities and take a considerable percentage for themselves.

The elderly in town believe they are contributing to the betterment of the community. Kate refuses to sit idly by and teams up with her spunky publicist, Susie Jones, and former US Marshal and newly appointed Kingseat Police Chief, Reese Matthews, to exact revenge and bring down this ring of corruption. With a family feud, a suspicious trust, and a fiery sleuth, what could possibly go wrong?

Raised by her biological grandfather and step-grandmother, Kate hasn’t had what anyone would call an ordinary life. With a degree in law enforcement, she worked as a bond investigator until she became the prime suspect in a murder investigation. Using her law knowledge, she gave the U.S. Marshals a merry chase as she worked to clear her name.

Now, with two deaths tied to her, Kate is a tough nut to crack, and she isn’t about to let the evil forces at work in Kingseat get away with stealing from her grandfather. Her tenacity even causes her to punch a lawyer in court (and get away with it), and her endless costume closet presents unlimited chances to catch her prey red-handed initially in some humorous ─ and oddly satisfying ─ ways. She and Susie make a modern-day, irreverent superhero duo, righting the wrongs done by the evil, dominating force of HOGG.

Clarke delivers the second book in the Kate Anderson Mystery series with a lead character that will capture the imaginations of many. And while preying upon our seniors is a despicable act, what Kate does to right the wrongs will bring satisfaction to readers. This “beautiful little town with an underbelly of evil” hits close to home for some, and Kate’s fight for her grandfather is a fight for us all.

January 20, 2020
BLAZING BULLETS in DEADWOOD, Man Hunter #3 by Jacquie Rogers – Classic Western, Humorous, Western Fiction

Honey Beaulieu is going to get her man – no matter how many tries it takes. Determined to capture the elusive Boyce McNitt, Honey is off to Deadwood Gulch despite the warnings that the dangerous road is plagued by thieves and natives. But before she can pursue the $500 bounty, she needs to take care of issues at home, including finding a shop for a pregnant seamstress, sixteen-year-old Emma, a home for eight-year-old Myles Cavanaugh, his two younger sisters, and their pregnant mother. Between her do-gooding, denying her blossoming feelings for Deputy US Marshal Sam Lancaster, and a run-in with a herd of escaped pigs determined to destroy Fry Pan Gulch, Honey barely has time to get out of town before she gets trapped by winter. Once on the road, she comes face-to-face with Sean Chaney, the Badger Claw Kid, a bounty worth $400, and is intent on capturing him, as well. With a little otherworldly, albeit not entirely helpful, advice from her ghost guide Roscoe, Honey will have to take down two dangerous fugitives. But, when she runs into a fireball-throwing ghost bent on revenge, her real adventure begins.

This third installment of the Honey Beaulieu – Man Hunter series reunites the reader with the unique cast from Honey’s previous adventures as well as introducing some new characters sure to return. This quirky cast shares in the ultimate theme of the novel, good old-fashioned “help your fellow man.” Only with the help of Agnes, Honey’s mother, the madam of the Tasty Chicken Emporium; her thoroughbred racing mule, Pickles; and Roscoe, the mind-reading ghost, is Honey able to rid the Wyoming Territory of bad guys. This theme permeates every aspect of the plot. Most of the citizens of Fry Pan Gulch perform some act of kindness for another character. From gifting poor children with small treats to hiring criminals to keep them out of trouble, the townspeople’s pay-it-forward attitude embodies the spirit of what most readers associate with a simpler, kinder time in American history. These tiny acts of humanity remind the reader that caring for people, not things, can make the most significant difference in someone’s life.

Warm and kind-hearted while remaining fiercely independent and tough, Honey is a woman ahead of her time. Much like her bonnet-wearing mule, Sassy, she refuses to be led blindly along but forges a path of her own, not allowing herself to worry about finding a husband and assume her womanly role as a homemaker but choosing instead to follow her “papa’s roving blood.” She has seen too much of what happens to weak women in her mother’s brothel, and she knows she could never allow herself the weakness she sees in most women. This poker-playing bounty hunter purses a life of freedom unheard of for 1879 and trades in the homestead for the dusty trail and freedom. She is more than sassy enough to hold the reader’s interest, surprising everyone except herself with what she can accomplish. But Honey isn’t the only strong woman in the novel. Agnes, Honey’s mother, owns and operates one of the most successful whorehouses in the Territory and manages to do it as “ethically” as possible. She cares about her employees and providing a safe environment where they choose to remain rather than to be enslaved by impossible contracts and cruel pimps. Even Emma and Myles’s mother show strong women. Emma is only a child herself, but she still manages to make a life for her and her unborn child by starting a sewing business. Myles’s mother, Ivy Mae, has been abandoned by her husband (stepfather to her children) and is also expecting a child. She is willing to sacrifice herself to feed her children. In this world where husbands are killed, and boyfriends shirk responsibilities, the women manage to survive – and sometimes flourish – in true female fashion!

Honey Beaulieu, “too scrawny to be a whore [and] . . . too tainted to be respectable,” will take the reader on a wild romp. With a fun dialect and a crazy cast, you’ll find yourself snorting with laughter. Chances are, readers new to the rip-roaring, laugh out loud, side-splitting Rogers universe will want to check out the first and second books in the series: Hot Work in Fry Pan Gulch, Honey Beaulieu, Man Hunter #1 and Sidetracked in Silver City, Honey Beaulieu, Man Hunter #2!

January 13, 2020
The MAGIC CAPE CAPER by Steve Dimeo – Noir Private Eye, Detective Mystery, Mystery Romance

A lighthearted, modern reimagining of the classic dime detective novel, The Magic Cape Caper is an assemblage of fun pop culture references in a contemporary setting.

A former police detective, and a newly licensed private eye, Nick Christmas is hired by Mrs. James, the wife of scientist and inventor of an invisibility device, Dr. Bert James. She refuses to believe the conclusions of the police who believe Dr. Bert is dead after an apparent kidnapping. With no other cases and a dwindling case-flow, Nick and his young “Girl Friday” receptionist Miranda “Randi” Degrotti accept the challenge to get to the bottom of what is going on.

A former English teacher, Author Steve Dimeo keeps a very lighthearted and upbeat tone throughout the novel which makes for a rather easy read. But, he also makes use of a sophisticated vocabulary that will have most of us crack open a few dictionaries.

The natural chemistry between Nick and Randi is one of the more entertaining qualities of The Magic Cape Caper. It will likely be a defining presence in future installments of the series. As individual characters, they struggle to branch away from being classic characterizations. Nick is the wise-cracking detective and middle-aged male who can’t help but fixate on the female body; while his beguiling Girl Friday, Randi, “the blonde bombshell” surprises Nick with her ability to be a tough and intelligent woman.

For those seeking a fun and lighthearted private-eye stories (Moonlighting and Castle fans take notice), The Magic Cape Caper delivers.

Pop-culture references from past generations permeate the work. When Nick makes these, it is a positive and endearing character trait. However, perhaps the author should reconsider having the younger characters render the same references when they are clearly out of context unless they are immersed in it as a sub-culture, which could happen if the backstory was woven in. In the thinly veiled crime/romantic comedy PI series, Castle, this was done with aplomb with the episode on Steampunk Culture (Punked).

In almost every chapter, the literary form of the male gaze is prevalent. Frequently, Nick has to take note of what Randi is wearing and how attractive it makes her look. It is even canon within the novel that Nick hired her because of her looks and how he could use them to his advantage in investigations, while her education and other skills were a surprising bonus.

The Magic Cape Caper has a lot of heart, and the series has the potential to develop characters that become a favorite for devotees of smart but goofy and fun “detective” series that have a touch of romance in the air.

November 5, 2019
The 2019 M & M Book Awards for Mystery and Mayhem Novels – The Long List
The M & M Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the Cozy and Not-So-Cozy Mystery & Mayhem fiction genre. The M & M Book Awards is a division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (The CIBAs).

Chanticleer Book Reviews is looking for the best books featuring “mystery and mayhem”, amateur sleuthing, light suspense, travel mystery, classic mystery, British cozy, hobby sleuths, senior sleuths, or historical mystery, perhaps with a touch of romance or humor, we will put them to the test and choose the best among them. (For suspense, thriller, detective, crime fiction see our Clue Awards)

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from SLUSH pile to the 2019 M&M Book Awards LONG LIST. These entries are now in competition for 2019 M&M Shortlist. The Short Listers will compete for the Semi-Finalists positions. Semi-Finalists will be announced and recognized at the CAC20 banquet and ceremony. The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 16 CIBA divisions Semi-Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.

These titles are in the running for the SHORT LIST of the 2019 M&M Book Awards novel competition for Mystery & Mayhem Novels!

Good luck to all as your works move on the next rounds of judging.
- Lesley A. Diehl – Scream Muddy Murder
- Susan Z. Ritz – A Dream to Die For
- B. K. Stubblefield – Beneath The Surface
- Michelle Cox – A Veil Removed
- Chief John J. Mandeville – Sherlockito vs. The Trio From Hell
- Chief John J. Mandeville – Sherlockito and the LIE Mystery
- Alan Chaput – Savannah Secrets
- Lucy Carol – Hit That, Madison Cruz – Mystery 4
- Mary Hatakka/Mary Ragwag – Tips for Teachers
- B. L. Smith – Bert Mintenko and the Serious Business
- Mollie Hunt – Cat Cafe
- MJ O’Neill – The Corpse Wore Stilettos
- JL Oakley – Hilo Bay Mystery Collection
- Kate Vale – Fateful Days
- Cindy Sample – Dying for a Diamond
- Henry G. Brinton – City of Peace
- Kaylin McFarren – High Flying
- Virginia V. Kidd – Artifacts of Murder
- Janet K. Shawgo – Legacy of Lies
- Kari Bovee – Peccadillo at the Palace
- Kari Bovee – Girl with a Gun – An Annie Oakley Mystery
- M. J. Simms-Maddox – Mystery in Harare
- Carolyn Haley – Killer Heart
- Wally Duff – bada-BOOM!
- Sallie Barr Palmer – A Dinner to Die For
- Arlene McFarlane – Murder, Curlers & Cruises
- Kirk Millson – Serpents of Old
- Mary Seifert – Titanic Cocktail
- JG Murphy – Flipping Rich Bastard
- M. K. Graff – Death at the Dakota: A Trudy Genova Manhattan Mystery
- Sofie Couch – Flippin’ the Bird
- Lo Monaco – Poison butterfly
- Toni Kief – Mildred In Disguise With Diamonds
- Vee Kumari – DHARMA, A Rekha Rao Mystery
- Lori Roberts Herbst – An Instant Out of Time
- Alexandrea Weis with Lucas Astor – BLACKWELL
- Stephen Kaminski – An Au Pair to Remember
- Mollie Hunt – Cat Call
- Mary Ann Cherry – Death at Crooked Creek
- D. J. Adamson – Let Her Go
- Jean Rover – Ready or Not
- Robert Chudnow – Brews and Stilettos
- Linda Hughes – Secrets of the Island
- Jane Willan – The Hour of Death
- Holly Spofford – A Letter for Hoot
- Dr. Sandra Tanner – Sacks of Murder
- Gerard Shirar – When the Rules Don’t Apply
- Susan Lynn Solomon – Writing is Murder
Which of these works will move forward in the judging rounds for the 2019 M&M Book Awards for Mystery & Mayhem?

Which author will take home the 2019 M&M Grand Prize Ribbon?

Which one will have the chance at the $1,000 Chanticleer Overall Grand Prize?

All Semi-Finalists will receive high visibility along with special badges to wear during the Chanticleer Authors Conference and Awards Gala.

The 16 divisions of the 2019 CIBAs’ Grand Prize Winners and the Five First Place Category Position award winners along with recognizing the Semi-Finalists will be announced at the April 18th, 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards Annual Awards Gala, which takes place at the Chanticleer Authors Conference that will be held in Bellingham, Wash.

We are now accepting submissions into the 2020 M&M Awards Book Awards. The deadline for submissions is April 30th, 2020. The winners will be announced in April 2021.

Please click here for more information.

Don’t Delay! Enter Today!

As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, concerns, or suggestions at Info@ChantiReviews.com.
July 18, 2019
MYSTERY & MAYHEM Book Awards for Cozy and Not-So-Cozy Mysteries – 2018 Slush Pile Survivors
The M&M Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Cozy, Classic, & Not-So-Cozy Mystery Novels. The M&M Book Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards (CIBA) and Novel Competitions.

Chanticleer Book Reviews is looking for the best books featuring “mystery and mayhem”, amateur sleuthing, light suspense, travel mystery, classic mystery, British cozy, hobby sleuths, senior sleuths, or historical mystery, perhaps with a touch of romance or humor, we will put them to the test and choose the best among them. (For suspense, thriller, detective, crime fiction see our Clue Book Awards).

The 411

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from SLUSH pile to the 2018 M&M Book Awards LONG LIST (aka the Slush Pile Survivors). We incorporate the Long List when the judges request an additional round of judging to accommodate the number and/or quality of entries received. These entries are now in competition for the 2018 M&M SHORT LIST. Short Listers will compete for the Semi-Finalists positions. Semi-Finalists will compete for the coveted First Place Category Winners of the 2018 M&M Book Awards in the final rounds of judging. The First Place Category winners will automatically be entered into the M&M GRAND PRIZE AWARD competition. The 16 CBR Grand Prize Genre Winners will compete for the CBR Overall Grand Prize for Best Book and its $1,000 purse. First Place Category and Grand Prize Awards will be announced and recognized at the Chanticleer Awards Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 27th, 2019, Bellingham, Washington.

These titles are in the running for the SHORT LIST of the 2018 M&M Book Awards novel competition for Cozy, Classic, and Not-So-Cozy Mystery Novels!
- Michelle Cox – A Promise Given
- Kate Vale – Only You
- Mary Adler – Shadowed by Death: An Oliver Wright WW2 Mystery Novel
- B.L. Smith – Bert Mintenko and the Minor Misdemeanors
- Charlotte Stuart – Why Me?
- Nick Korolev – Flashback
- Becky Clark – Fiction Can Be Murder
- Alan Chaput – Savannah Sleuth
- Elizabeth Crowens – Dear Mr. Hitchcock
- Christine Evelyn Volker – Venetian Blood: Murder in a Sensuous City
- C. C. Harrison – Death by G-String, a Coyote Canyon Ladies Ukulele Club Mystery
- Susan Lynn Solomon – Dead Again
- Mark W Stoub – The Fifth Trumpet: Fire in the Blood
- Traci Andrighetti – Campari Crimson
- Dawn Meredith – Letters From the Dead
- Chief John J. Mandeville – Old Dark and Dangerous
- Bonnie C. Monte – The Sleeping Lady
- C.A. Larmer – Do Not Go Gentle
- Anna Castle – Moriarty Brings Down the House
- C.A. Larmer – Evil Under The Stars: The Agatha Christie Book Club 3
- James Musgrave – Chinawoman’s Chance
- James Scott Byrnside – Prisoners of the Past
- Nancy J. Cohen – Hair Brained
- Stone Winkler – Blood on a Blue Moon: A Sheaffer Blue Mystery
- Roger Newman – What Becomes
- Julie Chase – Cat Got Your Secrets
- Lori Robbins – Lesson Plan for Murder
- Lo Monaco – Lethal Relations
- Linda Hughes – Secrets of the Asylum
- Donna Huston Murray – For Better or Worse
- Anna Castle – Moriarty Takes His Medicine
- Carl and Jane Bock – Death Rattle
- Deborah Rich – Under the Radar
- Kelly Oliver – FOX: A Jessica James Mystery
- Susan Lynn Solomon – Dead Again
All Short Listers and SemiFinalists will receive high visibility along with special badges to wear during the Chanticleer Authors Conference and Awards Gala.

Grand Prize Ribbons!

Good Luck to each of you as your works compete for the

M&M Awards Short List.

The M&M Grand Prize Winner and the First Place Category Position award winners will be announced at the April 27th, 2019 Chanticleer Book Awards Annual Awards Gala, which takes place at the Chanticleer Authors Conference that will be held in Bellingham, Wash.

Wendy Delaney awarded Mystery & Mayhem Grand Prize for THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT MARTY

We are now accepting submissions into the 2019 M&M Awards writing competition. The deadline for submissions is April 30th, 2019. Please click here for more information.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, concerns, or suggestions at Info@ChantiReviews.com.
June 18, 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
MYSTERY & MAYHEM 2017 Book Awards SHORT LISTERS
The Mystery & Mayhem Writing Competition recognizes emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Cozy Mysteries, Not-so-Cozy, and Classic Mysteries. The M&M Awards is a division of Chanticleer International Novel Writing Competitions.

Congratulations to these authors for their works moving up from the 2017 M&M slush pile survivors to the Short List. The novels will now compete for the First Place Category positions!

Each of the titles below have earned the M&M AWARDS SHORT LIST bragging rights!

More than $30,000.00 dollars worth of cash and prizes will be awarded to Chanticleer Book Reviews 2017 writing competition winners!

The M&M Book Awards FIRST IN CATEGORY sub-genres are: Amateur Sleuth, Romance, Animals, Cooking/Knitting/Hobbies, Blended Genre, Medical/Lab, Travel, Humorous, Historical, Classic British, and Y/A.

The following titles will compete for the FIRST IN CATEGORY Positions and Book Awards Packages.

NOTE: This is the Official List of the M&M 2017 SHORT LIST.

The Finalists Authors and Titles of Works that have made it to the highly competitive Short-List (aka The Semi-Finalists) of the M&M 2017 Book Awards are:

This is the Official 2017 Short List for the Mystery & Mayhem Book Awards – Dec. 7, 2017.
- Carl and Jane Bock – Coronado’s Trail: An Arizona Borderlands Mystery
- David Selcer – The Dream Catcher Murders
- Sherrie Todd-Beshore – The Count Of Baldpate
- Cherie O’Boyle – Missing Mom
- Anna Castle – Moriarty Meets His Match
- Jennifer Mueller – Never Turn Your Back on a Wolf
- Cindy Sample – Dying for a Donut
- Nancy G. West – River City Dead
- Kim Hunt Harris – Unsightly Bulges, A Trailer Park Princess Cozy Mystery
- Valerie Tate – Frog Legs
- Betty Jean Craige – Fairfield’s Auction
- Libi Astaire – The Moon Taker
- Lucinda Brant – Deadly Peril: A Georgian Historical Mystery
- J.L. Newton – Oink. A Food for Thought Mystery
- Vee Kumari – DHARMA
- D. J. Adamson – Suppose
- M. K. Graff – The Golden Hour: A Nora Tierney English Mystery
- Kathleen Kaska – Run Dog Run
- Susan Breen – Maggie Dove’s Detective Agency
- Elaine Orr – Demise of a Devious Neighbor
- Michelle Cox – A Ring of Truth
- Amy Boyles – Scared Witchless
- Jeanette Hubbard – Chasing Nathan
- Susan Boles – Cherry Cake and a Cadaver
- Fred Shackelford – The Ticket
- Dennis M. Clausen – The Sins of Rachel Sims
- M. Louisa Locke – Deadly Proof: A Victorian San Francisco Mystery
- Mollie Hunt – Cat’s Paw
- Carol June Stover – Kenmore Square
- Lonna Enox – Striking Blind
- Suzette Hollingsworth – Sherlock Holmes and the Chocolate Menace
- Traci Andrighetti – Amaretto Amber
- Susan Boles – Death Of A Wolfman
- Diane Weiner – Murder is Collegiate
- Amy S. Peele – CUT
- Catherine Bruns – Baked to Death
- Richard T. Ryan – The Vatican Cameos: A Sherlock Holmes Adventure
The M&M Semi-Finalists will compete for the M&M First-In-Category Positions, which consists of Seven Judging Rounds. First Place Category Award winners will automatically be entered into the M&M GRAND PRIZE AWARD competition. The CBR Grand Prize Genre Winners will compete for the CBR Overall Grand Prize for Best Book and its $1,000 purse.

All Short Listers will receive high visibility along with special badges to wear during the Chanticleer Authors Conference and Awards Gala.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, concerns, or suggestions at Info@ChantiReviews.com.

Congratulations to the Short Listers in this fiercely competitive contest!

Good Luck to each of you as your works compete for the M&M Awards First Class Category Positions.

The M&M Grand Prize Winner and the Five First Place Category Position award winners along with all Short Listers in attendance will be announced at the April 21st, 2018 Chanticleer Book Awards Annual Awards Gala, which takes place at the Chanticleer Authors Conference that will be held in Bellingham, Wash.

We are now accepting submissions into the 2018 M&M Awards writing competition. The deadline for submissions is March 31st, 2018. Please click here for more information.
October 20, 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
MYSTERY & MAYHEM Book Awards for Cozy and Not-So-Cozy Mysteries 2017

The M&M Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding Cozy and Not-So-Cozy Mysteries. The M&M Book Awards is a division of the Chanticleer Book Reviews International Book Awards.

The following titles and their authors have made it past the initial “Slush-Pile Rounds” and will compete in the next rounds to see which titles will be Short Listed for the 2017 M&M Book Awards.

Good Luck to All!

D. J. Adamson – Suppose

M. K. Graff – The Golden Hour: A Nora Tierney English Mystery

Kathleen Kaska – Run Dog Run

Susan Breen – Maggie Dove’s Detective Agency

Michelle Cox – A Ring of Truth

Amy Boyles – Scared Witchless

Debra Sue Brice – Danni Girl Mysteries: The Complete Series

Jeanette Hubbard – Chasing Nathan

Kara Lumbley – As the Ribbons Fall

Susan Boles – Cherry Cake and a Cadaver

Fred Shackelford – The Ticket

Dennis M. Clausen – The Sins of Rachel Sims

M. Louisa Locke – Deadly Proof: A Victorian San Francisco Mystery

J. L. Skirvin – Jaguar Ravenz King

Elizabeth Crowens – Memoirs of an American Butterfly (Or how I learned to stop worrying and love Alfred Hitchcock)

Mollie Hunt – Cat’s Paw

Catherine Bruns – Baked to Death

Libi Astaire – The Moon Taker

Cindy Sample – Dying for a Donut

Valerie Tate – Scapegoat

Valerie Tate – Frog Legs

Susan Boles – Death of a Wolfman

Betty Jean Craige – Fairfield’s Auction

Nancy G. West – River City Dead

Kim Hunt Harris – Unsightly Bulges, A Trailer Park Princess Cozy Mystery

Jennifer Mueller – Never Turn Your Back on a Wolf

Anna Castle – Moriarty Meets His Match

Cherie O’Boyle – Missing Mom

Sherrie Todd-Beshore – The Count Of Baldpate

David Selcer – The Dream Catcher Murders

Carol June Stover – Kenmore Square

Vee Kumari – DHARMA

Cody Schlegel – Junction

Lonna Enox – Striking Blind

Carl and Jane Bock – Coronado’s Trail:An Arizona Borderlands Mystery

Jeanne Burrows-Johnson – Prospect for Murder: A Natalie Seachrist Mystery

Suzette Hollingsworth – Sherlock Holmes and the Chocolate Menace

Traci Andrighetti – Amaretto Amber

Gary D Lewellyn – The Bluff

Susan Boles – Death Of A Wolfman

RD Vincent – Donbridge: The Ring, The Legend and The Midwife

Diane Weiner – Murder is Collegiate

Diane Weiner – A Deadly Course

Lucinda Brant – Deadly Peril: A Georgian Historical Mystery

Beth Wareham and Jason Davis – Hair Club Burning

Amy S. Peele – CUT

Richard T. Ryan – The Vatican Cameos: A Sherlock Holmes Adventure

Lynn Bohart – Novel (No title given)

Loretta Jackson and Vickie Britton – Murder and the Good Old Boys’ Club

Betty Jean Craige – Dam Witherston

J.L. Newton – Oink. A Food for Thought Mystery

Elaine L. Orr – Demise of a Devious Neighbor

J.G. Harlond – Local Resistance

These titles will compete to be SHORT LISTED in the next rounds.

We are accepting entries into the 2018 M&M Book Awards for Cozy and Not-So-Cozy Mysteries.

To compete in the 2018 M&M Book Awards or for more information, please click here.

Chanticleer Book Reviews & Media, L.L.C. retains the right to not declare “default winners.” Winning works are decided upon merit only. Please visit our Contest Details page for more information about our writing contest guidelines.

CBR’s rigorous writing competition standards are why literary agencies seek out our winning manuscripts and self-published novels. Our high standards are also why our reviews are trusted among booksellers and book distributors.

Please do not hesitate to contact Info@ChantiReviews.com about any questions, concerns, or suggestions about CBR writing competitions. Your input and suggestions are important to us.

Thank you for your interest in Chanticleer Book Reviews International Writing Competitions and Book Awards.

August 2, 2017
The MYSTERY & MAYHEM Awards – First Place Category Winners 2016
The Mystery & Mayhem Awards writing competition recognizes emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Cozy Mysteries and Not-So-Cozy Mysteries. The Mystery & Mayhem Awards is a division of the Chanticleer Awards International Writing Competitions.

We are honored to announce the 2016 M&M Awards Official First Place Category Winners.
- Award Winning M&M Authors Alice Boatwright, Michelle Cox, Lucy Carol, Kate Vale, and Gay Yellen
  
  Humorous: Hot Scheming Mess by Lucy Carol
- Romantic Suspense: Secrets Revealed by Kate Vale
- Amateur Sleuth: Engaged in Danger: A Jamie Quinn Mystery by Barbara Venkataraman
- Blended Genre: A Girl Like You: A Henrietta and Inspector Howard Novel (The Henrietta and Inspector Howard series) by Michelle Cox
- Historical Mystery: The Secret Life of Anna Blanc by Jennifer Kincheloe
- Women Sleuths: The Body Next Door by Gay Yellen
- Classic/British Cozy: Under an English Heaven by Alice K. Boatwright
The Mystery & Mayhem Short-Listers competed for these First Place Category positions. They authors and their works were recognized at the Chanticleer Authors Conference and Awards Gala, Bellingham, Wash. that was held on April 1, 2017.

CONGRATULATIONS to Alice K. Boatwright, author of the MYSTERY & MAYHEM Grand Prize winner — Under an English Heaven!

We are now accepting entries into the 2017 M&M Awards. The deadline is April 30, 2017. Click here for more information or to enter.

Congratulations to those who made the M&M AWARDS 2016 FINALISTS and SHORTLISTERS.

More than $30,000 worth of cash and prizes will be awarded to the 2017 Chanticleer Novel Writing Competition winners! Fifteen different genres to enter your novels and compete on an international level.
April 4, 2017