Reviewer: Connie Payne
Title: Candy Cane Murder (Anthology)
Author: Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine, and Leslie Meier
Publisher: Kensington
ISBN: 0758221983 (Hardcover)
Release Date: October 2007
Genre/Sub-genre: Cozy/Chick-Lit Mystery
Year/Setting: Present Day
Overall rating: 4.5
Sexual Content Rating: None
Language (Profanity) Content Rating: Negligible
Violent Content Rating: Minimal
Authors Websites: See Below
Candy Cane Murder by Joanne Fluke (set in MN) www.murdershebaked.com
It’s either a gift or bad luck that Hannah Swenson finds dead bodies. This time a trail of candy canes leads her straight to Santa Wayne lying dead behind a pile of snow. Sure he’s a "Grinch" and perhaps a "Scrooge", too, but who would want him dead?
Hannah, always rational and ever practical, methodically begins to investigate. With the help of her mother and sisters and sometime boyfriend, Norman, she begins to add and eliminate suspects and motives. With each new lead from one end of town to the other, more questions (and suspects) seem to pile up. Will she come up with the right answer to the right question? Before the murderer knows she’s on to them…
Ms. Fluke never fails to give the reader what they want. Twists and turns, likable characters, interesting plots, plenty of suspense, and mouth-watering recipes. You can't ask for much more than that.
The Dangers of Candy Canes by Laura Levine (set in CA) No Website Found
Jaine Austen (no relation) has had some success in solving a few crimes, so it’s flattering, not too surprising, when Mr. Fiedler, a loyal client of hers (she’s a freelance writer), makes a plea for her help. Claims are being made that he left loose shingles on a roof causing the homeowner to fall while decorating his house to resemble Candyland for Christmas. Now he’s being slapped with a wrongful death suit and possibly criminal charges.
Turns out this isn’t going to be a piece of cake (which, BTW, Jaine loves). All the neighbors had run-ins with Garth Jenkens at one time or another and they’re all too happy to point fingers at each other. And that’s not all; it seems he’s made a few enemies in his professional life, too. Now it’s up to Jaine to figure out which finger is pointed in the right direction. Subtly and carefully, of course.
As always, Jaine is both smart and funny. Her approach to life and the mysteries she finds herself in the midst of is courageous and always inventive. Ms. Levine’s series is meant to entertain and intrigue the reader. It does so, and then some.
Candy Canes of Christmas Past by Leslie Meier (set in ME) No Website Found
Lucy Stone is eager to enjoy Christmas with her family and new grandbaby. Yet as the family gets together Lucy reminisces about their first Christmas in Tinker’s Cove, Maine, and the first mystery she set about solving…
Lucy’s pregnant, has a toddler, and they just moved from New York into a drafty ramshackle of a house. Miss Tilley, the town’s elderly librarian, befriends Lucy when she’s at her lowest.
Upon giving a simple gift to Miss Tilley, tears are shed and memories of another tragic lifetime and the mysterious circumstances by which her mother died are brought to the surface. Seeing Miss Tilley’s anguish, Lucy can’t help but offer to look into the tragedy. It’s amazing the things one will find with a little digging even after so very many years have passed. It’s amazing the things one will learn…that things aren’t always as they seem and miracles do happen.
What a great idea, giving the reader a prologue to an intriguing cozy mystery series. Memorable characters with a sense of camaraderie, gossip, and justice make up the citizens of Tinker’s Cove, inviting the reader to return for more adventures. So after reading how it all began you can start on the rest of Ms. Meier’s series.
Connie
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