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Tuesday, November 25, 2014

128) If the Shoe Kills by Lynn Cahoon

The Blurb :

The tourist town of South Cove, California, is a lovely place to spend the holidays. But this year, shop owner Jill Gardner discovers there’s no place like home for homicide. . .
As owner of Coffee, Books, and More, Jill Gardner looks forward to the hustle and bustle of holiday shoppers.

But when the mayor ropes her into being liaison for a new work program, 'tis the season to be wary. Local businesses are afraid the interns will be delinquents, punks, or worse. For Jill, nothing’s worse than Ted Hendricks--the jerk who runs the program. After a few run-ins, Jill’s ready to kill the guy.

That, however, turns out to be unnecessary when she finds Ted in his car--dead as a doornail. Officer Greg assumes it’s a suicide. Jill thinks it’s murder. And if the holidays weren’t stressful enough, a spoiled blond wants to sue the city for breaking her heel. Jill has to act fast to solve this mess--before the other shoe drops. . .

My Thoughts :

I really enjoyed the first two books in the Tourist Trap Mysteries (even though I still don't understand why they gave the series that title....) but If the Shoe Kills wasn't up to par with the previous installments.  Maybe my expectations were too high but this one felt a little flat in comparison.  However there was still a good cozy in there with a good plot.  The characters were interesting and I really enjoy visiting South Cove but there was just something about this third book that didn't make it stand out like the others.

Everything in the story started out well and it was nice to have a new release that fit in with the current time of year.  Although I don't live in a land that celebrates Thanksgiving the talk of the holiday and upcoming Christmas holiday was actual and somehow welcoming.  I liked the charity theme and I hope that it encourages readers of this book to go donate something this Christmas.

What I can pinpoint as problems for me in this book was the fast ending.  The amount of detail and build-up in this nice read was suddenly over in a page.  I had to go back and read it again because I couldn't believe it was over already.  Jill's relationship with her detective has come a long way but I wasn't convinced that it is actually working.  While Jill's aunt and her moods are quite annoying.  She is overly dramatic and a distraction.

All in all I did like this book but it wasn't the best so far.  I am still enjoying the series and look forward to the next installment and can't wait to see what happens next.  I like Jill and all the other quirky residents of South Cove even though it has only been three books I feel like I have known them for years.  Well worth checking out if you are a cozy mystery lover!


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