*[Blog Tour Review] Relative Danger (Cealie Gunther Mystery #1) by June Shaw

 

Summary:

 

Spunky widowed Cealie Gunther shows up early for her granddaughter Kat's graduation--only to learn graduation might not take place unless a custodian's death--accidental--or murder--is solved. With a deathbed promise to Kat's mother to watch Kat cross the stage for her diploma, Cealie becomes a substitute teacher there and finds fierce students and teachers. And someone aiming for her grandchild.

Summary & Cover taken from Goodreads.com

Length: 256 pages (Kindle)

Source: Review Copy

Available Formats: Print/E-book/Audio

Publication Date: July 19th 2013 by Untreed Reads (first published 2006)            

 

Isn't Fall (along with winter) the perfect time of year to read cozy mysteries? I certainly think so which is why I signed up for June Shaw's Relative Danger blog tour.

 

Cealie was a really great character. I usually prefer my main characters in cozy mysteries to be closer to my age (23) when I'm reading this genre but Cealie was just so charming and spunky I thought she was a hoot. She reminded me a lot of a friend of mine's grandma when we were growing up in terms of her attitude she was such a smart, warm person you could totally see that she adored her granddaughter.

 

I liked the premise of the novel most of all though because it was very well put together. The whole idea of Cealie becoming a substitute teacher at her granddaughter's school was a new one for me but I do love when sleuths go undercover to solve a mystery. The mystery in this case of course was the death of a custodian ad Kat's school which is ultimately the reason behind why Kat may not make it to the point of getting her diploma after the custodian dies.

 

Relative Danger had a really well thought out story line and there were lots of twists and turns that kept me reading this one. I also really enjoyed the fact that that while I read this book over the period of a few weeks that I was able to pick up exactly where I left off, remembering everything because the story was just so memorable. The characters were really well thought out as well because they actually stayed with me and seemed a little more developed than I would usually find in a cozy mystery and I enjoyed seeing the different dynamics between them as well which added to the overall story.

 

All in all, I thought Relative Danger was a really good read. It was a cozy mystery but it was one that made me use my brain as well because I didn't see how the mystery was going to be solved until it was solved. With great characters, a complex plot and a solid writing style I can't wait to read the next book in the Cealie Gunther series.

 

I would highly recommend this book to fans of the cozy mystery genre who want something a little stronger than the usual fluff without getting too intense. If novels with plot lines that are both equally plot and character driven than this might just be the next series you should start.

 

*I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my free and honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are 100% my own.

 

I read this book for the following reading challenges:

 

2013 150+ Reading Challenge

2013 Mystery/Crime Reading Challenge

Really Liked It!
★★★★

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