[Blog Tour Review]* Color Me Dead (Henry Park #1) by Teresa Trent

Summary:

Artist Gabby Wolfe has the ability to see not only the beauty of the living, but the despair of the dead. When she returns to her childhood home in Henry Park Colorado, she is forced to bring along her younger brother Mitch. He is on a “break” from college where he was majoring in wine, women and song. If that isn’t enough they also have Mitch’s rambunctious beagle Luigi along who prefers to spend his days wallowing in junk food. When Gabby draws the death of a young woman before it happens, she knows she must tell someone and risk a new job and her professional credibility. Will she reveal her secret in time to save the woman in the water or will it be too late? Teresa Trent's latest cozy mystery captures the world of the paranormal along with a little humor and a feeling of coming home again.

Summary & Cover taken from Goodreads.com

Length: 207 pages (E-book)

Source: Review Copy

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Series: Henry Park

Available Formats: E-book

Publication Date: January 5th 2017

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Color Me Dead is the first book in the Henry Park series by Theresa Trent and while it isn't Trent's first series it is the first series by her that I have read. I thought that the book was a great start to a delightfully cozy american mystery with just a hint, smidgen if you will of the paranormal because the story revolves around her using her psychic gift to solve the mystery.

I really enjoyed the way that the mystery and the book over all was presented. It was cute and cozy but not so much so that I was left with a sickly sweet feeling after reading it. Gabby had a bit of an edge and I found that her being closer to my own age to be quite refreshing. I also really liked that she was an artist who wanted to illustrate children's books and that she returned to her old home town in order to do so. I felt that she did a lot of growing as a character in this first book in the Henry Park series and I can't wait to see where she goes from here. 

I thought the other characters in the book were also very well written and I do have to say that I really liked Gigi, a young woman who shares Gabby's gift of visions. She's just as spunky as Gabby is and even wittier and she's pretty awesome because she's in a wheelchair and doesn't let that stop her at all. I liked that Trent added her in and added some good character diversity with her and was relieved that too me it didn't come off gimicky plus she was a hoot!

Overall, I thought this was a nice start to a quick new cozy series. The setting in a small mountain town in America was charming and relaxing to read about and was filled with a good mystery (the killer might really surprise you like it did me) and enjoyable characters. This is a series that I'd recommend to all who love the cozy genre and I think it's the perfect read for those looking for a quick read or for those cold winter days.

Rating:  ★★★★

Author Bio:

Teresa Trent writes hilarious cozy mysteries that take place in the small town of Pecan Bayou, Texas. She was first inspired to create Pecan Bayou after visiting the Texas Hill Country to view the millions of springtime flowers alongside the roads and highways. The town of Pecan Bayou does not exist in Texas, but there is a body of water in the state with the name. Pecan Bayou does exist in Teresa's imagination and heart. 

Teresa is excited to be introducing a new series in January 2017. We are leaving Texas and heading to the mountains of Colorado where Gabby Wolfe, part artist/part psychic moves back to Henry Park, her childhood home. She sees a murder and it translates to her sketchpad. Now if she can figure out what to do about it., Color Me Dead is on preorder at Amazon until it comes out January 5, 2017. Stay tuned for days the book will be free in January and Teresa's blog tour. 

If you would like to know more about upcoming books, free days on Kindle, Goodreads Giveaways and coupons--Click here to sign up for her mailing list and get a free Pecan Bayou novella! 

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[Spotlight & Giveaway] Towhee Get Your Gun (A Bird Lover's Mystery #2) by J. R. Ripley

Towhee Get Your Gun
by J.R. Ripley

What do you get when you cross murder with theatrics and bird watching? Mayhem and madness! This is a very well-written book…

~Valerie’s Musings

Towhee Get Your Gun (A Bird Lover’s Mystery)

Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Lyrical Underground (January 3, 2017)
288 PagesASIN: B01E2H1NQG

Summary:

When Birds & Bees owner Amy Simms volunteers to act in a local production of Annie, Get Your Gun, she finds herself upstaged by a killer waiting in the wings . . .

Who’s got time for birdwatching? Amy has enough to do running her shop, fighting attempts by the town planning commission to demolish her old Victorian house, and rescuing an injured towhee. Yet somehow she allows herself to get roped into performing in the Ruby Lake, North Carolina, community theater’s new musical after some cast members get injured by mysterious mishaps. The production seems plagued by bad luck, but events turn tragic when a member of the company is found murdered in a locked dressing room.

Trading in her binoculars for a magnifying glass, Amy steps into the role of amateur sleuth and soon discovers the victim ruffled a lot of feathers. With a flock of suspects, Amy will need to beat the bushes before the cagey killer takes flight. After all, the show must go on . . .

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Author Bio:

J.R. Ripley is the pen name of Glenn Meganck, the critically acclaimed author of the Tony Kozol mystery series. As a member of the Mystery Writers of America, he has chaired the Edgar committee for Best Original Paperback novel and served on the Best Short Story Committee. As a member of the International Association of Crime Writers, he has served on the Hammett Award committee for Best Novel. When not writing books, Glenn is writing songs, often singing them to the consternation of his audience and neighbors, or involved in one of his many passions, none of which have involved any of the dead bodies that seem to keep cropping up in his mysteries. For more information about him, visit glennmeganck.com.

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*[Blog Tour Review] Tiara Trouble: A Destinee Faith Miller Mystery by Lane Buckman

 

Summary:

 

One foreign policy question five years ago sent Destinee Faith Miller's dreams of being Miss American Universe up in flames and landed her back in her hometown of Phenix City, Alabama, with her tail between her legs. But like the mythological bird that her hometown is misspelled after, she rose from the ashes to create Destinee's Dolls, a thriving pageant consulting business knee-deep in pink, prints and glitz. A death at the local level of a national pageant lands her the job of pageant emcee, and Destinee dares to dream of bigger things-maybe even a reality TV show! But when judges start dropping like flies, she has her hands full just keeping herself alive long enough to see those dreams come true. Contending with catfights, car bombs, and the camouflage-colored funeral of a redneck's dream, Destinee gets a little help from her friends, family, and a pit bull named Clarabelle, to track down the killer and, more important, produce a simply magnificent pageant.

Summary & Cover taken from Goodreads.com

Length: 231 pages (Kindle)

Source: Review Copy

Available Formats: Print/E-book

Publication Date: August 27th 2013 by Cozy Cat Press

 

Tiara Trouble is author Lane Buckman's first novel and am I ever glad that I had a chance to read it and review it for her.

 

I thought Tiara trouble was one of the cutest and well developed reads I've come across in ages. Usually I tend to stay away from books like this because I usually don't like anything to do with pageants but this one was definitely worth the read.

 

I loved Destinee! I thought she was a great heroine. She was smart, and strong and while I thought she may end up being a complete ditz but she really did surprise me by being the exact opposite of what I thought and I think that's what made me love the book so much.

 

With a triple homicide that not only puzzled Destinee but me as well. I honestly didn't see who the killer was until the end and I thought that since it was a cozy mystery that I would be able to figure out who was behind all the murders but I had no clue and when I did find out everything suddenly made sense.

 

I really enjoyed the authors writing style. She was able to mix romance, murder and pageants all together to create a really fleshed out mystery that while it was cozy, I found that there was a lot more substance to the story than I expected. The characters were great and I had quite a few laughs while I was reading the book which added to my over all reading experience because I love when an author can make me laugh.

 

Overall, Tiara Trouble was a very well written, fast paced cozy mystery that had a lot going on in it without being too busy. The story was interesting, the mystery was well plotted out and I the characters were just perfect and I'll definitely be on the look out for the second book.

 

I would recommend this one to fans of cozy mysteries that don't mind the odd curse word. While there is a romantic element to the story it is a clean read and I think fans of clean romances along with cozy mystery fans would find that this book has a lot to offer to the readers especially if you want a quick and fun read.

 

 

*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

Really Liked It!
★★★★

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