I Only Read Murder - Ian Ferguson and Will Ferguson

Oh. my. gosh. It takes a lot to make me laugh out loud. But brothers Ian Ferguson and Will Ferguson did just that - many times over with their new book, I Only Read Murder. 

Miranda Abbott played a crime busting, karate kicking Pastor for many seasons on television. But, the offers are few and far between now. When a cryptic postcard arrives, she is sure things are on the upswing, so she happily packs her bags and heads to the small town of Happy Rock.

Here's the thing - Miranda still sees herself as a star. Her perceptions, actions, dialogue and certainty that she is still fodder for the gossip columns is priceless. "But no one recognized her, or if they did, they were too intimidated to approach." 

Happy Rock is home to a large cast of quirky characters - all who could be found in the pages of a book. There are many characters but its very easy to remember who's who. Again, the interactions and dialogue is so very good. Much more laughing from me! 

One of townsfolk is the owner of the local bookstore - that only sells murder mysteries. The one passion that the entire town has is their beloved yearly play. Hmm, could a role in it be a comeback for Miranda? And then, a cast member is killed. On stage. or And no one saw who did it. Perhaps Miranda's Pastor Fran skills, combined with the the knowledge that can be gleaned from a murder mystery book, could be of use? Especially the cozy mystery tactics!

The authors have excelled at weaving every facet of a cozy mystery into their homage - amateur sleuths, small town, quirky residents, misdirection, every player one is a suspect, no sex, overt violence or profanity. Instead it's a comfortable, entertaining, light hearted and truly very funny read. An easy five stars.

This is the first in a planned series. This reader can't wait for the next entry. See for yourself. Read an excerpt of I Only Read Murder. 

harpercollins.ca  Thanks to Harper Collins Canada for a review copy of I Only Read Murder. This in no way affects my review. 

The Self-Made Widow - Fabian Nicieza

I absolutely loved Fabian Nicieza's Edgar Award nominated debut novel, Suburban Dicks. I was thrilled to see that he had penned a follow up The Self-Made Widow. Would it measure up to the five star first book? It did indeed! 

At the center of the cast of characters is Andrea Stern. She was an up and coming profiler with the FBI many years ago. And then she got pregnant, married and now has five children. But does that stop her from investigating? Nope! (Her mothering skills had me laughing out loud more than once.) Andrea has the respect of a number of law enforcement agencies after the last case. The other main character is Kenny Lee. He's a journalist and is flying high on the success that the last case brought to him. The relationship between he and Andrea is, well, complicated. There is a wealth of supporting characters including the Cellulitists - a group of neighborhood mothers.

This latest case involves them directly as one of their husbands has died. But Andrea can't let go of the idea that it was murder, not a natural death. And she's like a dog with a bone...

Okay, fabulous characters that are really well drawn. Check. We met them in the first book and Nicieza has continued fleshing them out, touching on a number of real concerns, thoughts, events and more.

Next? A fantastic plot! This is not a cozy series. The plot premise is so well written and it was difficult to suss out the final whodunit. The reader is along for the ride, presented with the same clues as our characters. 

Wonderfully creative writing. Fun, fresh, different, engaging and just a whole lot of fun to read. Nicieza is the co-creator of  Marvel's Deadpool. Uh, huh that same wry humor, an unusual, intriguing mystery and two decidedly different leads make this another 'can't put it down read.' 

Highly recommended and an easy five stars. See for yourself - read an excerpt of The Self-Made Widow. 

Finlay Donovan is Killing It - Elle Cosimano

Oh my gosh - the first chapter of Elle Cosiman's newest book, Finlay Donovan is Killing It, had me laughing out loud. And I kept laughing as the book progressed. Which is a little odd as its also a murder mystery!

Finlay's husband has left her, she's struggling to make ends meet as an author, her husband fired the childminder and her agent is demanding the book that Finlay's already been paid for. Here's the fun bit...while having lunch with said agent, their discussion about the plot is overheard - and misconstrued. Somehow, Finlay seems to have been mistakenly taken on a contract - to kill a 'problem husband.'

Trust me, it is funny. And much of that's down to the wonderful lead character Cosimano has created. Finlay is just so quirky and likeable! Her struggles are real and she's a hot mess a lot of the time. Totally relatable. Except for the contract killer part! A sidekick is a must. And in this case we have Vero, Finlay's childminder. She's clever and has a sardonic sense of humor. They make a great team.

Cosimano's plot is clever. There's no down time in this book - action and bodies propel things along at a fast paced clip, Yes, some situations are improbable, but just go with it. What a wonderful, escapist read this one was! Oops, there's a side of romance included too.

I did chose to listen to Finlay Donovan is Killing It. The reader was Angela Dawe - and she was the perfect choice. She has a very expressive voice and absolutely matched the mental image I had in mind for Finlay. She interprets Cosimano's work and brings it to life with reading, capturing the humor, action  and more easily. She provides easily discerned voices for each character, both male and female - and child. Her speaking is clear and easy to understand. Her speaking speed is perfect. Hear for yourself - listen to an excerpt of Finlay Donovan is Killing It.

And I'm happy to say, there's another Finlay Donovan in the works - Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead is due out in February 2022. Definitely on my must listen list!