Review - A High-End Finish

This is the first in a new series by the author of Bibliophile mysteries.  Let's see if Ms. Carlisle tackles home renovation like she does book restoration!

Author: Kate Carlisle

Copyright: November 2014 (NAL) 336 pgs

Series: 3rd in Fixer-Upper Mystery series

Sensuality: mild kissing

Mystery Sub-genre: Cozy Mystery

Main Characters: Shannon Hammer, owner of restoration/renovation construction business

Setting: Modern day, Lighthouse Cove California (near San Francisco)

Obtained Through: Publisher for honest review

Shannon goes on a blind date with Realtor Jerry Saxton, which in itself results in a betting pool of how the date will end.  Jerry gets aggressive and Shannon resorts to kicking him where it really hurts.  Town's people had gathered and cheered her on and several people won the bet, including her father!  A few days later, Shannon stumbles over Jerry's dead body in a home she is renovating.  She is immediately the top suspect in the eyes of the new Chief of Police, Eric Jensen. Of course, Jerry being killed with one of Shannon's pink pipe wrenches doesn't help.  It is hard to understand what is going on as another body is found...by Shannon.  The two victims don't seem to have anything in common at all. 

Shannon grew up in this small town, so there is plenty of small town grudges and long-term dislike.  Whitney Reid has been Shannon's arch nemesis most of her life, and provides a sub-plot to the story.  

Shannon is strong and spunky without being sarcastic or whinny.  She is has a great working relationship with her crews and seems very balanced in general. I love her dog, West Highland Terrier Robbie (after Rob Roy), and her cat, Tiger.  Chief Eric Jensen fulfills the potential cop romantic interest and the "Don't talk to anybody about the murder" roles all in one character.  Crime Writer MacKintyre Sullivan offsets Chief Jensen's character with his quirky author persona while giving the chief a little competition for Shannon.  Lizzie, Marigold, Emily, and Jane are her closest friends and compliment Shannon nicely.  Nemesis Whitney Reid and cohort Jennifer Bailey are actually like some people I have known: Snotty, petty, manipulative, and spiteful. 

Lighthouse Cove California is a standard ocean-side town, but the Victorians homes and the lighthouse really give it character.  The plot was good and a little surprising for a cozy.  The pacing was even without much slow down.  The climax was suspenseful and taut, providing a nail biting ride.  The wrap-up leaves you wanting to stay with the characters a while longer. 

Kate Carlisle has successfully created another cozy series with engaging characters and interesting plotting in a picturesque setting.  If possible, I think I may even love this more than the Bibliophile series!

Rating: Near Perfect - Buy two copies: one for you and one for a friend. 


Halloween is over, now onto Thanksgiving.  

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Review - If Walls Could Talk

Juliet Blackwell is one of my favorite authors.  She writes with her sister under the name Hailey Lind and writes the Witchcraft Mysteries under her own name.  When I heard she was starting a new series I jumped on board to review it.  Juliet was also one of the first authors to give me an interview (see that here.) 

Author: Juliet Blackwell

Copyright: Dec 2010 (Signet) 316 pgs

Series: 1st in Haunted Home Renovation Mysteries

Sensuality: N/A

Mystery Sub-genre: Cozy

Main Character:  Melanie Turner, owner & operator of Construction Company

Setting: Modern day, San Francisco California

Obtained Through: Publisher for an honest review

Melanie took over the construction company from her ailing father - and after her bad divorce she is living with her dad too.  The story starts out with Melanie checking in with a friend (aged former rock star Matt Addax) who is attempting to fix and flip a run down mansion.  It is the day after a "demolition party" that was more party than any real work and Melanie finds Matt passed out.  Melanie and Matt also find Matt's business partner, Kenneth, tortured with a nail gun and his hand cut off.   Melanie cradles Kenneth until EMTs arrive.  Kenneth dies and all he remembers is that Mel held him so his ghost feels connected to her.  

Mel has enough on her mind without worrying about why she is seeing Kenneth.  She has a former boyfriend who works at OSHA investigating to see if her construction company is liable if it is an accident.  Matt is arrested for Kenneth's murder.  Melanie's father wants her married.  Melanie had stored some of Matt's property until construction was done - her garage is broken into and the piano demolished and the rest in the storage locker is also trashed.  Apparently there is something that people are looking for.  Could it be the box she found in the wall with a vintage old journal and a bogus map to a mine?

Melanie is a great character, rebounding from an ill-fated marriage where she put who she was on hold for her husband.  Melanie is piecing herself back together and since her plans to move to Paris have been thwarted she is dealing with the hand she has been dealt.  Melanie is a natural at restoring old homes, taught the trade by her father, she enjoys saving homes and restoring them to glory.  Melanie's dad is cantankerous and the live-in disabled friend who handles the company books is looking to be a wonderful character too.  The potential love interest is a complicated man from Mel's past and while she is still attracted to him they still have "issues". 

The renovation business that the story revolves around works well in this case, not too much on the construction details and I feel I know more of what a hectic business it really is.  The "seeing-dead-people" is not a major focus in this debut novel but promises to be a recurring and perhaps more central theme in subsequent books.  I liked how the ghostly aspect was handled and there are some hints she inherited this capability.  This was a slight bit more of a suspense novel than just a cozy, a few curse words (maybe 10 in the whole book) and at times it is a little "heavier" than a strict cozy.

The plot was pretty good, several suspects are sifted through and there is a suspenseful climax - which I always enjoy the best.  Melanie finds that the old axiom "trust nobody" is paramount as she tries to help her friend Matt and find out what happened to Kenneth so he can move on and leave her alone.  Great new series that I think will be a big hit.

I just had to share a video of everyone's favorite renovation show - Home Improvement - bloopers!