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Carriage Cove Mystery #1
Power, Wealth, & Murder
Life terrifyingly ends up imitating art when Sip & Read Cafe owner Victoria Matheson hosts a book reading at her establishment. An event which features "Power, Wealth & Murder"... the latest mystery novel from one of her favorite authors Harrison Bell. But the very next day the body of the book store’s assistant manager is discovered. Apparently murdered in a similar fashion to characters in Bell's book! Carriage Cove police chief Susan Miles apprehends Bell in Lee's death, placing him behind bars.
Victoria, saddened by both the sudden death and Harrison's imprisonment. She sets out with the aid of her daughter Rachel to solve the mystery. Victoria and Rachel will have to sift through a dark and odd cast of characters including a shady Businessman, an obsessed fan who bares a striking resemblance to Harrison, and a very ambitious personal assistant of Mr. Bell's. To uncover the shocking truth!
Find out what happens in book one of the Carriage Cove Mysteries!
Victoria, saddened by both the sudden death and Harrison's imprisonment. She sets out with the aid of her daughter Rachel to solve the mystery. Victoria and Rachel will have to sift through a dark and odd cast of characters including a shady Businessman, an obsessed fan who bares a striking resemblance to Harrison, and a very ambitious personal assistant of Mr. Bell's. To uncover the shocking truth!
Find out what happens in book one of the Carriage Cove Mysteries!
- GenresCozy MysteryAmazon
90 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 22, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
March 24, 2022
Was the author responsible for the murder committed in the same manner as described in his new book? Rachel's boyfriend has been killed and the author-event at her mother's cafe was perhaps the catalyst for the death. Rachel needs to use her journalist's nose to solve this crime.
The emotions in this story were "off" to me. I initially mistyped that as "oof" and that is how it felt. It seemed rather callous for the newspaper editor to expect his reporter to work on a case that involved the murder of her boyfriend. Her boyfriend! I'd be at home sobbing into my tissues.
Moreover, the involvement of the civilians in a police investigation was counterintuitive to standard police procedures. (Heavy spoiler covered here. Don't read if you haven't finished the book!)
I liked the setup. I liked the characters. I didn't like the interactions between characters nor some of the more implausible situations.
The emotions in this story were "off" to me. I initially mistyped that as "oof" and that is how it felt. It seemed rather callous for the newspaper editor to expect his reporter to work on a case that involved the murder of her boyfriend. Her boyfriend! I'd be at home sobbing into my tissues.
Moreover, the involvement of the civilians in a police investigation was counterintuitive to standard police procedures. (Heavy spoiler covered here. Don't read if you haven't finished the book!)
I liked the setup. I liked the characters. I didn't like the interactions between characters nor some of the more implausible situations.
July 3, 2020
Not impressed. My biggest problem with it is that Ella White, the author, has absolutely no sense of empathy and a heart of stone. She needs to learn more about human emotion before writing any more books. Rachel’s boyfriend has been dead less than 24 hours and there is the attitude that she should be over it already. The first excerpt is her mother’s attitude, after getting her to help out in the investigation instead of sitting at home crying.
“She must be really upset about his passing.”
“She is,” Vickie said with a light nod. “But Rachel’s a strong girl. She’ll be okay. I’m making sure she takes care of herself.” (P34)
“Rachel couldn’t really handle a lot of stress (her response to Anthony’s death was proof enough of that)” (p47)
“It still hurt Rachel to talk about Anthony in past tense.” (P62)
The author also has no idea about health regulations. The cat, Tyler, is given full reign of a coffee shop, including on the counter where they are serving food. He is, of course, a very cluey cat, with impressive detective skills, of course, but that does not make it alright for him to be where food is served.
Additionally, there are way too many loose ends. This includes the victim as there was never any questioning of why he was killed, which would surely be the first question any police officer or amateur detective would ask.
With a little work this could be a great story, but, like this, it was rubbish.
Excerpt from
Power, Wealth, & Murder
Ella White
https://books.apple.com/au/book/power...
This material may be protected by copyright.
“She must be really upset about his passing.”
“She is,” Vickie said with a light nod. “But Rachel’s a strong girl. She’ll be okay. I’m making sure she takes care of herself.” (P34)
“Rachel couldn’t really handle a lot of stress (her response to Anthony’s death was proof enough of that)” (p47)
“It still hurt Rachel to talk about Anthony in past tense.” (P62)
The author also has no idea about health regulations. The cat, Tyler, is given full reign of a coffee shop, including on the counter where they are serving food. He is, of course, a very cluey cat, with impressive detective skills, of course, but that does not make it alright for him to be where food is served.
Additionally, there are way too many loose ends. This includes the victim as there was never any questioning of why he was killed, which would surely be the first question any police officer or amateur detective would ask.
With a little work this could be a great story, but, like this, it was rubbish.
Excerpt from
Power, Wealth, & Murder
Ella White
https://books.apple.com/au/book/power...
This material may be protected by copyright.
February 2, 2019
" A simple recipe"
These cozy mystery writers have a simple formula. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. There's a huge target audience out there, mostly in the States that lap up this sort of book. I find them annoying. Especially when they include a cat like Tyler that features in this one. As soon as you attach human qualities to an animal - Tyler was instrumental in solving this murder mystery - the story loses all credibility as far as I'm concerned. It would never happen in real life. Yet series after series of these almost identical themed mysteries keep arriving. I'm convinced they're on a production line. This book is no better or worse than any of the others in this genre I've read, but why run with the crowd? How could you ever stand out as a special chef if you kept churning out the same recipe?
These cozy mystery writers have a simple formula. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. There's a huge target audience out there, mostly in the States that lap up this sort of book. I find them annoying. Especially when they include a cat like Tyler that features in this one. As soon as you attach human qualities to an animal - Tyler was instrumental in solving this murder mystery - the story loses all credibility as far as I'm concerned. It would never happen in real life. Yet series after series of these almost identical themed mysteries keep arriving. I'm convinced they're on a production line. This book is no better or worse than any of the others in this genre I've read, but why run with the crowd? How could you ever stand out as a special chef if you kept churning out the same recipe?
October 2, 2022
Vickie, owner of a coffee and book shop, loved mystery books, which was why she hosted a mystery book club.
One morning, she finds out one of her favorite mystery novelists, who recently gave a reading at her shop, was suspected of murder. And the murder was exactly like the one in the book. Who would have it in for the author? Evidently, a lot of people. Mother and daughter are working together on this one.
Although this case involving a murder right out of a murder mystery book was interesting, it involved a few too many suspects. Some of the narrative was a bit trivial and there were some typos in it.
Overall, this was a simple read that’s fairly easy to get into. An okay read.
One morning, she finds out one of her favorite mystery novelists, who recently gave a reading at her shop, was suspected of murder. And the murder was exactly like the one in the book. Who would have it in for the author? Evidently, a lot of people. Mother and daughter are working together on this one.
Although this case involving a murder right out of a murder mystery book was interesting, it involved a few too many suspects. Some of the narrative was a bit trivial and there were some typos in it.
Overall, this was a simple read that’s fairly easy to get into. An okay read.
March 3, 2020
The mystery writer and the fall guy
A good read that makes you wonder at the arrogance of people and the way some people view human life as dispensable.
A murder behind the bookstore hits the town hard. Not only was the victim a young man but he was also the coffee shop's owner's daughter's boyfriend. But why was the death set up to look like the crime in the mystery book written by the visiting author. When he is remanded she and her daughter get their sleuthing hats on. It seems to be that the most likely culprit is one of two. But how to catch them! A trap is set up and sprang. Will they find out who, how and why?
A good read that makes you wonder at the arrogance of people and the way some people view human life as dispensable.
A murder behind the bookstore hits the town hard. Not only was the victim a young man but he was also the coffee shop's owner's daughter's boyfriend. But why was the death set up to look like the crime in the mystery book written by the visiting author. When he is remanded she and her daughter get their sleuthing hats on. It seems to be that the most likely culprit is one of two. But how to catch them! A trap is set up and sprang. Will they find out who, how and why?
July 31, 2019
Short cozy mystery. GREAT!!
A great shorter cozy mystery in which a book cafe owner and her daughter, a news reporter, work together to solve the mysterious death of the daughter's boyfriend. Ultimately, there's very little Police involvement in this cozy mystery. The effort is also helped along by a curious Russian blue cat who decided to "investigate" the contents of one of the suspect's purses! Likeable characters, a plot that flows well and stays interesting from beginning to end! Will definitely read the rest of the series!
A great shorter cozy mystery in which a book cafe owner and her daughter, a news reporter, work together to solve the mysterious death of the daughter's boyfriend. Ultimately, there's very little Police involvement in this cozy mystery. The effort is also helped along by a curious Russian blue cat who decided to "investigate" the contents of one of the suspect's purses! Likeable characters, a plot that flows well and stays interesting from beginning to end! Will definitely read the rest of the series!
May 15, 2022
I enjoyed the writing style, but the story was a little much for me. There is NO way that a police department would let a citizen and the victim's girlfriend help investigate a murder. I know cozy mysteries always have the quirky lead character that helps solve whatever crime is happening, but this one just seemed a little far-fetched. I did enjoy the read and it was a quick, easy break from some of the heavier novels I've been reading. Not sure if I will continue the series or not.
January 29, 2024
This book was a cute read but it was very predictable. I liked the authors writing style but as far as the story goes it was just unbelievable as far as some of the plot goes. I don’t think this is a series that I’m willing to commit to.
October 10, 2017
My first read by this author. While the book was slow at times, the overall feel of the book was fun!
November 19, 2017
This book wasn't great but it was good. Good enough that I will read another of her books to see if my opinion changes.
January 29, 2018
Predictable
I figured out who did it in the first few chapters! It needed a bit more hidden agendas so you could not figure it out so quickly!
I figured out who did it in the first few chapters! It needed a bit more hidden agendas so you could not figure it out so quickly!
August 29, 2018
A nice light read. I liked it.
April 15, 2019
Left too many loose ends.
Left too many loose ends. Didn't explain fully on what was happening. Jumped too fast from place to place. Was very choppy writing.
Left too many loose ends. Didn't explain fully on what was happening. Jumped too fast from place to place. Was very choppy writing.
July 29, 2020
More a novella
Simple who done it story, not long enough to be a book and definitely not developed enough to be a book. A good read, quick and simple.
Simple who done it story, not long enough to be a book and definitely not developed enough to be a book. A good read, quick and simple.
January 12, 2021
Coffee house mystery
The owner of a local coffee shop and her daughter set out to find the murderer of the daughter's boyfriend.
The owner of a local coffee shop and her daughter set out to find the murderer of the daughter's boyfriend.
January 12, 2021
Actual Rating: 2.5 Stars
December 24, 2021
The 4 stars are for a decent story, but there are some shocking grammatical errors
March 30, 2022
Nice short mystery
I enjoyed reading this cozy mystery, clean and kept my interest to the end! Hope you enjoy it too! Happy reading!
I enjoyed reading this cozy mystery, clean and kept my interest to the end! Hope you enjoy it too! Happy reading!
April 28, 2023
Nicely paced cosy mystery. A murder is committed the same way as a bestseller. Did the author do it?
March 22, 2016
Ok
I thought it was just an OK read, something to pass the time. I didn't find the characters well developed, they were somewhat lackluster. Not a book that I would particularly recommend.
I thought it was just an OK read, something to pass the time. I didn't find the characters well developed, they were somewhat lackluster. Not a book that I would particularly recommend.
April 16, 2016
Great start to a cozy mystery series
Fun, quick read with characters I can't wait to get to know better! Just the right length for a busy mom that loves to read. Looking forward to the next book.
Fun, quick read with characters I can't wait to get to know better! Just the right length for a busy mom that loves to read. Looking forward to the next book.
May 4, 2016
Entertaining
This book was entertaining and I thought the premise was creative, but there were a few typos and some of the sentences were awkwardly worded. Overall a nice story appropriate for a "fun read".
This book was entertaining and I thought the premise was creative, but there were a few typos and some of the sentences were awkwardly worded. Overall a nice story appropriate for a "fun read".
July 24, 2016
Cute quick read
Interesting story well written. Good characters. Funny quick read not a very long book so if you just want a short quick read this is great
Interesting story well written. Good characters. Funny quick read not a very long book so if you just want a short quick read this is great
April 2, 2017
I liked the plot. Sometimes the story would jump forward with not break. Looking forward to the next book.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews