Friday, December 23, 2016

REVIEW: Towhee Get Your Gun

Towhee Get Your Gun
Author: J.R. Ripley

The community theater in Ruby Lake, NC is putting on a production of Annie Get Your Gun. But the rehearsals are plagued with freak accidents.When two of the performers are injured by a falling stage curtain, Amy Simms is pressured into taking over one of the parts. It's a small part, but Amy is busy running her shop Birds & Bees, arguing with a new neighbor and trying to save her business from the local planning commission. The production's string of bad luck escalates when a cast member is found murdered in a locked dressing room. Who doesn't want the show to go on? Amy is on the case to find the killer before anyone else dies.

I like this series. Towhee Get Your Gun is the 2nd book in the Bird Lover's Mystery series. Amy Simms is a likable main character, and the quirky side characters give the stories a  sweet charm. The side plots just round out the bird theme and don't get in the way of the mystery. Accidents plaguing the cast of the local theater group's production of Annie Get Your Gun was a fun backdrop to the murder plot. I don't really care for the cantankerous boarder Amy got stuck with when she bought her shop building. Esther Pilaster, is incredi-annoying. But....she is supposed to be! So the character is effective if her behavior in the story makes me wish I could jump into the book just to tell her off. Amy doesn't call her "Esther Pester" behind her back for no reason. :)

It isn't necessary to read the series in order. There is background about the shop and the characters in the first book, but a reader could start with book 2 and still enjoy the story. Book one, Die Die Birdie, takes place when Amy is first opening her shop.

All in all, a fun cozy mystery! Towhee Get Your Gun will be available January 3rd.

I voluntarily read an Advance Readers Copy of this book from Kensington via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

 J.R. Ripley is the pseudonym of Glenn Meganck, writer of the Tony Kozol and Maggie Miller Mystery series. He also writes the Kitty Karlyle Pet Chef mystery series under the pen-name Marie Celine. Check out his website here: www.glennmeganck.com 

1 comment:

  1. Hi, Juli. Thanks so much for the lovely review! I really appreciate it!!

    ReplyDelete