REVIEW: Death Distilled

Death Distilled
Author: Melinda Mullet

In this newest Whisky Business Mystery, Abi Logan returns to Abbey Glen, the whisky distillery she inherited, after three months away from Scotland. The village of Balfour is still the same...but so is her best friend, Patrick. Abi immediately gets pulled into his latest scheme -- a distillery tour for a group of Japanese businessme. Abi knows distillery manager, Grant, is not going to like this idea and she really dreads the event. Before there can be much bickering about the proposed tour, human remains dating back at least 200 years are discovered outside the local pub, and Abi meets a new local celebrity, former rock star Rory Hendricks. She idolized him as a young girl when he was part of the Rebels, but now she finds herself working with him as his official photographer while investigating a series of threats and attacks on former band members. Rory is the last member of the Rebels left. Spray painted threats, break-ins and other strange events have followed him to Balfour. Who is killing off the Rebels and why?

I really enjoy this series. Abi is a fun main character. She's independent with lots of spunk and ingenuity, but still a little streak of sentimentality. She loves the distillery because it belonged to her uncle. She loves her dog, Liam. And she puts up with her best friend Patrick's shenanigans because she cares about him. So, she's strong, but still human. I laughed out loud in this book when her emotional side led her to bring home eight sheep.....as pets. The villagers just shake their heads and smile. :) (I would have brought the sheep home, too.)

There is more than one mystery in this second book in the series. Abi investigates the history of the village with the new vicar and the local librarian as a side plot, developing more background about Balfour and some of the side characters. So interesting! It didn't take away from the main investigation into Rory Hendricks and the attacks on the Rebels members, but added to the overall flavor of the book. The pace is spot on, and there were plenty of suspects. I wasn't sure who the killer was until the very end. Nice, exciting ending, too! And Oscar the sheep -- great BFF for Liam. :) I am definitely eagerly awaiting the next book in this series!

For more information on the author and her books, check out her website: http://melindamullet.com/

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Random House - Alibi via Netgalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**