On Flashback Fridays I will share with you the books I missed when they were first
released that have been screaming at me from my To-Be-Read bookshelf.
I snapped this book up from NetGalley last year and never was able to read it. The author is now touring with Great Escapes and I wanted to be part of the tour. This is why I started Flashback Fridays, I was missing too many books I really wanted to read.
Murder with a Twist (A Nic & Nigel Mystery)
1st in Series
Cozy Mystery
Setting – New York
Midnight Ink
Release Date – May 8, 2015
Paperback: 264 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0738743721
E-Book ASIN: B00VXK6DWK
Visiting New York to attend a cousin’s birthday gala, Nic and Nigel Martini are looking forward to cocktails with old friends and a pampered stay at the Ritz. But when the birthday girl’s gold-digging cad of a husband goes missing, the Martini family worries that the social event of the season may turn into a story for the scandal sheets.
Nigel’s condescending aunt begs former detective Nic to find sleazy Leo, despite the fact that it would be better for everyone if he just stayed lost. Trailing a “married bachelor” with a penchant for trouble isn’t pretty; in fact it’s downright deadly. Assisted by Nigel and their newly adopted Bullmastiff, Nic must tangle with her old underworld connections if she hopes to hunt down the dirtiest Martini.
Dollycas’s Thoughts

I love old movies, movies that were made before I was even born. As soon as I saw the synopsis for this book I knew the author’s inspiration had to be Dashiell Hammett’s Nick and Nora Charles
. Yup, I was right. I dove right into this book and was absolutely thrilled about her “updated twist”.
The characters are reversed from Hammett’s version. Nic is a retired police detective married to Nigel Martini. His family and him by extension, are ultra wealthy. They have come to New York for the holidays and his cousin’s birthday party but she is overwrought because her husband, Leo, has gone missing. Something he has done before, but with the big birthday bash in just a few days, he must be found so the family is not scandalized in the press by his absence. Nigel’s aunt basically tells Nic to use her police training to find Leo as quickly as possible. The first thing her training tells her is that the guy is a low class jerk and that the family would be better off if he just stayed gone. But with some help from Nigel and their new puppy she will find him and then let the family decide what to do with him.
I immediately pictured Nic and Nigel like Nick and Nora updated to present day, but let me tell you Skippy is no Asta. Skippy is a small horse of a dog, a Bullmastiff, and he makes everything Nic and Nigel do more interesting because he goes with them everywhere.
Just like the movie these characters are terrific. The dialogue is fast and full of wit. The Martini’s also partake plenty of martini’s, the dirtier the better. They stay at the Ritz and travel the city trying to find the missing husband. Doing so they met a few unsavory characters. None of Nigel’s family thinks much of Nic, just what see can do for them, but they are a snobby bunch so that is just fine with her.
This is a light mystery, full of humor and I loved every word. I hated for it to end. The good thing is I was able to start reading Killer Cocktail, book 2 in this series. It was released on May 8. Stay tuned I will be posting my review next Tuesday!

About The Author –
Tracy Kiely is a self-proclaimed Anglophile (a fact which distresses certain members of her Irish Catholic family). She grew up reading Jane Austen, Agatha Christie, and watching Hitchcock movies. She fell in love with Austen’s wit, Christie’s clever plots, and Hitchcock’s recurrent theme of “the average man caught in extraordinary circumstances.”
After spending years of trying to find a proper job that would enable her to use her skills garnered as an English major, she decided to write a book. It would, of course, have to be a mystery; it would have to be funny; and it would have to feature an average person caught up in extraordinary circumstances. She began to wonder how the characters in Pride and Prejudice might fit into a mystery. What, if after years of living with unbearably rude and condescending behavior, old Mrs. Jenkins up and strangled Lady Catherine? What if Charlotte snapped one day and poisoned Mr. Collins’ toast and jam? Skip ahead several years, and several different plot ideas, and you have her first mystery Murder at Longbourn
.
While she does not claim to be Jane Austen, Agatha Christie
, or Hitchcock
(one big reason being that they’re all dead), she has tried to combine the elements of all three in her books.
Author Links:
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
I love this Flashback Friday feature, Lori! And it’s very apropos to have “Murder With a Twist” during the follow-up “Killer Cocktail” tour!
I love ‘The Thin Man’ series. I will be exploring this updated twist for myself. Thanks!