The Corpse with the Ruby Lips (A Cait Morgan Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
8th in Series
Setting – Hungary
TouchWood Editions (November 1, 2016)
Paperback: 240 pages
ISBN-13: 978-1771511957
Quirky criminology professor Cait Morgan is invited to be a guest lecturer at a Budapest university, and although she’s hesitant to go without her husband and trusted sidekick, Bud, who must stay home to care for his aging parents, she decides to make the month-long trip on her own.
Soon after arriving, one of her new students, Zsofia, pleads with Cait to help her uncover any clues about her grandmother’s unsolved murder, which happened decades ago on the campus of Cait’s own home university in Canada. Cait agrees, but when she is repeatedly hassled by an creepy colleague, and as bizarre details about Zsofia’s family members come to light, Cait is beset by uncertainty.
As she gets closer to the truth, Cait’s investigation puts the powers-that-be on high alert, and her instincts tell her she’s in grave danger. Bud races to Budapest to come to Cait’s side, but will it be too late?
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Another adventure with Cait Morgan and I can’t lie I was nervous about her traveling without her hubby, Bud, at her side. Not that I think a woman needs a man to travel with her, they just work so well together and he centers her. Her photographic memory is a huge advantage to solving any mysteries thrown at her but she needs Bud to bounce ideas off of and when she goes into a little trance to order her thoughts I feel better when he is with her.
In this story she has traveled to Budapest for a month long class at a university. Who knew she would meet people with so many ties to her university back in Canada? One of her students quickly asks her for help in solving her grandmother’s murder that happened years before Cait even started at the college. She discusses it with Bud via Skype and he knew she was going to investigate no matter what he said and told her he would look into the case on his end. Soon Bud is told not to look any further and Cait is threatened as well. But even as she tries to back off she realizes it may be too late and Bud isn’t there to save her this time.
Cathy Ace tells such a great story. This one has so many layers, as we get deeper and deeper into the story the pace and the danger pick up. Soon the pages are flying and I am on the edge of my seat until the very end. This one is a little different from other stories by this author in that it is a cold case and she has no idea who could be the suspects. This is unlike the closed roomed mysteries she has solved before.
In addition to the mystery, we follow Cait as she does a little sightseeing and the descriptions were wonderful. I will never get to Budapest but through Cait’s eyes I enjoyed my little virtual vacation. She also introduces us to the history of the region too and how it affected people, choices they made, and the ways their lives were changed by those choices. Some secrets that were never brought to light before are uncovered.
I have said it before, Cathy Ace has a unique writing style that captures you from page one and doesn’t let go. When you sit down to start reading any of the stories in this series you are going to be there until you reach the end. I recommend all the books in this series. They each can be read on their own but as soon as you read one, you are going to want to read the rest.
About The Author –
Cathy Ace loves crime! It’s true – she discovered Nancy Drew in her local library, then found Agatha Christie on her Mum’s bookshelves, and she never looked back. Cathy happily admits that the characters she met between the book-covers as a child have influenced her writing. “Nancy Drew was plucky, strong and independent, and Agatha Christie’s puzzles engaged me every time. I love the sort of book that mixes intricate plotting with a dash of danger, and that’s what I’ve tried to create with my Cait Morgan Mystery Series. Beginning my new series, featuring the women of the WISE Enquiries Agency, I have been able to indulge my love of stately homes, village life and the interplay between characters that can take place in that sort of setting.”
Born and raised in Swansea, South Wales, Cathy is, like her heroine Cait Morgan, now a Canadian citizen. “Cait’s Welsh Canadian, as am I. They say ‘write what you know’, so a short, plus-sized Welsh woman, who’s quite bossy, fits the bill! But Cait and I are not one and the same: she’s got skills and talents I don’t possess,and I’m delighted to say that I don’t usually encounter corpses wherever I go! I’ve also chosen to burrow even deeper into my roots by creating a new cast of characters in the WISE women who come from all four corners of the United Kingdom and work in a uniquely British setting – a ducal estate set in the rolling Welsh countryside of the Wye Valley in Powys, where I spent a good deal of time when I was young.”
With a successful career in marketing having given her the chance to write training courses and textbooks, Cathy has now finally turned her attention to her real passion: crime fiction. Her short stories have appeared in multiple anthologies. Two of her works, “Dear George” and “Domestic Violence”, have also been produced by Jarvis & Ayres Productions as “Afternoon Reading” broadcasts for BBC Radio 4.
Cathy now writes two series of traditional mysteries: The Cait Morgan Mysteries (TouchWood Editions) and The WISE Enquiries Agency Mysteries (Severn House Publishers).
Cathy is proud to be Chair of Crime Writers of Canada, a member of Sisters in Crime, the Crime Writers Association, and Mystery Writers of America.
Praise for The Corpse With The Ruby Lips by Cathy Ace
I love that the Cait Morgan series is based in the area that I live…A pleasure to read. I highly recommend The Corpse with the Ruby Lips.
~MysteriesEtc
The mystery was great and suspenseful… The characters were all very well done and very believable.
~Books, Dreams, Life
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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.”
Looks good. thanks for the review lo
So pleased you like the sound of it 🙂
I have this series by Cathy on my TBR list but haven’t read any yet. Am definitely moving her to the top of my list.
I chuffed to bits to be on your TBR pile…and also excited to know I’m moving up it 🙂
Your books are amazing, Thanks for this generous chance.
Oh…I like “amazing”! Thanks 🙂
My maiden name is Morgan, and I have some Welsh in me. Alas I am a mutt. I have one of your books,which I haven’t read yet. I’d a feeling it would be good. I will post a review.
Hello Sandy – a lot of the best mutts in the world have Welsh blood in them 😉 I hope you enjoy reading about your namesake…and a review would be wonderful – they really make a difference 🙂
This would be a good one to read!
So pleased you like the sound of it John 🙂
I would love to read The Corpse With The Ruby Lips — it sounds like a wonderful book ~ Thanks for the giveaway!
So pleased you like the sound of it Celia 🙂
Sounds like a book that I would enjoy. Thanks for a chance to win a copy.
So pleased you like the sound of it, Elaine 🙂
Enjoyed the excerpt. This is a new series to me and the book sounds amazing. Can’t wait to read.
Thanks, diannekc….good to meet you too 🙂
Congrats on the new release! The Cait Morgan series sounds fascinating. Thanks for sharing.
So pleased you like the sound of it, BookLady 🙂
This series always sounds like interesting reads. Thank you for the review and giveaway
Thanks you Daniele – I hope you get to meet Cait “in person”
I enjoy your books, Thanks for this opportunity.
Thank you for your kind words, Nancy 🙂