My first Read of 2018!
On Flashback Fridays I will share with you
the books I was not able to review
when they were first released that have been screaming at me
from my To-Be-Read bookshelf.
Bones To Pick (A Brie Hooker Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – South Carolina
Henery Press (October 24, 2017)
Paperback: 286 pages
ISBN-13: 978-1635112597
Kindle ASIN: B0748LL8V8
Living on a farm with four hundred goats and a cantankerous carnivore isn’t among vegan chef Brie Hooker’s list of lifetime ambitions. But she can’t walk away from her Aunt Eva, who needs help operating her dairy.
Once she calls her aunt’s goat farm home, grisly discoveries offer ample inducements for Brie to employ her entire vocabulary of cheese-and-meat curses. The troubles begin when the farm’s pot-bellied pig unearths the skull of Eva’s husband, who disappeared years back. The sheriff, kin to the deceased, sets out to pin the murder on Eva. He doesn’t reckon on Brie’s resolve to prove her aunt’s innocence. Death threats, ruinous pedicures, psychic shenanigans, and biker bar fisticuffs won’t stop Brie from unmasking the killer, even when romantic befuddlement throws her a curve.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
In this new cozy mystery series, we meet Brie Hooker when she arrives to help her Aunt Eva with her farm after her Aunt Lilly passes away. Brie, a chef, and a vegan is sure her diet choices are going to be fodder for many jokes and make meals very interesting, but that is the least of her worries when her aunt’s pig, Tammy, digs up a human skull right in the middle of Aunt Lilly’s wake.
It is soon determined that the bones belong to Aunt Eva’s husband that had been declared dead after he went missing many years ago. The sheriff is quick to try to pick Eva as his prime suspect. But Brie is going to prove him wrong even if she may get killed in the process. Thankfully she has a couple handsome men ready to stay by her side to protect her, even if she knows she can take care of herself.
I liked main character Brie right away. Her relationship with her aunt and her parents was very caring and loving. While being a vegan is very important to her she understands that lifestyle is not for everyone. She can cook anything and makes delicious meals but always has a vegan dish for herself and others to try. She gets that she is working on a goat farm and they sell goat milk items. She also realizes she needs to learn a lot more about goats if she is going stay on the farm.
We also meet Andy and Paint, two young men, friends of Aunt Eva, and very interested in a romantic relationship with Brie. For the first book in a new series, I found all the characters very well developed. The dialogue was spot on and Brie’s meat and cheese curse words cracked me up. Her aunt holds her weight in the comedic department too but her minimal cursing in a little stronger than Brie.
The murder was a real cold case happening so long ago. It turned out there were quite a few suspects and took a lot of more digging after Tammy’s discovery to wrap this mystery up. There were several exciting moments as Brie got closer to the truth.
I really enjoyed all the “pet’s” names. The author explains some of them at the beginning of the book. I also enjoyed Ms. Lovely’s writing style. It is very descriptive. I felt right in the middle of all the drama, but especially at the end when Brie and her friend were in so much danger. I was on the edge of my seat.
This book was a perfect escape for me. Great characters, a strong plot, Southern charm and a wheelbarrow full of humor. I am not sure when the next book will be released but it can’t be soon enough for me.
You can find out about Linda Lovely and her books on her website here.
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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.”
