Book 44, 2024
A Dark and Stormy Murder by Julia Buckley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I finished my "spare" book this evening. It was A Dark and Stormy Murder by Julia Buckley, and it's the first in her "Writer's Apprentice" series of cozy mysteries. The main character is aspiring author, Lena London.
Lena can't believe her good fortune when she lands a job as an assistant to her favorite author, Camilla Graham. It was Camilla who inspired Lena to become a writer, and now she's working with her on a new, romantic suspense novel. Lena is living in Camilla's beautiful Victorian home in idyllic Blue Lake, Indiana. Best of all, she's getting paid for this gig. Not everything is perfect, however. Lena soon finds herself the subject of town gossip after she befriends a local recluse, Sam West. Sam is under suspicion for murdering his wife, but no body has ever been found. Instead, it's Lena who finds a body on the lakeshore in front of Camilla's house. Now the two women are drawn into a mystery that seems to center on Camilla's house and a secret it may be harboring.
This was certainly gripping. In fact, there were times I eschewed my regular reading material because I was engrossed in this book. It had an almost Gothic feel to it, aided by the excerpts from Camilla's new book that prefaced each chapter. Lena was convinced that Sam was innocent of any wrongdoing where his wife was concerned, and it was interesting to see her dig into that mystery as well as the current mystery surrounding Camilla's house and the murder. Characters were portrayed wonderfully, from Lena and Camilla to handyman Bob Dawkins and his horrible son. LOL! I was utterly entertained by that: 'Bob Dawkins and his horrible son'. When Lena asked Camilla what was so horrible about him, all Camilla could tell her is that everyone in town referred to them that way: Bob Dawkins and his horrible son. What a hoot! I was not so entertained by the introduction of two potential romantic interests for Lena: both Sam and Detective Doug Heller. I am weary of the 'romantic interest is in law enforcement' trope when it comes to cozy mysteries, but I prefer Doug for Lena over Sam.
Favorite lines:
♦ Something about fall air always speaks to my soul.
♦ Nothing bonds two people so well as loving the same books.
♦ "I refuse to be self-conscious. I'm going to eat this whole giant waffle in front of you."
♦ No cat had ever lain awake worrying over some external drama.
Marvelous book, five stars.
1. Does the mc work at/as one of the following: baker/bakery/sweet shop/tea shop/coffee shop, library/librarian, antique/vintage shop, book store, fashion/boutique, bed & breakfast? No, she's an author
2. Does the mc live at her (or his) place of occupation? Yes
3. Is the love interest involved in law enforcement? (Police officer, sheriff, detective, PI, FBI) One of them is, yes
4. Does the mc have a dog/cat as a pet? Yes, she has a cat
5. Is the mc's BFF either a gay guy or a ditzy/zany woman? No
6. Did the mc find the body? Yes
7. Did the mc wind up in mortal danger at the end of the book? Eh, she was threatened with it
8. Is the mc's mother either: dead, absent, far removed, ditzy and dithering, or overbearing/disapproving/meddling? Yes, she's dead
9. If mother is dead/absent, does the mc have another mother-figure (grandmother, aunt, mom's friend, or an older friend)? Yes, Camilla
10. Is the mc child-free? (Either no children or else grown children--i.e. no small children to look after) Yes