"Murder in Waiting" By Lynn Cahoon: Review/Giveaway

by Kathleen Costa

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win an ebook copy of this book, and a link to purchase it.

Weddings, Walls, and...Murder!
Ten years ago Jill Gardner was a big-city lawyer; now she lives in South Cove, California, and owns Coffee, Books and More. It’s a popular place to grab a cup of coffee, read a book, join a book club, or attend a special event, like the Business-to-Business meetings, but recently it’s the online presence set up by barista Deek Hill that is keeping the bookstore comfortably in the black. Jill’s love life with the local detective Greg King, is a bright spot; although marriage has not been vocalized in the “Will you-s,” it is a topic in everyone else’s conversations. He was also her solid law enforcement connection, along with Toby, when she refuses to ignore those pesky felonies. There’s her lovely “fur” friend Emma to provide companionship on her beach runs, and Aunt Jackie Ekroth to help out at the coffeehouse with her fiancé Harrold Snider who is on a meditation kick. Her BFFs are always there to support her, but currently Amy Newman is preoccupied with her wedding to Justin in only three, no two, months away. Jill is a “serial worrier,” so it’s understandable that she might be a bit stressed these days. Decorations need to be finished, and as the Maid of Honor, she’s been pegged (possibly manipulated) to plan an “epic bachelorette” party...in Vegas! Pushing away nightmare memories of her high-school wedding planning project and her own wedding that ended in divorce, she starts the planning...lists, online searches, decisions. What happens in Vegas, stays there, sure, but what about all the stress before that!

“No matter what they teach you in high-school, it turns out not everyone can do everything”
—Jill Gardner, Murder in Waiting

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Murder in Waiting earns 5/5 Escaped Sea Lions...Entertaining Fun!
Jill has been trying unsuccessfully to get the Historical Society to approve her home as a historical spot on the Central California Coast. Siting budget constraints, the official letter she received suggested she wait another year to reapply. Few seemed to care she had the last remaining wall of the South Cove Mission in her backyard, a wall that kept Greg from having his backyard barbecue party patio. She was approached by a travel writer, Mike Masters, about doing an article on her “Mission Wall.” He worried that so many sites have been damaged or destroyed without being chronicled. However, Jill was not interested and strongly shunned his proposal. But, later Frank Gleason from the Society caught Jill on he street; frantic, he questioned whether Jill had seen the letter. After letting him have a big piece of her mind, he says, “Just ignore the letter,” along with “Just don’t do anything stupid.” Jill apologizes for her outburst and thanks Frank, although she’s not sure about this change of heart. However, from the bookshop window, Jill sees Frank animated on his phone standing by his car...then, a black truck careens down the road, swerves, and hits Frank...he’s dead!

WOW! Lynn Cahoon has penned another compelling drama with an entertaining look into small towns, land developers, city councils, walls, coffee, books, and murder. The fate of the “Mission Wall” is one key to this story, and sides are drawn between preservation and progress. At first, motive seems obvious, but I’ve read enough Cahoon books to know, my first thoughts always need revising. The murder mystery had plenty of twists, misdirections, and a “Watch out!” ending. Threats. Greed. Abductions. Secrets. Lies. All in the life of a cozy “Tourist Trap Mystery.” Lynn uses a first-person narrative from Jill’s perspective sharing her memories, worries, and inner thoughts to paint a picture of a strong, caring female character who has more intuition (Esmeralda thinks psychic abilities) if she’d just let it flow. Lynn’s writing style incorporates descriptive language to set scenes, appearances, and tone and realistic dialogue to illustrate emotions and personalities. It’s definitely a can’t miss page-turner...all the way to the end!

Bonus! I love the idea that many cozy authors provide an easy to-follow recipe as a literally treat for reader. In this book enjoy Easy, Low-Carb Egg Muffins. They can be prepared ahead of time, then microwaved, and served with fresh fruit.

Be a Big Lynn Cahoon Fan!
First, a big shout out to this fellow spud, Lynn Cahoon! New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Lynn Cahoon pens the ten-book Tourist Trap Mystery series. she has six novellas that highlight a particularly fun holiday or season. Along with the Tourist Trap Mystery, Lynn Cahoon writes two other cozy mystery series: the five-book Cat Latimer series set in small town Aspen Hills, Colorado, and my favorite the soon-to-be six-book Farm-to-Fork series set in River Vista, Idaho. Both have an entertaining writing style and delightful set of characters.

Facebook—Lynn Cahoon Author
Website—Lynn Cahoon Be sure to sign up for her newsletter.

To enter to win an ebook copy of Murder in Waiting, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line "waiting" or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen July 18, 2020 . U.S. residents only and you must be 18 or older to enter. You can read our privacy statement here if you like. We delete all emails after the contest is over.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section in Kings River Life and in our mystery category here on KRL News & Reviews. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. And check out our new mystery podcast which features mystery short stories and first chapters read by local actors! A new episode went up this week!

You can use this link to purchase the book. If you have adblocker on you may not be able to see the Amazon link:

Kathleen Costa is a long-time resident of the Central Valley, and although born in Idaho, she considers herself a “California Girl.” Graduating from CSU-Sacramento, she is a 35+ year veteran teacher having taught in grades 1-8 in schools from Sacramento to Los Angeles to Stockton to Lodi. Currently Kathleen is enjoying her retirement revitalizing hobbies along with exploring writing, reading for pleasure, and spending 24/7 with her husband.

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