"Big Trouble in Little Greektown" By Kate Collins: Review/Giveaway/Guest Post

by Cynthia Chow & Kate Collins

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of the book and a link to purchase it. We also have a fun guest post by Kate.

Big Trouble in Little Greektown: A Goddess of Greene St. Mystery by Kate Collins 
Review by Cynthia Chow

Having had something of a run on murders and mystery solving, it only makes sense that Case Donnelly and Athena Spencer would be on the precipice of becoming full-time, licensed private investigators. Before they can open their Greene Street Detective Agency, though, Athena enlists Case in accompanying her to Sequoia, Michigan’s Entitled Art of the Park festival, where an Art for the Park section has been dedicated to the Save Our Dunes organization. Still working for her family’s Spencer’s Garden Center, Athena is very sympathetic to the cause of preserving Sequoia’s natural dunes, which are in danger of being eroded and the protective forests razed out for developments. A nature walk intended to showcase the beauty of the dunes and prospective parklands instead turns horrific when they discover the body of Hugo Lukan stuffed in the underbrush.

Image Source Kensington

A photographer who had made Athena and the Garden Center infamous with his photo of her standing with the Treasure of Athena Statue, Hugo had a reputation for affairs and lack of morals. He had also approached them earlier at the festival wanting to hire Case professionally, with Lukan hinting that what he knew would greatly affect the efforts of S.O.D. Wanting to get a jump-start on the investigation despite the lack of an official license, Athena begins to investigate Hugo’s death and some very incriminating photos. Along with her off-books detecting, Athena continues to write the Blog by Goddess Anon, in which she anonymously vents and works out issues related to being part of an extended, extremely enmeshed, Greek-American family. While her own father may in fact come from English Stock, her traditional mother is determined that her daughters meet and marry a Good Greek Boy, which is why Athena’s sister Delphi has been submitted to a number of forced blind dates. Hiding the fact that she already has a non-Greek police officer boyfriend is nearly as important to Delphi as proving the identity of the Goddess Anon, whom she believes must be Athena…until she doesn’t. 

This third in the series celebrates Athena’s Greek heritage through their mouth-watering meals and delicious treats. Custard-filled galaktobourekos may be challenging to pronounce and even more difficult to spell, but their descriptions will have readers drooling for one immediately. While Delphi forces Athena to lie to their mother rather than risk facing her disapproval and the matriarch never sees herself as the meddler portrayed in Athena’s blogs. As much as Athena may complain about the intrusiveness of her family, she adores their close bonds and huge Sunday family meals. Their detective agency’s silent partner Lila Talbot is proving to be anything but, and Athena is learning to adjust and accept the moneyed, entitled, and extremely connected heiress. Full of humor and genial banter, a surprise twist of an ending will delight fans of the mysteries by Kate Carlisle and be left anxiously awaiting the next appearances of their favorite characters.

Cynthia Chow is the branch manager of Kaneohe Public Library on the island of Oahu. She balances a librarian lifestyle of cardigans and hair buns with a passion for motorcycle riding and regrettable tattoos (sorry, Mom).

RX: Two Tablespoons of Laughter
by Kate Collins

Is there anything better than a good belly laugh? The kind where you hold your sides, wipe your eyes, and rub the muscles in your face because they hurt? Seriously, when was the last time you did that? Did you know that doing so boosts your immune system and reduces your risk of serious illness?

Kate Collins
New research reported in Scientific American has shown once again that laughter is indeed the best medicine. Why? Not only is it therapeutic, but it has no side effects! What drug manufacturer can say that? (How about none?) But even a normal laugh will work wonders. You needn’t split your sides to get the health benefits. Just be happy.

My favorite TV shows and movies are comedies. My favorite friends have great senses of humors. When my family gets together, we vie to make each other laugh. And the first thing that attracted me to my beloved husband was his wicked wit. He could crack me up with just a glance. In fact, I love to laugh so much that I put lots of humor in my mysteries. 

Imagine a big, noisy Greek family with a strong-willed mama who is intent on seeing her daughters marry “good Greek boys.” Imagine a family of four sisters – three named after Greek goddesses and the youngest named after the Oracle of Delphi. Imagine those sisters as being feisty, independent young women, one of whom has a penchant for getting herself entangled in murders, and one of whom believes she can foresee the future – with hilarious results. Imagine a peppy baby raccoon in the middle of all that zaniness. Then throw in a good murder case to solve and you have – ta da – The Goddess of Greene St. Mysteries. I hope you’ll give them a try.

Do you believe in the power of laughter? Are you generally a happy person? What kinds of things make you laugh?

To enter to win a copy of Big Trouble in Little Greektown, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line "greektown,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen February 19, 2022. US residents only and you must be 18 or older to enter. If entering via email please include your mailing address in case you win. If entering via comment please include your email address so we can contact you. BE AWARE THAT DUE TO THE CURRENT CRISIS THERE MAY BE A DELAY IN SHIPPING THE WINNING BOOK. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.

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 or click here. If you have adblocker on you may not be able to see the Amazon link:

Kate Collins is the New York Times bestselling mystery author of The Flower Shop Mystery series, now on the Hallmark Mystery Movie channel. Although English and Irish herself, Kate had the good fortune of marrying into a big, zany Greek-American family where she learned all about Greek life, most of which revolves around food and laughter. She uses those experiences to enrich her new Goddess of Greene St. Mysteries, so be prepared for anything, from laughter to nail-biting suspense. Opa!  
Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.

Comments

  1. Does Kurt Russell have a cameo? Count me in!

    ReplyDelete
  2. These are new to me but I love a funny series.
    kozo8989@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. Fun cover! Would really love to read.
    diannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yes, I am generally a happy person. The ins and outs of daily life often make me laugh.

    Nancy
    allibrary (at) aol (dot) com

    ReplyDelete
  5. this would be a new series for me.
    Sounds interesting - good luck to the
    new private investigators. thanks
    txmlhl(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thank you for the opportunity to win a book! Claire.denning.11 at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  7. Sounds good, count me in! tWarner419@aol.com

    ReplyDelete

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