Maggie Blackburn

A Killer Romance by Maggie Blackburn is the third A Beach Read Mystery. It can be read as a standalone. Those who have read the first two books will find the five-year time jump jarring. Summer Merriweather sprains her ankle at the beginning of the book which means she cannot attend the author event. There is too much focus on Summer’s pain and her pain medication (it is mentioned repeatedly). Since Summer is at home, readers do not get to experience the murder firsthand (Summer watches it online). It would have been helpful to meet the victim before she was murdered. When Summer’s friend, Glads becomes the prime suspect, she is determined to prove her innocence. The mystery was overdone. The suspects are obvious and so are the clues (one had me rolling my eyes). Repetitiveness was another problem (I got it the first time). There were storylines introduced that related to the whodunit that were not resolved. The out-of-state detective was another oddity (I did not like some of the things he said to Summer either). Of course, he ends up being the lead detective on the case (that makes sense). Summer finds the detective easy on the eyes. The ending was rushed, and I was left with unanswered questions (what was so troublesome in Glads’s past for example). I did not understand why there was another time jump for the epilogue. I found the pacing to be off in the story, and there is mild foul language. Unfortunately, I did not enjoy my visit to St. Brigid Island.… (altro)

Alas. I like Molly's other incarnations, so I was excited to find this (based on the yummy, promising title) - even before I realized it was her.

I won't pile on to what others have said, which I unfortunately agree with for the most part.

What irked me the most were all the typos, miscues, and outright errors. Ex: one minute there is a tense, one-on-one dialogue with Summer and one of her mother's friends, but then suddenly, the name of someone else not in the room is replying. I can't tell you how many times I had to flip back and look to see if I'd missed something.

Nope.

And so many loose ends, in terms of build-up devices which are never addressed again or else seemed to be out of sync, or barely touched upon later, as well as other continuity problems, etc.

There is even a villainous character who is redeemed because he ACTUALLY SAVES A CAT!!! (look up Save the Cat if you don't know what I am talking about). And sadly, yes, it is so obvious who the perp is, and fairly early on, I only kept reading because I hoped there was a surprise twist.

Honestly, Molly acknowledges her new publisher and editing team most generously, but if they were working on MY baby and let this get out the door, I would be furious! Did anybody even give this a complete read-through edit??

Better luck next time. I am rooting for you!

… (altro)