A Curio Killing
Callie Reed is looking forward to her first Keepsake Cove spring festival. But her excitement dims when she learns that her ex-boyfriend, Hank, will be performing with one of the hired country-western bands. Callie vows to keep her distance, but that changes when the band’s manager, Bobby Linville, is found dead, killed with the music box Hank bought at Callie’s shop.
Hank is soon singing a sad tune in a detention center with Callie his only lifeline. Though thoroughly aware of his many faults, she knows violence and murder aren’t in his blood. But that means one of her fellow Keepsake Cove residents must be hiding a dark secret—something Callie desperately needs to uncover.
Series: A Keepsake Cove Mystery – Book 3
Author: Mary Ellen Hughes
Genre: Cozy Mystery/Business
Publisher: Midnight Ink
Page Count: 266
Publishing Date: September 8, 2019
Rating: 
Here is the latest in the “A Keepsake Cove Mystery” cozy series by Mary Ellen Hughes, A Curio Killing from Midnight Ink https://www.midnightinkbooks.com.
Callie has had a lot of changes in the past year, her home, career, relationships, and everything else. Mostly for the better. But when Hank, her ex shows up out of the blue, her new life takes a back seat to the problems of having Hank around. Namely, his incarceration for the murder of his band’s manager.
Most of the returning characters in this series have a part to play in this new addition, as they do in most cozies. Unfortunately, in this case, they don’t play a significant enough role to keep this book from being slow and frustrating. The plot is not compelling enough to keep the reader engaged and, in most cases, has readers upset with the author, the story, and the series.
The pace is not what I was expecting, its slower than the other cozies in the series, and seems to have no real investigative path to follow. Having the main character suddenly willing to help her ex-cheating boyfriend, even at the expense of her mother, after two previous books were about condemning him, may have taken this story down a road that most readers will not want to go.
Callie seems willing to risk losing Brian, even her beloved aunts store and have her mother play second fiddle when her health is at stake to help Hank at any cost. It just doesn’t feel right and makes the plot implausible.
While reading this book, I spent too much time wondering why Callie would risk throwing away her new life for a bad ex. It simply did not make sense and didn’t hold with the premise of the other cozies in the series. I understand wanting to help a friend, but not if it’s an ex who lied and cheated.
The murderer might give readers a bit of a surprise, and there are a few twists and turns that are entertaining. However, I did not enjoy this book, and couldn’t get into it as much as other cozies in the series. Hopefully, the next book in this series will make up for the unconvincing plot of A Curio Killing.
Other cozies readers may enjoy include Allison Brook’s https://www.marilynlevinson.com/ also writing under the name Marilyn Levinson, “A Haunted Library Mystery” https://www.thecozyreview.com/death-overdue/ or Mollie Cox Bryan’s cozy series http://molliecoxbryan.com/ “A Cora Crafts Mystery” https://www.thecozyreview.com/no-charm-intended/.
About the Author:
Mary Ellen took a circuitous route to mystery writing, but the constant of it all was her love of books. Growing up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, she studied piano along with all the more usual subjects and took pleasure in writing. But practicalities of earning a living led her into the sciences. Mary Ellen received a degree in Medical Technology at Alverno College and worked in hospital laboratories, including clinical chemistry at the National Institutes of Health. She eventually found her way to what she enjoyed most: writing mysteries.
As a break from all the time spent at the computer, doubles tennis is her favorite activity, followed by travel, and, you guessed it, reading.
Contact Mary Ellen: http://www.maryellenhughes.com
Find Mary Elle on Social Media
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/MaryEllenHughesauthor
Pinterest – https://www.pinterest.com/mehughes13/
Twitter – https://twitter.com/mehughesauthor
Follow the Cozy Review on Bloglovin’
Contact The Cozy Review
Leave a Reply