Book Review
Towhee Get Your Gun by J.R. Ripley
Book 2: A Bird Lover's Mystery Series
Publisher: Lyrical Underground / Kensington / Penguin Random House
Publication Date: January 3, 2017
Format: Paperback - 230 pages
Kindle - 1021 KB
Nook - 815 KB
ISBN: 978-1601838339
ASIN: B01E2H1NQGBNID: 978-1601838322
Genre: Cozy Mystery
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Buy The Series: A Bird Lover's Mystery Series
Book 1: Die, Die Birdie
Book 2: Towhee Get Your Gun
Book 3: The Woodpecker Always Pecks Twice (Pub Date: May 16, 2017)
Book 4: To Kill A Hummingbird (Pub Date: July 11, 2017)
Book 5: Chickadee Chickadee Bang Bang (Pub Date: Sept 12, 2017)
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Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author / publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.
Book Description:
When Birds & Bees owner Amy Simms volunteers to act in a local production of Annie, Get Your Gun, she finds herself upstaged by a killer waiting in the wings . . .
Who’s got time for birdwatching? Amy has enough to do running her shop, fighting attempts by the town planning commission to demolish her old Victorian house, and rescuing an injured towhee. Yet somehow she allows herself to get roped into performing in the Ruby Lake, North Carolina, community theater’s new musical after some cast members get injured by mysterious mishaps. The production seems plagued by bad luck, but events turn tragic when a member of the company is found murdered in a locked dressing room.
Trading in her binoculars for a magnifying glass, Amy steps into the role of amateur sleuth and soon discovers the victim ruffled a lot of feathers. With a flock of suspects, Amy will need to beat the bushes before the cagey killer takes flight. After all, the show must go on . . .
My Book Review:
In Towhee Get Your Gun, the second book in the Bird Lover's Mystery series, author J.R. Ripley weaves an intriguing cozy mystery tale that follows the latest amateur sleuth adventures of Bird & Bees shop owner Amy Simms. Amy unexpectedly finds herself embroiled in the mysterious mishaps that plague the local community theater, Ruby Lake Theater On The Square (TOTS), and solving the murder of theater crew member Patsy Klein.
Set in the southern town of Ruby Lake, North Carolina, Amy is busy with running Birds & Bees, a birding supply store in an old three story Victorian home with her best friend and business partner Kim Christy. But when mysterious mishaps sideline some of the cast of the theater's production of Annie Get Your Gun, Amy unwillingly finds herself substituting for the wounded actress in the production, which turns tragic with the mysterious death of crew member Patsy Klein, and Amy's cousin Rhonda is implicated as a suspect in the murder. And if that isn't enough, Amy continues to have problems with the town wanting to demolish her Victorian house / shop; rescues a injured Eastern Towhee; and has neighbor issues with Paul Anderson, who is opening a new beer garden next door with partner Craig Bigelow, who happens to be Amy's ex-boyfriend!
Towhee Get Your Gun is an entertaining whodunit tale that has enough quirky characters, witty banter and humor, drama, secrets, clues, frenemies, romance, a growing list of suspects, and intriguing twists and turns that will keep you guessing the identity of the murderer. You can't help but get caught up in the drama and calamity that ensues as Amy tries to balance solving the murder while trying to save her Victorian home/shop from having a date with the wrecking ball. Amy's amateur investigative adventure unfolds with a wonderful balance of comedy, drama, and suspense that easily kept me guessing, and left me wanting more.
Towhee Get Your Gun is an entertaining southern cozy murder mystery that will engage you to join in the crazy adventures and trials and tribulations that occur in Ruby Lake, while providing you with a dose of good ol' southern charm and humor. I really enjoyed the author's rich description of the charming western North Carolina small town of Ruby Lake and it's colorful townsfolk, and his impressive knowledge of birds and flowers. So pull up a rocking chair and set down for a spell with some sweet tea while Amy takes you on her latest madcap adventure!
RATING: 4 STARS
About The Author
J.R. Ripley is the pen name of Glenn Meganck, the critically acclaimed author of the Tony Kozol mystery series. As a member of the Mystery Writers of America, he has chaired the Edgar committee for Best Original Paperback novel and served on the Best Short Story Committee. As a member of the International Association of Crime Writers, he has served on the Hammett Award committee for Best Novel. When not writing books, Glenn is writing songs, often singing them to the consternation of his audience and neighbors, or involved in one of his many passions, none of which have involved any of the dead bodies that seem to keep cropping up in his mysteries. For more information about him, visit glennmeganck.com.
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Tour Schedule:
January 9 – Valerie’s Musings – REVIEW
January 10 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
January 11 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
January 12 – Books,Dreams,Life – SPOTLIGHT
January 13 – Cozy Up With Kathy – SPOTLIGHT
January 14 – Girl with Book Lungs – SPOTLIGHT
January 15 – 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, &. Sissy, Too! – SPOTLIGHT
January 16 – A Date with a Book – REVIEW
January 17 – Turning the Pages – SPOTLIGHT
January 18 – Varietats – REVIEW
January 19 – A Holland Reads – SPOTLIGHT
January 20 – Jersey Girl Book Reviews – REVIEW
January 21 – Bibliophile Reviews – REVIEW
January 22 – Island Confidential – SPOTLIGHT
