Review: Murder at Pirate's Cove by Josh Lanyon
Murder at Pirate's Cove by Josh Lanyon
Series: Secrets and Scrabble, Book 1
Publisher: JustJoshin Publishing, Inc.
Genre: Male/Male Mystery
ASIN: B0826X61C9
Source: Author
Josh Lanyon Reading Order
Ellery Page, aspiring screenwriter, Scrabble champion and guy-with-worst-luck-in-the-world-when-it-comes-to-dating, is ready to make a change. So when he learns he's inherited both a failing bookstore and a falling-down mansion in the quaint seaside village of Pirate's Cove on Buck Island, Rhode Island, it's full steam ahead!
Sure enough, the village is charming, its residents amusingly eccentric, and widowed police chief Jack Carson is decidedly yummy (though probably as straight as he is stern). However, the bookstore is failing, the mansion is falling down, and there's that little drawback of finding rival bookseller--and head of the unwelcoming-committee--Trevor Maples dead during the annual Buccaneer Days celebration.
Still, it could be worse. And once Police Chief Carson learns Trevor was killed with the cutlass hanging over the door of Ellery's bookstore, it is.
A quaint seaside town with picturesque streets, adorably-named shops, and pirate-themed celebrations…Pirate's Cove is practically made for a postcard. It's exactly the kind of change New York screenwriter Ellery Page needs. Well, it was until a dead body shows up in his newly-inherited bookstore. Ellery is having a hard enough time saving the failing bookstore and trying to keep the crumbling mansion he's also inherited from falling down around his ears, so being accused of murder is almost enough to make him want to run screaming back to the city. If he wants to make a go of it in Pirate's Cove, Ellery will need to think like the detectives in the books he sells and – much to the consternation of handsome the police chief Jack Carson – discover who is trying to frame him before time runs out.
Murder at Pirate's Cove is a delightful cozy mystery with interesting characters and a quirky town I can't wait come back to. I admit, cozy mysteries aren't my usual fare but I love Josh Lanyon's writing so of course I wanted to give this a try. I'm so glad I did, for this book was a fast-paced, fun, and completely addictive.
Ellery isn't a detective – heck, he doesn't even read mysteries – but when someone's trying to frame you for murder, you (at least in fiction) put on your deerstalker cap and get to work. Ellery has a bright, engaging personality that drew me in even when he's at his most exhausted and frustrated. He's also readers' entree into the world of Pirate's Cove with its cleverly named stores and gossipy residents. I enjoyed the bits of Pirate's Cove that were introduced in this story and I cannot wait to learn more as the Secrets and Scrabble series goes on. The most intriguing character in Pirate's Cove is its police chief, Jack Carson. We only get a taste of the real man behind the badge in this story, but oh, what a deliciously intriguing taste it is. There's no romance in Murder at Pirate's Cove, but the energy fairly crackles between Ellery and Jack and I can't wait for the promise of what's to come.
The question of who murdered the rather unlikable Trevor Maples is at the center of the story and the mystery itself is wholly engaging. I loved watching Ellery put everything together and Ms. Lanyon keeps the twists coming while still making it believable. Since this is a cozy mystery there is no on-page violence or sex, but even to a non-cozy reader like myself the book isn't missing anything from the lack of it. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed Murder at Pirate's Cove and I cannot wait to learn more about Ellery, Jack, and the residents of Pirate's Cove!
FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
This entry was posted in Josh Lanyon, JustJoshin Publishing, reviews
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