A Curio Killing (A Keepsake Cove Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Setting – Maryland
Midnight Ink (September 8, 2019)
Paperback: 264 pages

Synopsis

Callie finds treble in Keepsake Cove when her ex-boyfriend is framed for murder . . . 

Callie Reed is looking forward to her first Keepsake Cove spring festival. But her excitement dims considerably 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.

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Review

This is my 3rd journey back to this town and it kept me guessing until the very end.  I can’t even begin to image a town that has such a variety of collectible stores, but it seems to work for Keepsake Cove!

Callie is a smart woman and is enjoying her new life running her grandmother’s music box store.  She has settled into the town nicely, met a new guy that runs the cafe, and she has solved a murder or two.  The festival in town brings back her ex, Hank, who seems pretty clueless.  Why he thinks she would let him stay with her when they aren’t together is quite a mystery.  The band manager turns up dead and Hank is accused of the murder.  Callie knows Hank and can’t believe he would kill anyone so of course, she sets off to find the real killer.

I have to say this mystery is well written and I did not suspect the killer.  I was focused on one character, but I should have known it wouldn’t be that simple.  More and more characters were revealed to have ties to the deceased and I couldn’t figure out who killed the manager.  The author does a great job with red herrings and leading you down many wrong paths!  When the mystery comes to a head and Callie finds herself in trouble, well you could have pushed me over with a feather because this character was nowhere on my radar.

I enjoyed the continued love story between Callie and Brian.  I am thrilled to see them taking it slow and that he didn’t go off the deep end when Hank showed up in town and Callie was trying to help clear his name.  He’s definitely a keeper.

Overall we really enjoyed this book and feel like the series is continuing to improve and become stronger books.  I can’t wait to see what is in store for book 4.  We give this book 5 paws up.

About the Author

Mary Ellen Hughes is the bestselling author of the Pickled and Preserved Mysteries, the Craft Corner Mysteries, and the Maggie Olenski Mysteries, along with several short stories. The Keepsake Cove series begins with A Fatal Collection and continues with A VINTAGE DEATH and A CURIO KILLING.

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