Review & Giveaway – A Hush at Midnight by Marlene M. Bell
A HUSH AT MIDNIGHT
By Marlene M. Bell
Cozy Mystery / Small Town Mystery
Publisher: Ewephoric
Pages: 368
Publication Date: September 5, 2024
Synopsis
A manipulator.
A fatal plan for revenge.
Award-winning author of the Annalisse series, Marlene M. Bell, brings distant friends together in the rural South only to have one of them become the victim of a brutal crime of passion.
Once celebrated for her show-stopping pastries and irresistible desserts, former celebrity chef Laura Harris is now making headlines for a far darker reason.
Laura has been accused of murder.
How could this petite chef have brutally smothered the beloved small-town matriarch, World War II ferry pilot veteran, Hattie Stenburg? Hattie wasn’t just a pillar of the community; she was Laura’s confidant and mentor. The shocking twist? Hattie’s will contained recent changes, bypassing next-of kin and leaving her entire fortune and historic estate to Laura.
As Laura scrambles to clear her name, she uncovers sinister secrets lurking beneath the town’s idyllic surface. The real murderer is always one step ahead, leaving taunting clues and threatening Laura to leave Texas—or face deadly consequences. With time not a luxury, Laura must untangle the web of deceit before the killer makes her the next victim.
In A Hush at Midnight, Marlene M. Bell twists an amateur sleuth crime mystery into a race against the clock to solve her mentor’s murder.
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Review
Danger lurks around every corner for pastry chef Laura Harris.
Laura has traveled from California to Texas to help a friend with her new bakery. On the way, she stops to visit a dear friend and mentor, Hattie. Hattie is a spitfire, and it is a shame that she is murdered early in the book, and we don’t have a chance to get to know her better. Stories about Hattie’s past are shared with the readers, which helps bring her to life as we learn about her aviation days and much more. She may have been 93, but she lived a full life. I loved that she would correspond with Laura via handwritten letters. This is a dying art form.
Laura is convinced that someone murdered Hattie but is having a hard time proving it to the police. They think Laura might have killed Hattie, which is a silly notion considering Laura’s stature, and what motive could she have to kill her? A chase to the end ensues to uncover the murderer and honor Hattie. She has some help from her father and Hattie’s lawyer.
I will admit that I did not like Laura much in the first half of the book. I felt like she steamrolled over everyone in trying to prove Hattie was murdered. There is a confrontation with her pilot boyfriend that doesn’t go well. Laura didn’t show much mercy for anyone if they got in her way. However, once the mystery is unraveled, Laura does soften. There are acts of kindness near the end of the book that redeems her previous actions.
While Laura is a pastry chef, we don’t see her cooking much or creating pastries with Duska. I would have enjoyed a little more kitchen action with her friend. There is an unresolved issue regarding her friend, Duska. I don’t know if this will be a series and if this situation will be resolved in the next book.
While I didn’t guess the killer, I had my suspicions about one of the characters. I can’t pinpoint anything specific; something just didn’t seem right. I was glad a few other characters were not involved in the crimes. You won’t lack for potential suspects.
I can’t finish my review without mentioning Moon Pie, Hattie’s Corgi. I love dogs, and it is even better when one is included in a book!
While there are a few unresolved situations, I still enjoyed the mystery and hope this becomes a series. I can see a lot of potential for this town and the characters. We give it 4 paws up.
About the Author
Marlene M. Bell is an award-winning author of the Annalisse romantic suspense series. She’s also an acclaimed artist and photographer using her pictures for descriptive prose that eventually lands in her mysteries. Marlene lives with her husband of 42 years on their East Texas ranch with numerous sheep. When she’s not writing, drawing or painting, she is shepherdess to their Katahdin hair sheep and ranch kitties.
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