Small-town life brings big-city problems.Kalina Greystone’s return home to Ellesworth, MA to take over the family’s comic book shop brings back old friends and even older secrets. The death of her Great Aunt Agatha in plain sight at the annual Solstice Fair pushes her to snoop where she doesn’t belong–much to the chagrin of former high school sweetheart, Detective Christian Harper. As Kalina … Christian Harper. As Kalina digs into her great aunt’s past, she uncovers a dark truth that Agatha and her closest friends were hoping to take to the grave. A truth the killer wants revealed.
Will Kalina and Chris catch the killer before the killer’s thirst for vengeance is sated?
PAINS AND PENALTIES is the first book in this quirky, fast-paced cozy mystery series where you’ll find a dash of nerdy fun mixed with your new favorite amateur sleuth.
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Kalina finds a clue, that leads here to investigate something new, where she finds another clue, and so on until she figures out who did the dirty deeds. The story was well done, with a believable twist for the end. The foreshadowing built up nicely, and kept me guessing at what was to come through the entire read.I loved main character Kalina’s relationship with her nephew as well.
Kalina is back home after getting her degree and taking over her dads comic book store. Her aunt was a major support in her life but is now gone and she wants to know the truth. Luckily, an old friend, Chris, is now a detective and they work to find the killer. Kalina finds out a lot more than she bargained for about her aunt. Loved the situations and characters. The storyline had plenty of surprises and twists to keep you entertained. Even a bit of a possible romance starting with this first book.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
To be honest, this wasn’t my favourite Cozy Mystery book ever, mainly because I struggled to relate to the main character even if the story was quite interesting. Kalina comes off as rude and obnoxious in the beginning, I mean how dare the Detective (!) not want her questioning his witness, I mean after all she owns a comic book store, so yeah she must be qualified… I don’t know why this keeps happening, but it is a major pet peeve of mine.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
finding her way in her hometown feels both familiar and foreign. The comic store was not what she envisioned when she completed her mba and yet it had potential, as well as sentimental value as her inheritance from her father
Her Aunt had been her cheerleader and a welcome support.
That the boy she left behind was now a single man and a police detective with maybe a bit of a connection still between them – a surprise but intriguing
The deaths that followed, more heartbreak for their small town
Can she move ahead with the pieces left after all the tragedy?
Bittersweet cozy growing pains and challenges
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
amateur-sleuth, law-enforcement, murder-investigation, small-business, small-town, family-dynamics, friendship, short
It takes a lot of skill to craft a mystery this short, but this one works! Kalina takes over as owner of the local comic book shop when she returns to town from the job that required a business degree after her father died. But she has an eminently logical mind and quality research skills, so when her teenage nephew witnessed a dramatic death at the town fundraiser and she suspects foul play, she dives right in! A very good read made even better by narrator Barbara Nevins Taylor! Whispersync wins again!