In the new Vintage Kitchen Mystery from the author of Breaking the Mould, when an over-amorous handyman is found murdered, Jaymie will have to use every tool at her disposal to nab the culprit . . .“I have loved this series from the first book . . . it’s like returning to a favorite nook for a cup of tea. It will delight, entice, and drive a reader to want to solve the murder.” —Goodreads on No … murder.” —Goodreads on No Grater Danger
Looking forward to her girls-only college reunion vacation, Jaymie’s on cloud nine at the idea of lazy trips to the beach, dinner cruises on the nearby river, and snug sleeping in the vintage trailer she’s renovated. But no sooner does the group reconnect than her hopes turn to tension as petty squabbles and old acrimonies surface, along with tagalong friends, unexpected guests, and stalkerish ex-husbands. And when a local toolbelt Romeo with an eye for one of the women is found murdered, his home ablaze, the simmering hostility in the group suddenly shifts to secrecy.
Local law enforcement is zeroing in on the victim’s best friend and girlfriend as the most likely suspects, but Jaymie’s inquisitive instincts are telling her one of her former classmates may have been involved in the foul deed. Forced to navigate her fraught relationship with a local police detective and determined to uncover the myriad secrets her college friends are hiding, Jaymie knows she’ll have to dig deep to figure out whose alibi is cast iron, and whose is flimsy as tin . . .
Includes a vintage recipe!
Praise for the Vintage Kitchen Mysteries:
“All the right ingredients . . . Small-town setting, kitchen antiques . . . and a bowlful of mystery. A perfect recipe.” —New York Times bestselling author Susan Wittig Albert
“[A] charming new series.” —New York Times bestselling author Sheila Connolly
“A chilling whodunit.” —Richmond Times-Dispatch
“Well-plotted with several unexpected twists and more developed characters.” —The Mystery Reader
“Jaymie is a great character . . . She is inquisitive and full of surprises!” —Debbie’s Book Bag
About the Author:
Victoria Hamilton is the pseudonym of nationally bestselling romance author Donna Lea Simpson. Victoria is the author of three mystery series, the Lady Anne Addison Mysteries, the Vintage Kitchen Mysteries, and the Merry Muffin Mysteries. Her latest adventure in writing is a Regency-set historical mystery series, starting with A Gentlewoman’s Guide to Murder. She blogs at Killer Characters.
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Cast Iron Alibi is the 9th book in the Vintage Kitchen Mystery series written by Victoria Hamilton. It will be released on 11/5 and focuses on Jaymie’s all-girls-trip with her college pals. Clearly, shenanigans were going to ensue, and I was on board with all of them. What a fun book!
For those unfamiliar with the series, it focuses on amateur sleuth, Jaymie, who’s married with a young daughter and lives on the Canadian / US border. She collects vintage kitchen tools, writes a column for the local paper, and gets herself into bunches of innocent trouble. When an annual (although skipped the last 3 years) trip with her friends is re-scheduled to occur at Jaymie’s remote family cabin, things begin to get murky. The women have changed a lot in the last few years, and Jaymie’s regretting her decision to host the event–especially when random husbands and friends keep showing up, despite it supposedly being just the friends from college.
Murder, of course, happens to a local contractor in his fifties too. Which friend knew of and offed the guy? He wasn’t very nice, and he’d been cheating on his pregnant teenage girlfriend, but Jaymie doesn’t let murder go unpunished. Between befriending a detective, reprimanding a few new girls, and missing her husband (who took their daughter to visit family in Germany), we have a well-rounded and clever mystery to solve. The cast is large, but the guide at the front of the book helps and long-time readers know which people are just friendlies and townies. There are at least 10 new characters who could be guilty, but Hamilton effectively reminds us of everyone’s role, so we can understand the red herrings and potential motives.
Overall, the story was strong. It takes longer than usual for the murder to happen, but in this case, it works… as we really get to know each of the girlfriends visiting Jaymie, e.g. who’s happy, who’s miserable, who’s cheating, who’s lying… in the end, I was hoping 2 of them were innocent, as they were strong characters with good range and possibilities for the future. I won’t reveal any spoilers, so you’ll have to read the book for yourself. Kudos to the author for another great edition in this series. 4.5 stars rounded up… looking forward to the next one in 2020. I believe the title might be revealed soon too!
What first gripped me with the Cast Iron Alibi was the cover. This past summer, I went camping in a trailer similar to the one on the cover with some of my friends from high school. So that instantly brought back a fun memory, and then I read the synopsis of the book, and I was like, hmm. Sounds like our weekend in ways, but not with all the drama and definitely not the murder.
When I opened the book, the first thing I noticed was a cast of characters. And I was a little concerned with this. A cozy mystery having so many characters in a book, especially if this is the first one you’ve read of the series, can be challenging. I started reading and I found that wasn’t the case, which was great. Hamilton described the characters wonderfully and she included enough information from previous books that you weren’t lost or confused.
Some of the characters were very annoying. But this is true to life. I’ve known people from college whom I’ve remembered fondly and then later in life, I realized that they were kind of jerks the entire time and I just had rose colored glasses on. The one that really bothered me was Tiffany, who is one of the college friend’s sister-in-law. She was a very mean person, and Jaymie continued to let her stay there. She did eventually kick her out, but after the first time Tiffany was such a jerk. I would have told her to go.
The thing that I found interesting about this cozy mystery is that it didn’t follow the exact formula of other cozy mysteries that I’ve read. Usually the murder happens within the first few chapters and the main character stumbles across the body. In Cast Iron Alibi, I think it was about 70 pages in before there was finally a murder. So that was a little unique and different. It didn’t take away from the book at all that the murder happened later because there was so much drama going on with the Jaymie, all of her college friends, and all the people that they brought with them.
I did not see the killer coming, so that’s always a good thing for me. And the person who was the killer was an interesting choice. The other thing about this cozy that made it a little different than other cozies is it explored more sexual topics which are relevant to today’s world. I found that refreshing, because while I love cozy mysteries, this one felt more up to date. And in cozies they rarely, if ever, swear and if they do it’s hell or damn. Hamilton tried to push it a bit farther by having a character say Frick!
I am interested to get to know her husband, Jakob, and her stepdaughter, Jocie more in future books, since they were gone most of this book visiting family in Poland. I think her daughter, the brief amount of time that I met her, seems like a very fun character.
I would definitely recommend this book, and The Vintage Kitchen Mystery series. If you are interested, book one in the series is A Deadly Grind.
Cast Iron Alibi by Victoria Hamilton is book nine in the A Vintage Kitchen Mystery series. I have only read the last two in the series but was able to get caught up quickly.
When a local womanizing contractor is murdered with a vintage pie iron belonging to Jayme all eyes are on her visiting college friends.
Hamilton gives plenty of suspects, not only Jaymie’s guests but also some of the locals could have done him in. The main characters are likeable and the supporting ones also draw you in. The setting will have you wanting to visit the area to shop and go on a dinner cruise.
You get it all, friend and family relationships and plenty of twists and turns.
I was given an ARC by NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review.
These are fun books. Jaymie is having a bunch of college friends come and stay with her for a vacation. Her husband and daughter are in Poland visiting his first wife’s family. While Jaymie and her friends are together, everything is awkward and not the way Jaymie remembered their friendship from college. Then a local man is murder by Jaymie’s vintage cast iron pie iron. Jaymie tries to puzzle out why her pie iron and as she asks questions, she realizes that some of her guests are acting odd and may have known the man.
It’s interesting to read about Jaymie’s hobby and the mystery was good and actually the killer was a bit of a surprise. The story is easy-to-read and moves along nicely. I didn’t love the characters. I don’t feel a connection to Jaymie or her family and many of her college friends were not nice. That’s why I gave it 3 stars. I have to like the characters and many of these women were whiners, selfish, and mean. However, it mystery kept me turning pages and there are lots of possibilities as far as suspects and motives.
Thanks to NetGalley for giving me this opportunity to read and offer my honest opinion of this book.
CRAZY! Never saw this killer coming and I’m pretty sure Jaymie and her friends didn’t either. I loved it
Cast Iron Alibi earns 5/5 Vintage Turquoise Shasta Trailers…Entertaining Fun!
I am a fan of Victoria Hamilton and her Vintage Kitchen Mystery series captivated by the drama exploding on various fronts, diverse group of “good, bad, and ugly” characters, and contemporary issues of this ninth book. The murder was well plotted with several suspects with legitimate motives to sift through, descriptive style and dialogue that illustrates well the tone and personalities. Although not my favorite narrative, the third-person perspective was a surprising delight and suit the fact that there were so many characters woven into the mystery. It is easy to keep track of everyone using the Cast of Characters list included at the front of the book. And the ending…I didn’t see that coming! Ending with a wonderful treat from Jaymie’s Vintage Eats column: Hobo Packets: Kid-Friendly [Adults, too] Camp Meal. She describes her fondest memories of the Hobo Packets along with the importance for starting a good fire, suggestions for customizing the packets for everyone’s tastes, and directions for assembling the meal with protein, vegetables, and seasonings. I highly recommend this book!
Jaymie is looking forward to having a girl’s weekend with her college friends. It’s been a few years since the group has spent time together. Shortly after the group gets together tensions arise and arguments ensue. It’s obvious that some in the group have grown apart and others are keeping secrets. Several of the ladies’ husbands show up in the area causing even more tension in the group. Once a local man is found dead just down the road from Jaymie’s house where the group is staying she can’t help but believe someone she knows is involved.
The first book in this series was my first cozy mystery. I have loved this series from its beginning. As the series has evolved Jaymie has become a more complexed and confident protagonist. The book is well-written, the plot moves at a fast but steady pace. There are plenty of red-herrings as many of Jaymie’s college friends are keeping secrets. There is no shortage of suspects and I was surprised at who the killer really is. I look forward to the next book in the series.
I voluntarily agreed to read a copy of this book supplied by Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own and in no way have been influenced by anyone.
Cast Iron Alibi by Victoria Hamilton is the newest in the Vintage Kitchen Mystery Series in which Jaymie is married to Christmas tree farmer and junk store owner Jakob, and is stepmom to his daughter, Jocie, who is a little person and the job of Jaymie’s life. These are fabulous and interesting characters despite the fact that Jakob and Jocie are off to Poland for ten days and Jaymie is here, camping (sort of) with her college friends, which they did regularly. This time, though, it was not working out as well as it had in the past. One friend, wanted to spend all her time in bars, picking up men. She wished she’d gone to Poland. Then, of course, there is a murder and Jaymie must get involved.
The Vintage Kitchen Mystery Series is one of a kind. Its main characters are unique and interesting. Its setting is fascinating. Jaymie is a fabulous character, in part, because of how much she loves her family. The books take me to a part of the country I have never been, and I enjoy it. Each book feels like a visit home. The mysteries are good with plenty of twists and turns and red herrings to keep the reader interested and there is always resolution. There are few cozy mystery series I would recommend to a beginner more highly than this one.
I received a free ARC of Cast Iron Alibi from Netgalley. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #castironalibi
With her husband and step-daughter away, in Europe, Jayme sees it as the perfect time to reconnect with some of her college classmates. For awhile their get togethers were yearly but several years have passed and now it’s time for some girl time. When they arrive, some tensions and secrets come with them as well as some uninvited guests. Soon enough a homicide is added to the class reunion and Jayme sets about to find the killer. – who of her former classmates would be capable of killing or be connected to one?
This is the ninth in the series and can be read as a stand alone but, for myself, I think a reader new to the series would get more out of each mystery if they started at the beginning. That way Jayme’s development explains a lot in each book. She has come a long way. As for the mystery, it’s a very satisfying puzzle with a well developed cast of characters. The small town setting near the NE border between the US and Canada and her vintage kitchenware store are a perfect fit. No matter the title of the next in the series, I have it on my want list already.
Riveting Great Lake Cozy Mystery
College friends meet for a reunion and things go badly. The plot is great with many twists and turns. Nothing is as it seems. This book is part of the Vintage Kitchen cozy series and it stands alone very well. A few recipes are included, but the food is not the focus of these stories. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.
I thoroughly enjoyed this addition to the series. In fact, I’ve enjoyed the whole series. It has been fun watching Jaymie grow and mature, find out who she is, find love and marriage and even embrace motherhood. The mysteries are always interesting, complicated enough to keep you interested, and convoluted enough to keep you guessing.
Jaymie Leighton Mueller is looking forward to a class reunion of sorts with several of her college friends. In the fifteen years since college, they have gotten together for a camping trip almost every year – except they have missed the last few years – life just interfered. Now, they are back on track and Jaymie can’t wait. Jaymie has, as we all do, forgotten the stresses of the relationships and has romanticized and idealized them instead.
The gathering this year will be a bit bittersweet for Jaymie because her beloved husband, Jakob and her stepdaughter Jocie will be in Poland for the ten days of Jaymie’s gathering. Jocie’s mother was Polish and Jakob and Jaymie want her to have that family in her life.
The gathering of Jaymie, Gabriela, Brandi, Rachel, Melanie, and Rachel – all of the friends from college – is joined by two unexpected guests, Courtney and Tiffany. One was invited by Brandi and the other invited herself. Not a particularly auspicious beginning for their adventure.
It seems that there are troubles in everybody’s marriages – well except Jaymie’s – and husbands show up to shadow the ladies. None of them is welcome and tensions tighten.
When a murder and arson occur, it seems that at least some of the ladies know the victim – and he isn’t a very savory victim, to say the least. The police quickly arrest the man’s friend – and it sure seems he could be guilty – but – Jaymie isn’t convinced. So, she’s off sleuthing out the facts – she either wants to be satisfied that the man who was arrested is the perpetrator – or she wants to find out who really did it. Could it be the husband of one of her friends?
I hope you’ll enjoy this well-plotted, well-written mystery as much as I did. I hope you’ll also enjoy meeting the ladies because we might see more of one of them in the future.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.