A man hiding from his past.
A detective hunting for a murderer.
This is no time to bake a pie.
Today is Owen Hunter’s first day in the coastal city of Costa Buena, California. He’s the new owner of Rockafellers, a vintage record store struggling to find customers. Much of that is due to Headbangers, a competitor with a better product mix and an aggressive owner.
There is also a local do-gooder … a local do-gooder group who wants Owen to fall in line with their vision for a kinder, gentler Coast Buena.
None of that worries Owen, though, because he is determined to be the number one used-music store on the boardwalk—even if that means stepping on a few toes. But when a murder occurs shortly after his arrival, he’s identified as prime suspect number one.
Owen Hunter must clear his name fast because he can’t afford to have a bunch of nosy cops poking around.
For Owen is a man with a secret that he must protect at all costs. The U.S. government has invested a lot to keep him safe, but his enemies will stop at nothing to find him.
Do prosperity and happiness await Owen in this coastal community?
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This was a great read, and I look forward to the next adventures of Beau, I mean Brody, no–it’s Owen, right? Whatever the protagonist’s name happens to be, he is funny and charming in his own peculiar way. Conway paints a picture of a deeply scarred and flawed human being that the reader finds easy to cheer on.
I recommend this book!
Owen Hunter is new to Costa Buena, having just bought one of the local used music stores in town. He’s hoping to blend in and settle into the coastal California community, however on his first day, he has several run ins with local citizens. When one of them, the owner of the rival music store, turns up dead, Owen becomes the prime suspect. He has to clean his name before his past comes out since he is in witness protection. Can he find the truth without his real identity being revealed?
Since I enjoyed the first in the series, I wanted to see what happened to our hero next. Owen is an intriguing main character, trying to put his past behind him and become a better citizen. The rest of the cast is all new (except for a couple of supporting government agents). They are a colorful lot, although they do fall into stereotypes at times. The plot is intriguing, and I didn’t figure it out. The book, especially the premise, stretches credibility quite a bit, but I find that Owen and the plot make up for that for me. It helps that this is a quick read – I breezed through it in two days instead of my normal three. Despite the flaws, I’m glad I picked this book up.
Poor Beau, trouble seems to follow him at every turn. This is Beau’s second placement in the Witness Protection Program. The writing is great and it kept me interested from the first page to the end. I received a copy of this book from the author and this is my voluntary review.
Cozy Up To Murder by Colin Conway
The Cozy Up Series #2
What a relaxing, fun and interesting way to spend time today! I needed a simple cozy murder mystery to take my mind away for awhile and this book provided that escape for me today.
Book one in this series introduced a character I really liked and I was happy to see what he would get up to in book two. Beau left in a hurry at the end of the first book even though he thought he might have liked the town he had been settled into through the Witness Protection program. That lasted a week and then he had to move on…it was a matter of life and death. By the end of book one he had the Mafia and Satan’s Dawgs MC on his tail and he needed a safe place to land.
So, in book two Beau has a new name, is in California running a record shop and willing to make a go of it. He has promised to keep a low profile and avoid anything that might expose him and put his life in danger. With that in mind he opens the doors of his shop, meets a number of new people, has a few interesting interactions including an altercation and begins to settle in. Beau is now Owen Hunter and the town is definitely not as inviting as the last one. He soon has a murder to solve and a number of potential murderers to check out.
What I liked:
* Beau: a big rather quiet man who does enjoy a puzzle. He wants to be a better man and is not finding the cooperation from those around him that he needs to do so
* The cat of many names…think he is growing on Beau
* Ted & Max who are in charge of keeping Beau safe
* The plot, writing and joy that I found while reading this book
* Wondering if Daphne might show up eventually as Beau is not having an easy time forgetting her
* The mystery and how it was solved
* Wondering what will happen next…
What I didn’t like:
* The only thing I didn’t like was having to say goodbye to Beau knowing I will have to wait awhile to find out what happens next.
Did I like this book? Yes
Would I read more in this series? Definitely
Thank you to the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.
5 Stars