Oliver doesn’t believe in ghosts. That’s okay, they don’t believe in him either. Oliver Atkinson, married father of two and would be writer, has a woman on his mind. Literally. Violet Tumbleton died in 1948, but now she’s taken up residence in Oliver’s head. Someone is using her name and Violet wants it back. Reluctantly Oliver agrees to help, and is soon entangled in a plot involving a stolen … in a plot involving a stolen painting, and murder. He’s way out of his depth as he teams up with Amanda, the con artist that started it all, to investigate while staying one step ahead of the resolute police detective.
One thing’s for sure, he’s going to need all his wits to avoid ending up a spirit like Violet.
Murder in Paint is a thrilling and humorous cozy mystery full of twists and turns. Author Rodney Strong has crafted an entertaining tale about ordinary people given the chance to do extraordinary things. Buy your copy today of the first in this great series.
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Very funny, intriguing and entirely too relatable!
I really liked how realistic this book was throughout the whole thing. Realistic and hilarious. The mc didn’t magically become a dare devil super sleuth with all the right answers, nor did the voice in his head. It was a very enjoyable and quirky read with characters that were well developed and entertaining while not being completely predictable or impossible to feel bad for.
And I don’t really see how to segue into this part, but I personally think it’s really nice when there are LGBT characters in a book, and it’s not made into a big huge deal or silly stereotype. Maybe it’s different in New Zealand than in American novels. Like getting your bag out of the “boot”, or “queuing” in line lol.
All in all, once I took a little crash course in the lingo difference, I really liked it. Looking forward to the next one!
I read Rodney Strong’s debut novel, Troy’s Possibilities, last year and absolutely loved it! Now Strong is back with his new novel Murder in Paint. I’m a murder mystery gal at heart and I jumped at the chance to read it and see how Strong moved into a new genre.
Oliver is an aspiring writing. He spends his days researching and typing out his new, take-the-world-by-storm novel. Just kidding. . . He spends most of his time doing laundry, cleaning up after his two kids, and making sure he gets them to their various activities somewhat on time. And there’s no time for writing his book.
Oliver has been floating through life as a stay at home husband/dad. But circumstances take an unexpected turn when he picks up a hitchhiker at the cemetery.
Violet Tumbleton has been dead for a long time, but she has now returned. Someone has stolen Violet’s name and she wants it back. There’s only one problem, she’s a voice inside Oliver’s head.
Oliver and Violet team up to find who the fake Violet is. But in their discovery, they become entangled with an art thief, a murder, and there’s still more danger coming.
One of the things I love about Strong’s main characters is that they are so raw. Oliver is absolutely believable and relatable. Everything he does and thinks is what a real person would do. His life isn’t perfect, actually it’s complete chaos with two little cyclones running around. He’s the charming, stay-at-home-husband next door.
I have two elements I do want to address: the murder itself and Oliver’s wife Jennifer. The murder does not take a main role in the story until much later. I honestly forgot there was a murder in the story for a while. Jennifer’s reaction to the whole situation is unbelievable to me. There is a murder on the loose, her family (including two children) is being threatened, and the reaction is very underplayed.
The story itself is quite similar to the Stephanie Plum series: there’s action, bad guys, and enough humor that will keep you chuckling for the rest of the afternoon. It’s a great beach read or a ‘sunny afternoon’ read. And the ending had me bursting out laughing! I can’t wait to see what the next book has in store!
Murder in Paint by Rodney Strong receives 3.5 stars.
I have read the books in this series out of order but that has not affected my enjoyment. Oliver is a hoot and I found myself chuckling frequently. The characters in the book are well developed and keep you guessing who is guilty. There is a wonderful surprise twist at the end and you will gasp out loud.
Thank you to the author, Rodney Strong, for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
I put ghosts and zombies high on the list of things not to worry about, a list which includes getting hit by a passing meteorite or what to do with the money when I win the lottery. However, Rodney Strong may make me a fan of the paranormal after reading the first in his Hitchhiker series, Murder in Paint. The “ghost” in this book (she prefers “spirit”) is Ms. Violet Tumbleton, a lively young woman who died in 1948, and who has returned to reside in the head of aspiring writer Oliver Atkinson. She’s on a quest and won’t shut up until Oliver agrees to help her. Oliver has to get past thinking he’s gone bat-shit crazy before he can make that agreement.
Oliver quit his job in a bank to stay home and write. We learn quickly that author Strong has a sense of humor when he tells us that Oliver is worried that he is becoming Martha Stewart, not the Robert Ludlum that he wants to be. Oliver’s wife is earning the family’s living, and he’s taking care of two rowdy kids. That includes a lot of laundry, cooking, and dropping off and picking up. Oliver isn’t the only one with a sense of humor. Ms. Violet has a mouth on her, and I giggled all the way through the book. The final two lines of the book found me laughing out loud.
Don’t get this wrong, though. Murder in Paint is a mystery-suspense novel with plenty of mystery and suspense, not just humor. The final few chapters were gripping. Violence was a threat, but since this is a cozy, after all, nothing got too graphic. It was suspenseful enough that I decided to finish the book this morning instead of doing Saturday errands and starting work on my next project. Violet! All your fault, girl!!
Here a few suggestions to help improve this already good book. 1) We understand early on that Oliver is a loving father. Too many details about the antics of those rowdy kids, though, detracted from the flow of the story. I felt like yelling at Oliver and saying, “Tell them to behave! And make it stick!” Since I’ve been there, done that with the kiddie thing, I know what I’m talking about. 2) Mysteries that revolve around stolen paintings, forged paintings, paintings done “in the style of” or “in homage to” are always on a slippery slope. Forgery just isn’t that easy. It’s not simply a matter of copying a work. Chemical analysis of the paint and the painting surface are dead-giveaways of a forgery, just for one example of a problem writers have to address. Murder in Paint never seemed to have a clear idea of what the crime was in this book – beyond the obvious theft of…a forgery? an “in the style of” or what? 3) Authors really need to remember that proofreading by a professional is a must. Murder in Paint had words missing in sentences, a dearth of desperately needed commas, and most annoyingly, confusion between possessives and plurals with apostrophes in all the wrong places.
That said, I was easily able to overlook these problems, and I thoroughly enjoy reading Murder in Paint. As I said, the next hitchhiker has made his appearance already and I look forward to meeting and knowing Angus. I hope he’s as funny as Violet.
I found this to be a very interesting take on a murder mystery. It had all the elements with a very new twist. It kept me interested until the very end. The hitchhiker (the ghost in Oliver’s head) helps solve a murder. I just love the concept, it’s fresh and new! And Amanda the con artist, I hope she shows up in the next book, she is great! Can’t wait to read the next one!
I received an ARC. This is my honest review.
This is the 1st story in the hitchhiker series. Oliver takes his young family to the cemetery regularly so his wife and his little girl can “talk with grandma.” He inadvertently becomes involved with a spirit who wants him to hunt down a woman who has stolen her name. Only he can hear her voice so he gets into some hilarious situations talking to her. It is a well written murder mystery that has many twists with a surprise ending. Great humor. Highly recommended.
Since sarcasm is my second language, this book was right up my alley. I love the dry, sarcastic wit that goes on between Oliver and his ghostly hitchhiker, Violet. And I must admit, this was a new twist on the cozy mystery theme of a ghostly presence. Usually, our protagonist is the only one who can “see” the ghost. However, Oliver can’t see Violet; he can only hear her, which makes for some laugh-out-loud situations when he forgets to use his “inside voice”. I also loved the characters “Amanda” and Jennifer (the quotation marks around Amanda’s name will make sense once you’ve read it). Amanda becomes an awesome mentor for Oliver and Jennifer is a very understanding, supportive wife. It was also a change of pace to have our ghost helper be a stay at home dad, instead of a female baker, crafter, dog person, or some such. A very welcome change of pace. I enjoyed every moment of Murder in Paint and am looking forward to the next book in the series. Try it out.
I really did enjoy the concept behind this mystery. It was different and a fun twist on a whodunit. The reason for a 4-star rating instead of 5 is the difficulty in separating who was speaking or thinking. Perhaps a different font would have made reading this book easier. I do have to say I’m looking forward to the next book from this author because it really was fun.