With Halloween just around the corner, the fall colors in Georgetown are brilliant. As manager of the Color Me Read bookstore, coloring book creator Florrie Fox has arranged for psychic author Hilda Rattenhorst to read from Spooktacular Ghost Stories. But the celebrity medium arrives for the event in hysterics, insisting she just saw a bare foot sticking out of a rolled-up carpet in a nearby … alley. Is someone trying to sweep murder under the rug? Florrie calls in her policeman beau, Sergeant Eric Jonquille, but the carpet corpse has disappeared without a trace. Then in the middle of her reading, Hilda chillingly declares that she feels the killer’s presence in the store. Is this a publicity stunt or a genuine psychic episode? It seems there’s no happy medium. When a local bibliophile is soon discovered missing, a strange mystery begins to unroll. Now it’s up to Florrie and Jonquille to expose a killer’s true colors . . .
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This was my first taste of this author, and I quite enjoyed this book. It held up well as a standalone. Had plenty of festive Halloween atmosphere. Nothing annoys me more than a book advertising itself as a “holiday cozy” and then there is barely a peep about the actual holiday. Not the case here, thankfully! The plot was intriguing with plenty of red herrings. That said, I found it a tad confusing keeping everyone and how they were connected straight at times. The characters themselves were likable (and plenty), and the ending satisfactory. I’ll definitely check out that next book in the series!
**ARC Via NetGalley**
I was given an Advanced Reader’s Copy bMurder Outside the Lines is the third book in the cozy Pen & Ink cozy mystery series. Florrie Fox is back to trying to find a killer under unusual circumstances. The physic/clairvoyant as seen a vision of a person rolled in a rug. Upon follow-up to her premonition, Florrie and others cannot find or substantiate this vision.
Also, Professor Maxwell receives a package for safe keeping from a friend. Things get a little strange once the package arrives.
I found it well written, lots of fun, and kept me turning the pages. If you get this book in paperback, you have the option to color in the cover. It is a standalone book and I found the list of characters in front a nice remainder of who the players were.
I would purchase this as a gift for my cozy reading friends.
I was given an Advanced Reader’s Copy Netgalley and am not required to leave a positive review.
The perfect Halloween read! Ghosts, skulls, a missing child and murders going bump in the night to provide the perfect backdrop to our intelligent and creative sleuth to unravel the latest series of events in order to calm the chaos that is wrecking havoc on her friends’ lives before one of them is the next body to turn up! An old mystery gets interwoven with the current events to make this story the perfect Halloween read! I love that our main character is not only pretty, smart, accomplished and creative, but also caring and with a strong sense of right and wrong. Toss in a cast of unique and varied friends as well as coworkers and you will also find yourself falling in love with this series! Do you love adult coloring books? Then you definitely want to buy this book or rather the entire series as each cover is an adult coloring page that allows you to create the cover that best appeals to you! I can’t wait to read what happens next to my favorite creative bookstore group!
Bestselling Author Krista Davis weaves a haunting Halloween tale in the long-awaited third installment of the Pen & Ink cozy series. Florrie Fox will need to sharpen her sleuthing skills to solve the murder of an acquaintance of her employer, Professor John Maxwell. The Professor’s friend entrusted him with an odd item for safekeeping, and it seems to have special powers!
The cast of characters is fabulous and the storytelling splendidly spooky. With bodies piling up just before Halloween, Florrie and her beau, Sargeant Eric Jonquille, must work fast to expose this killer before he disposes of Florrie.
Author Davis is a pro at writing a story that immerses one’s attention from beginning to end. There are humorous moments and surprises galore for readers! Delicious recipes included.
I honestly reviewed an unedited digital arc provided by NetGalley and Kensington Publishing. All opinions are my own. Thank you.
As I began reading this book I was struck by the depth of the characterizations.
It’s a fascinating mystery with engaging characters.
A good read.
Murder Outside the Lines is the third book of the Pen & Ink Mysteries by Krista Davis where Florrie Fox has been decorating the bookstore Color Me Read for Halloween. Florrie even invited a psychic to do a reading of her Spooktacular Ghost Stories and this is where everything starts getting weird. Psychic Hilda believes that she saw a foot rolled up in a rug and during her reading she feels the killer is in the store. Is she for real?
I really enjoyed reading this Halloween story! Makes you wonder if ghost and psychics are real!
Kristian Davis really make the story come to life and I was excited to read it until the very. Ms Davis has a way of drawing you right into the story and I can’t wait for the fourth book.
Thank you to Goodreads for letting me read and review this great book!
Not my favorite of the series but I still enjoyed it. While I love all the regular characters and the setting, this one had so many characters that I kept getting confused and had to keep looking up the names. Loved the skull that moved around the bookstore. Cute side story. I love how Florrie draws what she sees and keeps referring back to them. I love her relationship with Eric and all of the regular characters. Love how some past mysteries get solved. Would have liked to have found out what happened to the coins in the end. Overall, I good read for Halloween.
Great book. I really enjoyed how they mixed in Halloween with the story. Overall a great read. Don’t want to give any spoilers. Can’t wait to read more.
I have enjoyed every book that I have read by this author, and this book was no exception. It’s almost Halloween and Georgetown is getting decorated for the holiday. Color Me Read bookstore is hosting a psychic for a reading and book signing, but things don’t go as planned when she has a vision and then passes out. Florrie calls her boyfriend, who is a police officer, to report what the author saw but when he goes to check it out he doesn’t find anything. Things get more interesting when Professor Maxwell receives a human skull in the mail and strange things start happening in the bookstore and in the neighborhood. I really like Florrie and the other characters in this series. The mystery kept me guessing and I was surprised how things turned out. I loved this book and it really put me in the mood for Halloween.
I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
So many interesting characters with so many suspects in this murder mystery that starts when a skull is delivered and a psychic/medium gives a talk at the local book store but has a vision of murder. Halloween brings out the ghosts and crazies in this fun to follow story as Florrie Fox, manager, tries to solve the murders happening.
Murder Outside the Lines by Krista Davis is a mystery that takes place at Halloween, but is mostly not a Halloween mystery. It is an enticing mystery which takes place in and a round a bookstore, Color Me Read, and Florrie Fox, its manager. There is a lengthy cast of characters, with a list and thumbnail of each kindly supplied by the author. People are dying. They seem to be connected but it is difficult to work out the connections. It started out with a guest author, Hilda Rattenhorst, who is a psychic and has written a book about ghosts. . . appropriate for Halloween. While she is at the bookstore, she sees a body wrapped in a rug, its foot sticking out, lying on a doorstep. The police are called, well Florrie’s boyfriend, Eric, and no such thing is found. Florrie and her dog at her neighbor, Coralu Throckmorton’s, later find it, under the Halloween coffin in her yard. A skull is delivered to the owner of the bookstore, other folks die, some are rescued from death, and everyone is in a state.
Although there are a plethora of characters, they are all clearly delineated and pertinent to the story. Some are regulars to the series so that makes them familiar. Despite the fact the murders are solved, there are unanswered questions that remain. Florrie is a sweet young woman, who genuinely wants the best for everyone. It is handy having a police detective as a boyfriend. It is also handy to live in the carriage house of the house lived in by you employer and have his butler come clean your house when he is anxious to escape his own. It is also terrific to be able to work with one’s sister every day. In short, this is a lovely cozy mystery series and this is a genuinely interesting book.
I was invited to read a free e-ARC of Murder Outside the Lines by Kensington Books, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #netgalley #kensington #murderoutsidethelines #kristadavis
I loved this book. Couldn’t put it down!! A great Halloween mystery !!
Florrie works in a sort of family owned book store, everyone is treated as family, and they sometimes do things together outside of work. Her boyfriend is Eric, the hunky policeman. And life seems normal and fine. Until Halloween nears.
Hilda claims to “hear” the thoughts of a killer, in front of a crowd gathered in the bookstore. Then comes pandemonium!
A pastry delivery boy is missing, then dead. The skull of Harry (the unknown) keeps moving around the bookstore, mysterious men are lurking in the dark of night, and ghosts are seen by many!
Will you lose track of the clues? Heck no! They’re repeated often! Could you become confused about who is whom? Possibly, maybe you should do some sketches as references (as Florrie does)! Can they catch the killer and save the butler? (Yes! Joke, the butler isn’t in any danger, and no butlers are harmed in this book!) But there are more dramatic questions! I don’t want to spoil the surprises.
This book really does have suspense and some tense moments. Despite my joking, and the fairly convoluted plot, there are reasons for most things, so don’t despair. Just keep reading. It’s a bit of pre-Halloween fun to get you in the mood for creating something, or for curling up with a blanket and a warm drink of cocoa (marshmallows etc., optional).
But hold onto your hats, folks, this one moves at a pretty fast pace!
4/5 Stars
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for another free preview from Krista Davis!
#MurderOutsidetheLines #NetGalley
i loved this book! lots of interesting complex characters and a wonderful fast pasted story with lots of twists and turns This is a real page turner that will capture you on the first page! . A must read!
Read 9.30.2021
Now THAT was a reveal!! WOW!! I had forgotten how much I enjoyed this series – I hope that there will be more as this is a good series with great characters.
Fall is in the air with Halloween fast approaching. Florrie Fox has a special author appearance planned for Color Me Read, author and psychic Hilda Rattenhorst. However, when Hilda shows up, she claims to have seen a carpet wrapped up with a foot sticking out of it in a nearby doorway. Florrie and her boyfriend, Eric, who is also a police officer, head out to check it out only to find nothing when they arrive. Then, during her talk before signing books, Hilda claims to feel a killer’s presence in the audience. As Florrie is trying to figure out if it is a publicity stunt, one incident after another begins to happen. What is going on?
Even for a Halloween themed cozy, I was a little surprised at the number of potential supernatural elements we got at the beginning of the book. As the crimes took center stage, that began to recede a bit. I did feel the plot could have used better focus. There are quite a few elements to the story, and it felt like it was wandering in the middle. But things came together for a satisfying climax. I was once again charmed by the Georgetown neighborhood where Florrie lives and works. It was great to get reacquainted with the characters and see the next chapter in their lives. This book is for you if you are looking for a charming fall cozy.
If you’re looking for some Halloween-themed fun, definitely pick up this book. There’s lots of twists and turns, strange noises, and a skull that likes to travel around. There’s also murder and…..ghosts?? Whatever’s going on, Florrie will get to the bottom of it.
This is book 3 in the series, but the first I’ve read. It works well as a stand-alone.
Many thanks to the publisher, Kensington, and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias or favor or expectation
Murder Ourside the Lines is the 3rd book in Krista Davis’ Pen & Ink Mysteries. I really enjoyed the first two books in this cozy mystery series This book takes place at Halloween. The neighborhood is decorated and Color Me Read, the bookstore Florrie Fox manages, is having psychic author Hilda Rattenhorst read from her ghost stories book. At the event, Hilda insists she saw a foot sticking out of a carpet on her way there and then she feels a killer’s presence. Florrie’s boyfriend is Police Sergent Eric Jonquille. They have a good relationship despite not spending much time together. Eric goes to check on the foot in the carpet but doesn’t find anything. A friend of Florrie’s boss is attacked. A skeleton head is delivered to her boss and odd things start happening. Well, it is Halloween! The characters are likable and interesting. The mystery has some twists to keep it interesting but I suspected part of the finale but wasn’t sure until the end. This is an enjoyable cozy mystery. I received an advance copy from NetGalley for an honest review. #NetGalley #MurderOutsideTheLines #KristaDavis #KensingtonBooks
Murder Outside the Lines by Krista Davis is the third in her Pen and Ink series. We return to Georgetown, and the bookstore with Florrie, as the Halloween season is approaching. Spooky things are happening, a murder, a psychic, screaming skull and possibly a ghost. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the novel, the characters, the small town comradery and the mystery with its twists and turns. The recipes are always a fun bonus!
Many thanks to the publisher #Kensington and to #NetGalley for giving me an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
#MurderOutsideTheLines #NetGalley
Happy Halloween! Now you see it, now you don’t – in this case a foot sticking out of a rolled up carpet that goes missing. Add a touch of the supernatural to a well written mystery as well as a great cast of recurring characters and this third book in the series earns a five star rating.
Florrie Fox has put together a Halloween bookstore event with psychic author Hilda Rattenhorst which includes a reading. What those plans didn’t include was Hilda claiming to have seen a body rolled up in a carpet – the one that is soon missing -and then the declaration that she senses the killer is amongst them. Fact? or fiction? What happened to the body and might it be connected to the now missing friend of Florrie’s employer, Prof. John Maxwell? In short order Florrie and her boyfriend police Sgt. Eric Jonquile are on the track of a killer and how it all connects to an odd item John Maxwell’s friend entrusted to him. Is Hilda the real deal? Who is the killer? How involved will Florrie become despite Eric’s attempts to keep her out of the way? By the end, all will be revealed and the reader will have enjoyed a very entertaining read. My thanks to the publisher Kensington and to NetGalley for giving me an advance reading copy in exchange for my honest review.