What’s black and white and dead all over? Georgia bed and breakfast proprietor Nina Fleet finds out when she comes across a corpse in a penguin costume.Nina Fleet’s life ought to be as sweet as a Georgia peach. Awarded a tidy sum in her divorce, Nina retired at 41 to a historic Queen Anne house in quaint Cymbeline, GA. But Nina’s barely settled into her new B&B-to-be when a penguin shows up … penguin shows up on her porch. Or, at least, a man wearing a penguin suit.
Harry Westcott is making ends meet as an ice cream shop’s mascot and has a letter from his great-aunt, pledging to leave him the house. Too bad that’s not what her will says. Meanwhile, the Sisters of Perpetual Poverty have lost their lease. Real estate developer Gregory Bainbridge intends to turn the convent into a golfing community, so Cymbeline’s mayor persuades Nina to take in the elderly nuns. And then Nina finds the “penguin” again, this time lying in an alley with a kitchen knife in his chest.
A peek under the beak tells Nina it’s not Harry inside the costume, but Bainbridge. What was he doing in Harry’s penguin suit? Was the developer really the intended victim, or did the culprit mean to kill Harry? Whoever is out to stop Harry from contesting the sale of his great-aunt’s house may also be after Nina, so she teams up with him to cage the killer before someone clips her wings in Peach Clobbered, Anna Gerard’s charming first Georgia B&B mystery.
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Anna Gerard writes with a skillful touch, tossing together a wealthy divorcee, a penguin-costumed cousin, neighborly cheese-making nuns and a trip of goats in a cozy blanket of murderous fun. A cracking-good, page-turning start to a brilliant new series! If you love peaches, this book will make you hungry.
A well written cozy mystery. I will read the next one!
I love Nina’s personality for sure, she is headstrong and speaks her mind, no holes barred with her. Oh and the Nun’s were the best, they became a big part of Nina and her B&B, so I would love to see them involved in future books in the series too. Harry, he is a whole story in himself, he seems to have many different irons in the fire, literally. I believe Ms. Gerard has got herself a fabulous new series, and Peach Clobbered has been a funny and wonderful new beginning to Nina’s life in Cymbeline Georgia. I look forward to reading what is in store at the new B&B in Cymbeline next.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Welcome to Cymbeline Georgia. A place Nina Fleet and her Australian Sheepdog, Mattie now call home. She bought a historic Queen Anne house therwat the spur of the moment following her divorce and loves it. Harry Wescott the great nephew of the previous owner believes the house should be his and shows up at her door to tell her so, dressed in a penguin suit. Seems he is working as a mascot for the local ice cream shop to make ends meet.
Nina had big hopes of opening it as a B&B but zoning regulations have held up her plans. That is until the Sisters of Perpetual Poverty were evicted from their convent when the landlord refused to renew their lease. The mayor came to Nina personally promising to cut through all the government’s red tape if she allows the sisters to stay with her until their new orders come through.
After the nuns are all settled they tell Nina of their plan to protest their former landlord’s business. Nina goes along hoping to keep the nuns out of trouble, but during a lunch break, she hears a scream. She rushes into an alley to find a man in a penguin suit has been stabbed. But it isn’t Harry Wescott in the suit this time, it is the sister’s landlord, Gregory Bainbridge! Could one of the nuns have done the deed or did the killer think it was Harry in the suit? Nina finds herself right in the middle of The Murder of the Man in the Penguin Suit! What a way to start her new life.
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Penguins, Nuns, and Murder, Oh My!
What a great start for this series! I loved Nina (Nine-ah) immediately. She is smart and savvy, ready to live life on her own terms. The nuns were fantastic, feisty, mostly elderly women who have been together for over 50 years. They become fast friends with Nina and enjoy checking out all the take-out meal options now available to them. Nina does her best to keep these vital and active women busy as they await to see what the future hold for them. Harry is a conundrum, an out of work actor who wants to take her house away who is not the most likable person. Nina’s dog Maddie is precious. She is empathetic when needed and a wonderful watch dog too.
Ms. Gerard has twisted together a terrific mystery plotline with very interesting subplots as we get to know our protagonist and the residents of Cymbeline. The pacing was perfect and each chapter drew me right into the next. I was engaged by the characters completely and was anxious to see how everything in this novel panned out. She brought in a surprise item that turned my thinking totally around but I was still taken aback by the big reveal.
The setting of the story was just peachy. A Georgia B&B is absolutely ripe for many more mysteries too. I am excited to see who checks in next!
This was a marvelous mystery and I highly recommend it for all cozy mystery fans!
Peach Clobbered
A Georgia B&B Mystery, Book #1
Anna Gerard
5 Stars
Synopsis:
What’s black and white and dead all over? Georgia bed and breakfast proprietor Nina Fleet finds out when she comes across a corpse in a penguin costume.
Nina Fleet’s life ought to be as sweet as a Georgia peach. Awarded a tidy sum in her divorce, Nina retired at 41 to a historic Queen Anne house in quaint Cymbeline, GA. But Nina’s barely settled into her new B&B-to-be when a penguin shows up on her porch. Or, at least, a man wearing a penguin suit.
Harry Westcott is making ends meet as an ice cream shop’s mascot and has a letter from his great-aunt, pledging to leave him the house. Too bad that’s not what her will says. Meanwhile, the Sisters of Perpetual Poverty have lost their lease. Real estate developer Gregory Bainbridge intends to turn the convent into a golfing community, so Cymbeline’s mayor persuades Nina to take in the elderly nuns. And then Nina finds the “penguin” again, this time lying in an alley with a kitchen knife in his chest.
A peek under the beak tells Nina it’s not Harry inside the costume, but Bainbridge. What was he doing in Harry’s penguin suit? Was the developer really the intended victim, or did the culprit mean to kill Harry? Whoever is out to stop Harry from contesting the sale of his great-aunt’s house may also be after Nina, so she teams up with him to cage the killer before someone clips her wings in Peach Clobbered, Anna Gerard’s charming first Georgia B&B mystery. (Goodreads)
Review:
Sometimes when you read a book, something just clicks and you really enjoy it. That is what happened when I started reading this book. I really enjoyed the characters, the setting was great and the mystery was intriguing.
The characters are well developed and well rounded. Nina is spunky, smart and feisty. I enjoyed getting to meet her and spend time with her. The nuns that stayed in the Bed and Breakfast added so much to the story, they were funny and quirky. The jury is still out on Harry, I am not really sure if he is a good guy or not. Hopefully I will find out in future books.
The writing style flows smoothly and the book is an easy read. The author is very talented in her descriptive writing and I was drawn into the book from the very first page. The mystery was well plotted and carried on well throughout the entire book. There were a lot of clues to sift through and suspects to consider and it was not easily solved. I was surprised at who the culprit was, I was sure it was someone else.
This book is a great start to a new series. I highly recommend this book to everyone who enjoys a well crafted cozy mystery. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, Crooked Lane Books , and NetGalley, which I greatly appreciate.
*I received a free copy of this book which I voluntarily chose to write an honest review for.
Welcome to Georgia and all its charm in this brand new cozy mystery series. Nina loved in a big old historic house that she bought perfectly legally. A relative of the deceased owner feels otherwise showing up causing problems. On to of that a local man is evicting a group of mind that now need a place to say. The major feels that Nina’s house would be a perfect B&B so she rushes the permits and voila a new business with instant guests. Then the local mans turned up stabbed dying later which just makes things interesting to say the least. What follows is a great mystery that is full of charm, personality, an adorable dog, and a surprising ending. Overall a fantastic start to a new series that is perfect for cozy fans. I totally loved it so I give it 5/5 stars.
Peach Clobbered was an entertaining cozy mystery. Nina (pronounced Nine-ah) was charmed with the Queen Anne Victorian she stumbled across while looking for antiques in the small town of Cymbeline. She wanted a new start after her divorce from pro-golfer, Cameron Fleet. Nina thought about using the large home for a bed-and-breakfast until Mayor Green turned down her rezoning request. But then Mayor Green finds herself with six nuns and no vacancies in town. Nina gets her home rezoned and immediately has six divine residents. The one fly in the ointment is Harry Westcott who believes the home should be his since his great-aunt, Daisy Lathrop wrote him that she is leaving the turn-of-century home to him. Then greedy developer, Gregory Bainbridge is murdered in the Taste-Tee-freeze Creamery penguin costume which Harry had been wearing earlier in the day. There is plenty of action in the cute story. I liked Nina, but we are not given her complete history. I hope we learn more about her in the next book. The nuns were just delightful. They got to enjoy new experiences and food while staying with Nina plus there was the protest. Harry is an amusing character who I believe we will be seeing more of in future books. He is an actor who travels around in a converted bus. I enjoyed the humor and wit which had me chuckling frequently while reading Peach Clobbered. I thought the story was well-written and it progressed at a nice clip which made it easy to read. I enjoyed the descriptions of Nina’s new home and the quaint town. I can understand why Nina was drawn to Cymbeline and her Queen Anne. The mystery had several suspects, a red herring and subtle clues. The take down was an enjoyable and amusing scene. I was sorry for Peach Clobbered to end. Peach Clobbered is a diverting cozy mystery with Harry the theatrical thespian, a rapacious real estate developer, six saintly sisters, several suspicious suspects, and one inquisitive B&B owner.
Peace Clobbered” is the first book in the new “Georgia B&B Mystery” series by Anna Gerard. It is a great beginning to a new series.
I really enjoyed this book and the setting of Cymbeline, GA . I always like a small town setting where almost everyone knows one another. Makes for fun and often quirky characters
The Protagonist Nina and her furbaby named Matilda, “Mattie”, the Australian shepherd dog are likeable. Add a Penguin and some Nuns and whats not to like.
The story was well paced, I found I couldn’t put the book down as I wanted to know who the killer was. The description of the setting, the Queen Anne house and the shops drew me in. The ending was unexpected although I had sort of figured out whodunit around the same time as Nina.
Highly recommended. A wonderful first book from an author I will definitely follow in the future.
I requested and received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my OWN.
Peach Clobbered by Anna Gerard was an intriguing cozy mystery that captured my attention from the first chapter.
I really liked Nina Fleet. She is a smart and fiesty woman is has to live life her own way since her divorce from her philandering ex-husband. The plot was quickly paced and filled with red herrings, twists and plenty of suspects as she decides to solve the mystery of the murder of the most hated man in her new home town. I’m still undecided about Harry Westcott as I sympathize with his situation but he can often be unlikable. The Sisters of Perpetual Poverty are all wonderful characters that I enjoyed getting to know while they stayed with Nina. I hope that this is the beginning of a long running cozy series.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. All of the above opinions are my own.
What a cute book – loved the cover, the story, the characters, the setting and everything in between. It’s definitely worth checking out!
You can check out my booktube video review at https://youtu.be/V9X2DfpvDaI
or read my review on my blog at https://lisasiefert.com/book-review-peached-clobbered-by-anna-gerard-a-georgia-b-and-b-mystery/
This first book in the Georgia B&B Mystery series is a delightful cozy with engaging characters and a clever Australian shepherd who knows how to fetch a cell pone. I fell in love with the characters and the setting and thoroughly enjoyed the book.
Peach Clobbered begins a delightful new southern mystery series by Anna Gerard and I enjoyed it very much. It’s well written, complex, populated with engaging, sometimes quirky characters, and filled with funny, if not outright hilarious moments. Would have given higher rating had there been no profanity.
One of its strengths is the strong sense of place, the fictional town of Cymbeline, Georgia, located about an hour from Savannah. The author has her finger on the pulse of the small southern town and vividly conveys the charming feel. Into this town comes lead character, Nina, who fell in love with a Queen Anne house while visiting and quickly made the decision to purchase. Having lived in Atlanta and recently divorced from a well-known professional golfer, Cymbeline offers the quieter pace and fresh start that she needed.
Nina is an engaging character, spunky and caring of people. Interesting secondary characters add richness and depth, as Nina discovers that Cymbeline has its share of problems. Small-town politics come into play as the mayor initially turns down Nina’s application to open a B&B, only to fast-track the opening (three days) when she needs to find a temporary home for six displaced nuns. At the heart of the nuns’ situation, and also the dislike of many Cymbeline citizens, is a shady real estate developer.
And then there’s Harry Wescott, Harry Westcott, nephew of the previous owner of Nina’s home, who has a letter claiming she intended to bequeath the house to him. When Nina first meets Harry, he is dressed in a penguin outfit, working to promote the local Taste-Tee Freeze Creamery. I was never sure whether I liked Harry or not, and still have questions, which is a good thing. He’s a potential foe to Nina with his seemingly legitimate right to ownership, yet a reluctant friendship of sorts begins to develop as they form a truce. I feel sure we’ll see more of Harry in future stories and I actually look forward to that.
Although the murder takes place in the early pages, this story focuses more on the people, Nina’s efforts with the B&B, and the nuns, who I absolutely loved. Suspects abound, as well as red herrings, and I didn’t even try to solve the murder because the journey was so much fun. I look forward to returning to Cymbeline in future stories. The only negative for me was the occasional use of profanity, which was totally unnecessary.
Recommended.
I received a copy of this book through Great Escapes Tours. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
A fun first book in a new series! Nina has moved to a small town in Georgia following her divorce. The mayor comes to her and promises to put through the paperwork to get her house zoned to be a Bed and Breakfast if she will take in some nuns whose convent has been reclaimed by a developer. The great-nephew of the woman who owned Nina’s house is also trying to claim his aunt intended to leave the house to him. A man is found dead in a penguin suit and it is automatically assumed it was Harry, the nephew. It turns out to be the developer instead and all sorts of suspects abound as the man was well-hated. The nuns were a lot of fun and I enjoyed Nina and Harry trying to solve the murder. This was a great book and I look forward to reading more of the series and seeing what happens next. I also loved Mattie the dog!
A really great cozy mystery. This is the first in a new series by Anna Gerard nice and fast to read and funny.Loved the characters in this . Nina Fleet is a divorcee that bought some property with a old house that she turned into a Bed and Breakfast. Some of her new guests are quite colorful. Harry works at an icecream shop as its mascott, a penguin. when Nina finds a corpse dressed in his suit, she teams up with Harry to find out why he was killed and by whom before the killer gets it right and gets him! Very good storyline and reads very smoothly. so looking forward to more of this series great to loose myself in for a while.
An engaging read with vibrant characters. Anna Gerard’s Peach Clobbered is chock full of fun, including eccentric Southerners defending hearth and home, a stalker, an unusual relic, an overheated penguin, and a gaggle of nuns. While trying to hang onto her new B&B, Nina Fleet (that’s Nine-ah to those who haven’t met her yet) investigates the death of an unpopular real estate developer. Gutsy and determined, Nina and her beloved Aussie pooch Maddy charm both friend and foe. I’d love to stay at Nina’s B&B and enjoy her hospitality. I didn’t want the book to end.
Peach Clobbered is the first book in the Georgia B&B mystery series. My first impressions after reading this one is that it is a cute book but not enough sleuthing going on. For me, the sleuthing aspect is an integral part of a cozy mystery and this one fell very flat in this area. I actually felt it was almost non-existent which was a major problem for me. However, I did really like the characters, especially Nina’s first group of guests that stayed at her B&B. They really saved the story for me!
While this wasn’t a favorite cozy I enjoyed it enough to want the read the second book. It will be interesting to see what Nina get’s up to next and whether or not she will find love. Maybe even with a certain penguin?! He seems too good a character for him to disappear completely!
PEACH CLOBBERED by Anna Gerard
The First Georgia B&B Mystery
Nina Fleet lives in Georgia, not the Antarctic, yet penguins start to play a major part of her life. First a penguin appears at her front door trying to sue her. OK, it’s actually a man dressed in a penguin suit, but he’s the one trying to take the gorgeous old house she bought away from her, claiming his aunt actually left it to him. Then she’s surrounded by a group of penguins. OK, they’re actually nuns in traditional habits, but they’re moving in with her. The town bad guy has kicked the sisters out of their home so the mayor sped through Nina’s bed and breakfast paperwork and made her an offer she couldn’t refuse. As Nina accompanies the nuns on their protest of the developer she’s led by a screaming woman to a penguin who has been stabbed. OK, not a real penguin, it’s the same costume as Harry wore, but it’s not Harry inside…it’s the dastardly developer. Almost everyone in the small town of Cymbeline wanted to kill him, but who actually did? Or was Harry the real target?
I really like this new series! Nina (pronounced like the number, not Nee-nah) is a smart capable woman thrust into a most unusual situation. In fact, the book is filled with smart capable women, from the sheriff to the mayor to the Sisters of Perpetual Poverty. I’m impressed with the manner in which the nuns are represented along with the hard truths they are forced to face from their own archbishop. I’m especially fond of Sr. Mary Thomas as her love of animals shines through the pages. Mattie is a sweet dog and the town of Cymbeline is utterly charming with its nod to all things Shakespeare. The relationship between Nina and Harry is quite unique. Harry vacillates from being a villain out to take away Nina’s dream, a victim of pathos, and a possible romantic interest. Lots of interesting character inhabit the pages making for a compelling read.
PEACH CLOBBERED is a charming, witty, and engaging mystery that pulled me in from the start. I’ll miss some of the characters I met here, but am looking forward to meeting Nina’s next guests!
FTC Disclosure – The publisher sent me a digital ARC provided through NetGalley, in the hopes I would review it.
Awesome book
PEACH CLOBBERED by Anna Gerrard takes place in the fictional town of Cymbelline and is filled with small tourist friendly shops and an atmosphere that evokes everything you’ve heard about the friendly, small town south. The protagonist, Nina (pronounced Nine-Ah) Fleet, has come to town to visit, fallen in love with it and bought the Queen Anne style house. Although initially turned down in her request to turn it into a B&B, the sudden need for a place to house a contingent of nuns who are being displaced turns that around. In true small-town fashion, when it benefits the mayor or perhaps her view of the town, the red-tape is miraculously run through in record time and Nina opens her brand new B&B.
Nothing is that simple, though. Although Nina bought the house from the estate of its former resident, a nephew has now turned up with a letter saying the owner intended to leave the house to him and is threatening to sue for ownership. He further informs Nina he has talked with an attorney who says he has a good case. Resolution of this issue is high on Nina’s list of priorities, but first she has to accompany the nuns as they plan a picket march downtown.
Seems the nuns are being forced off their properties by the real estate developer who owned the property where their convent was located, forcing them to close their cheese making business and move from the area. This isn’t the first time the developer has engaged in a less-than upstanding real estate deal, and he is one of the less popular people in town. The nuns are picketing his office for his unfair practices while Nina also learns of another group of home owners who were cheated out of their property by this same developer.
The heat gets to the nuns quickly and they pause in their march to hydrate. Nina joins one of the nuns on a nearby bench while the rest of them scatter in various directions to accomplish different tasks. Before anyone returns, Nina is approached by a strange woman declaring “he” is dead in the alley. At first Nina thinks the “he” is the nephew who has been moonlighting as a penguin for the local ice cream shop and the injured man is wearing the penguin suit. Once the head is removed it becomes apparent that instead of the nephew, the injured man is the real estate developer.
Things escalate from that point. The victim dies, the nephew talks Nina into letting him move into the tower room of her house because his life is being threatened, the nuns explore the delights of living in the town as opposed to their convent and secrets are uncovered in the house. The activity takes place at a good pace, pulling you through the book quickly. It’s an easy book to read, fairly light and fluffy, at least for a murder, and the reader can enjoy a few hours of reading that is entertaining without being demanding.
The book is a good example of a cozy, “beach read” being easy to put down and pick up all while keeping the story and characters straight. I read it in a couple of days, and that was putting it down on numerous occasions to do other things. It was also easy to solve in terms of who was the murderer. The town of Cymballine will make you want to schedule a trip to Georgia, sampling some of the peach cobbler and making new friends along the way. It also reads as the first in a new cozy mystery, so if you enjoy this trip to the friendly sun-drenched south you will want to come back again and again to learn what Nina and her friends are up to next. Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for providing me with an Advanced Reader Copy of this novel in exchange for an unbiased review.
Is murder black and white?
Peach Clobbered by Anna Gerard is an exciting start to a new cozy mystery series. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story. I was transported to Georgia and felt like I was part of Nina’s new life.
Nina Fleet
Our amateur sleuth and B&B owner is Nina Fleet. She is the ex-wife of the famous golfer, Cameron Fleet. Nina comes to Cymbeline for some antique shopping and ends for buying a huge home. She and her Australian Shepard, Matti are making a beautiful home for themselves.
Things I liked about Nina: She has a great sense of humor (her penguin jokes). Nina isn’t afraid of hard work. She knows what she is good at and what she needs help with. Nina has some great Star Trek references, and she reads cozy mysteries. She is also great with Matti, who is well trained and friendly.
However, Nina can also be stubborn, is always second-guessing herself, and seems to be attracted to men whom she shouldn’t be.
Mystery
You have to love it when the worst person in town gets his comeuppance. The hard part was that Nina hasn’t lived on Cymbeline long and doesn’t know many people. She is having a hard time getting the town gossips to trust you when you are such a newbie.
Things about the book that I liked:
• There are lots of subplots
• The mayor isn’t afraid to wheel and deal for her constituents.
• Harry, the actor, has numerous jobs instead of waiting for the next audition or gig, like the penguin for the ice cream shop and the pizza delivery person. He does them all with the extreme pizzazz and costumes.
• The nuns are great. I adored there different personalities and quirks.
• Harry and his claim on the house gave us that what-if factor to keep us guessing.
My only question for the next book is: What did Harry say to Jill on his first day in their employment about Nina and her house?
5 Stars for Peach Clobbered by Anna Gerard
My rating for Peach Clobbered by Anna Gerard is five stars. I don’t feel like I put it down. The story is superbly written, and the characters are perfect. I love all the differences, and the setting with the Shakespearean references is fabulous.
This book is a lovely start to a new cozy mystery series, and I highly recommend this book.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Peach Clobbered by Anna Gerard.
Anyways, until next time,
Karen the Baroness
Happy Reading
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