High school teacher Emma Lovett is finally recovering from her first year of teaching when she discovers another dead body. As if that wasn’t bad enough, this time, someone has killed a student, Kisten Hollis.Emma and her best friend, Leslie, are desperate to solve this murder. But suspects abound. The perpetrator could be a teacher, an administrator, a member of Kisten’s zealous church … church community, or even another student.
Emma must juggle her teaching responsibilities, her new romance with handsome Hunter Wells, and interest from a hunky second suitor, all while searching for evidence to bring a killer to justice before someone else dies.
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This wonderful cozy immediately grabbed my attention and kept me glued to the book until I read the last word with a great mystery that included twists and turns, engaging and quirky characters so expertly written I feel like I know them. This is the first book I have read by Kelley Kaye but I like her style and the high school vibe so I plan to read more in this endearing Chalkboard Outline series. I really liked teachers Emma Lovett and Leslie Parker and can’t wait to see what happens next in Pinewood, Colorado. I received an advance reader copy of “Poison by Punctuation” and am voluntarily leaving my review.
Poison by Punctuation by Kelley Kaye is the delightful second book in the Chalkboard Outlines series. Intrigued by the title, I was anxious to get a look at this book about two English teachers in a small high school, early in the school year. Leslie and Emma are the teachers who had solved a murder in the school the previous year. This year seemed to be all about bullying. At an in-service, the staff and faculty learned about bullying but only one of the activities address the long-term effects, which Leslie felt to be critical. Bullying did long term damage to people, as they were about to see for themselves. It started with some mean notes and then, sadly, on their first day swimming at 6 am to relieve stress, Leslie and Emma discovered a body: Kisten Hollis, a sweet, 16-year old cheerleader who had been dead long enough to be blue. It happened the week of homecoming and Tate, the principal, decided the best thing to do was carry on, keeping to normal activities so before long they found themselves chaperoning the Homecoming Dance. Emma and Hunter, her boyfriend, were having a good time and Leslie, along with Edward, another teacher were dancing up a storm causing Leslie to be really thirsty, so thirsty she downed at least four cups of punch. Not feeling well, she and Emma made a trip to the ladies’ room where some of the female students were also complaining about food poisoning. Before they could deal with that, Leslie is on the floor, having convulsions. Arriving at the hospital, it was discovered that Leslie was so much sicker because she had an ulcer and the SNAKE VENOM they had all been poisoned with had escaped into her blood stream through the ulcer. Thankfully, the doctors there had everything under control. What would happen next? It was getting dangerous to go to school.
Poison by Punctuation is a lovely little mystery. Leslie and Emma are two good characters, each with pasts, and quirks and foibles. One of the fun things they did was quote Shakespeare when it worked and it seemed to work often. They like puzzles, and friends with good language skills, always a plus. The mystery is a good one, although it has already been pointed out that too many people die at this school. Could get to be a problem. I often wondered why no murder mysteries are set in a school and Kaye has solved that problem. It will be interesting to see it she can keep the momentum going. I enjoyed this book. I recommend it to readers of cozy mysteries and more.
I received a free ARC of Poison by Punctuation from Cozy Mystery Review Crew. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own.
Poison by Punctuation by Kelley Kate is book two in her Chalkboard Outlines series. Prepare to embark on another mystery with Emma and Leslie while they work to discover who is sending threatening notes, the mysterious and tragic death of a teenage girl, and the three new teachers who seem less than interested in engaging in any type of friendship with Emma and the other teachers.
Punctuation by Poison is the first book that I have read by Kelley Kate and while it is the second book in this series it can be read as a stand-alone novel. The author does a fantastic job hooking me into the book from the beginning with the prologue. I was hooked and then heartbroken in no time flat. Then I was a bit thrown. Haha! I say this because the prologue is essentially a couple of days in advance and then the author steps back a couple of days to set the stage as to what is about to break the peace at the high school starting with graffiti.
The overall storyline is interesting, though it does slow down in places which at times made it a bit of a slog to keep going. During the slowdown moments, I tend to rely on the characters to keep me engaged, but I didn’t find myself overly liking Emma. My biggest issue with her was her wishy-washy attitude and the hammed-up Southern charm. I understand her hamming it up, but I feel like she seriously overdoes it which causes me to look down on her. Then in a couple of scenes she’s all gungho to go investigate…by herself! But when she has back-up, all of a sudden she’s wanting to act like NOW it’s super dangerous. I think I expected her to be more of a “take-charge” kind of character because that’s what I’m used to when it comes to cozy mystery novels I’ve read before. I found myself gravitating more towards her friend Leslie as she was more outgoing and engaging.
I will say this though when the story is engaging…it is ENGAGING! I was page-turning to learn what happens next and the author does a fantastic job keeping me in the dark as to who the killer is. The pieces are there, but the author keeps the exact clues hidden away so as to not tip off readers as to who the guilty party is. I like the multiple layers of mystery involved in this book as well. You don’t just get the murder mystery and the threats. You get a surprise mystery thrown later into the story, and a tragic backstory to go along with it.
My only other issue with this story is Emma’s beau…Hunter. I’m sorry, but I just did not like him that much. He may be a sweet guy, but he’s got some serious issues and I couldn’t deal with that. He immediately has an attitude the first time he’s around Will which I honestly found bizarre. To me, it screamed that he was insecure from jump. Hunter fluctuates between a whipped puppy, to a petulant teenager, to a doting boyfriend. I really need him to work on himself and get over his past issues, because at this point…tons of flowers or not…Emma deserves better in my opinion.
While I struggled with the sensibleness and maturity of a couple of the characters, I enjoyed this book’s storyline overall. So I am rating this book 4 out of 5 stars. I think that I’ll hang in there with this author and see where things go with these characters. I’m hopeful that they’ll grow, develop, and mature in future books.
Someone has left a threat for the high school that seems to encompass all the students and teachers, but things definitely heat up when a student is found dead and someone is trying to kill off the teachers especially Emma and Leslie! Excellent characters that are well developed with unique personalities enhance an interesting and intriguing plot. Toss in some personal turmoil for both of our leading ladies and you have a well rounded book that will provide you with hours of entertainment. You don’t absolutely have to read the first book in the series to enjoy this book, but you would be missing out on a fun and entertaining read that also allows you to get to know the characters even better!
Emma Lovett is an English teacher in Pinewood Colorado. She loves her job and her life. Emma and her friend, Leslie, like to help investigate crime. These two ladies have the ability to find clues that others miss I admired how well they work together. I had to laugh when Emma uses her Southern Belle charm to I get information. When a High School cheerleader was killed, I was shocked. Thank goodness! Emma and Leslie are there to help. I liked the characters and the Shakespeare quotes. Emma’s romance with Hunter was special. He’s a good guy, but I, also, liked his romantic competition. Will Capshaw, the Medical Examiner, becomes a key player in the investigation. He is a rebel who has an interest in Emma. Who will she choose? Kelley Kaye wrote a fast paced cozy mystery that was full of unexpected surprises and deadly twists. The ending was a shock I especially enjoyed the smart and sassy banter. It added a touch of humor. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next. I want more stories in the Chalkboard Outlines series.
I received a copy of this book which I voluntarily read and reviewed. My comments are my honest opinion.
Poison by Punctuation is the second book in the Chalkboard Outlines cozy mystery series by Kelley Kaye. Where Death by Diploma, the first book, took place during Emma’s first year teaching in Pinewood, Colorado, Poison by Punctuation takes place the next year.
Teachers Emma and Leslie have set out to make their lives healthier. Given that the prior year, Emma had been attacked twice, they decided they needed to find some sort of exercise that would be safer than running through the streets. Besides that, Leslie isn’t much of a runner. They decide to do some early morning swimming at the school instead.
It was one of those early mornings that they discover the body of a cheerleader. Leslie and Emma set out once again to investigate this whodunnit. There are a number of clues that they are going on – fresh graffiti on the walls, three new teachers who don’t seem to want to interact with the others, and there are a set of hateful notes that had been given to the cheerleaders as well as Emma and Leslie.
The story is interesting, but at times it felt as though it was being stretched a bit thin. I found myself wanting the mystery to be solved and the book to be over about three-quarters of the way through.
I would still recommend this book, as every reader has a different opinion. For me, it fell a bit short, but not too short. I’d give this one 4 out of 5 stars.
Second book in the Chalkboard Outlines series and Emma & Leslie find themselves involved in trying to solve another death. This time a well liked student. New characters, a little romance, a little murder and many secrets kept the pages turning.
Who is Kristen Hollis? Where is she? How old is she? What is going on? Who is Emma Lovett? What do we learn about Emma? As a teacher, I could understand Emma and Leslie’s thoughts and feelings about death. Where did it happen and why? What happens at the Homecoming dance? What do we learn about the first death? I really have to go back and read the first book of this series. I really enjoyed the school setting as I am a teacher myself and could totally picture the images of the school and home lives of the folks involved in my head as I was reading. Enjoy the read, see who is behind the deaths, and why.
RECEIVED THIS BOOK AS A GIFT from Booksirens FOR A FAIR/HONEST REVIEW and REVIEWER FOR Bloggin’ With M. Brennan.
Poison by Punctuation is the second book in the Chalkboard Outlines series by Kelley Kaye. It is however, the first book that I have read by Kelley Kaye. I must say, it was very easy to pick up at book two in the series as thee was sufficient background so that I never felt lost.
The tale begins with Emma Lovett (the main character) discovering yet another dead body. What makes this discovery poignant is that the deceased is a student of Emma’s at Thomas Jefferson High School (in Pinewood, Colorado). As is generally true to form with cozy mysteries, there was a myriad of suspects which Emma had to go through. As well, a few varied story lines thrown in just to muddy the waters. And that is what made this story worthy of a “4 star” in my opinion. As is often the case, cozy mysteries have a standard format but these additional story-lines and red herrings are what grab my attention and allows a book to stand out on its own. And this was accomplished with Poison by Punctuation.
As Emma whittled down the list of suspects it did get a bit nerve wracking as it felt that she was marching closer and closer to danger.
At times, the reading was as if I was talking to a friend as it was very casual:
“Okeydokey, artichokee. If you’ve got no love for my dinner idea, I’ll see you at school tomorrow. Toodles.”
Many interactions between Leslie and Emma left me chuckling and at times wondering, who quotes Shakespeare? At least for a while it was fun trying to figure out which one of Shakespeare’s work the quote was from. Maybe a few less quotes for the next book in the series, should there be another book.
I was pleasantly surprised to see that other current day school issues were briefly touched upon -> bullying and cyberbullying. And giving Kisten’s adoption a discussion was good to read.
The budding (maybe) love triangle added another storyline which kept my interest. What a dilemma having to choose between Hunter and Dr. Will (or is there really a choice to be made)?
I am happy to report that I did not figure out “whodunit” until close to the end which is how I like my cozy mysteries.
The story was enjoyable enough and I found the writing of Kelley Kaye easy to read. I look forward to picking up other titles by Ms. Kaye.