It’s murder, but who’s going to believe a 96 year old?Alice Atkinson should be comfortably living out her days at the Silvermoon Retirement Village. But she’s bored. A lifetime of living in the grey area between right and wrong means that winning money off her friends at poker just isn’t doing it for her. Then her friend is murdered, and she’s the only one who thinks it’s foul play. And even she … And even she has her doubts.
With the help of her occasionally reluctant sidekick, Alice is determined to find out the truth.
If old age doesn’t get her, the murderer will.
Grab your copy of Poker Chips and Poison now to see how age means nothing when it comes to investigating murder.
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Alice Atkinson, a 97-year-old octogenarian, resides at the Silvermoon Retirement Village. This book has a lot of fascinating characters. It is a fun, new series.
Alice in her past life is what you might call a con artist. She loves winning money at the expense of others. She was never one to hurt anyone or get involved in violence.
The retirement village has an annual poker tournament which Alice has always won in the past. This year has a new player who makes Alice wonder about her ability. Alice has friends at Silvermoon but she and Betty are the closest. When Betty falls over and dies at the poker game, Alice notices something about her fingernails which puzzles her. When Tracey Miller, the manager of the complex comes in to secure the area around Betty, her niece Judith Miller, a new detective on the police department, just happens to be there. She wants to just “practice” what she learned at the academy by looking Betty over. Alice mentions to her that she thinks Betty may have been killed but she doesn’t know why or by whom.
Alice enlists the help of Vanessa Carson, “Concierge”, of Silvermoon to investigate Betty’s death. The conversations between the young lady and Alice are hilarious. When they discuss “googling” you will laugh out loud.
You will absolutely love this new series. A must read!
I received an advance copy of this book. This is my honest review.
This was a delightful cozy mystery. I have fallen in love with Alice and can’t wait to read more of the Silvermoon Retirement Village series!
This was a quick read, but it worked well because it didn’t waste pages of words that didn’t necessarily add to the story. Because this was the first book in the series, the author had to introduce a lot of characters as well as the dynamic of the retirement village. He accomplished that easily! And you can visualize the characters, knowing exactly what they look like and you can imagine the relationships…the good, the bad, and the bickering! When an author brings them to life, that’s a true gift.
What a fun read and I am ready for the next adventure! Thank you to the author for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
This new series is a hit!
I love the Hitchhiker series where we first met Alice but she is such a strong character that she really deserved her own set of books. The setting is in and around a retirement home and the majority of our characters are “of an age,” with help from a younger staff member. Not your typical little old lady, grandmother type, Alice is in the thick of things trying to solve the possible murder of her best friend. But first she has to convince the police that her friend didn’t die of natural causes.
I will be impatiently waiting for the next book to come out!
I received an ARC. This is my honest review.
Alice was a con artist and as such she is good at solving mysteries. She is in a retirement home and when her friend is murdered she is on the case. With the help of her much younger sidekick they are going to figure this out. Alice is very sure of herself and I enjoy her sarcasm and wit. This was a fun easy read.
Alice is a feisty retiree living at the Silvermoon Retirement Village. She made some risky and atypically choices in her younger days. They seem to have worked out variously, and taught her a lot along the way. One of those lessons was if you cannot be the smartest person in the room, at least be sure to be the cleverest.
An apparent cheat at the poker table goes nearly unnoticed due to a sudden death shortly thereafter.
Alice is not fond of losing those close to her, and works to unravel it al.
Exciting, interesting and a bit melancholy.
When I met 97-year-old Alice Atkinson in this book, I was delighted with her personality. She apparently has a checkered past, but made a good living and now lives in a retirement village. She is great at winning poker. Part of her talent is maintaining a poker face and reading the “tells” of her competitors. However in the latest tournament, something seems amiss. When her fellow resident passes away suddenly, Alice thinks that there may be something suspicious going on. She decides to investigate.
I enjoyed the story, the characters and the writer’s style. I would recommend this book for almost any reader.
Just because you’ve reached a certain age and live in a retirement home doesn’t mean you’re not sharp enough to solve a murder right under your nose. Even when a woman drops dead at the poker tournament, witnessed by everyone in the home. Even when the cops have declared COD as natural causes. 96-tear-old Alice has mad sleuthing skills, thanks to a secretive career, which author Rodney Strong just flirts with and never completely describes. This nonagenarian has a bagful of tricks that lead her the To the motive, means, and murder. The story made me laugh, empathize with the indignations of old age, and respect a lifetime of wisdom and skills — both at the poker table and on the hunt for the poison. It has everything a cozy mystery should have to be entertaining!
I received an ARC of this book, and mu review is honest and voluntary.
I liked Alice when she helped Oliver solve a murder in the Hitchhiker series, and I’m glad she got a series of her own. She’s smart, spry and has been around the block a few times. The descriptions make me feel like I’m there. All the characters are interesting, and the story held my attention the whole way through. I especially like reading about places and countries I’ve never been to because I always learn something new. I’m very much looking forward to the next book.
I received an advance copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving my review.
This was a really fun, hilarious book starting a new cozy series. When 97-year-old Alice Atkinson is playing cards with Teresa at the Silvermoon Retirement Village, I was totally unprepared for the opening dialog as everyone waited tensely for the ladies to reveal the winning poker hand: “Was that a poker face, or was she dead? Alice had to admit, around here some days it was hard to tell.” I burst out laughing as this set the tone for the rest of the book, and my laughter continued through the story. You are going to love this series!
Alice is an intelligent lady, quick-witted, looks at things a little differently than others, and could read people pretty well, which makes her a perfect investigator – and an excellent poker player! Her life had always been on the exciting side and things have just slowed down too much for her in her new environment, to the point of boredom.
However, when her friend, Betty, collapses and dies at the end of the annual poker tournament, Alice is inclined to believe the death was not from natural causes. With her usual vigor, she throws herself into an investigation to find out the truth. Nothing will stop her, not even threats or danger heading her way. With the not-so-eager help of Vanessa, a young worker at the retirement home, the two pursue justice and only hope they can stay one step ahead of the murderer! Grab your copy and follow along as the clues pile up!
Poker Chips and Poison was an entertaining book about a 97-year-old woman, Alice, living in a retirement village along with her quirky friends. It’s not very often that woman of that age is going around solving murders and it was a fun read. I was given an advance copy of this book and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who loves a good, clean story!
Loved the story, characters and will read the next one for sure.
I received an ARC from the author at my request and this is my honest opinion. I met Alice in the Hitchhiker series and loved her, so I was delighted to learn she would have a series of her own. I was a tad concerned that she might have difficulty standing on her own, but I shouldn’t have given it a second thought. She, along with Vanessa her “side-kick”, is quite able to carry a series of her own. She is clever, quick-witted, sarcastic and a 97-year old semi-retired con (as in conman. Not sure if she qualifies for the convict part of that.) And don’t let her age or appearance fool you (believe me, she’s neither frail or feeble) or you may find yourself the latest victim of her con game, should she decide to travel that road again. I would like to be Alice when I get to be her age (if I get to be her age!) but without the criminal background!
This series is totally delightful and as lighthearted as a murder mystery can be. And don’t expect a formulaic or obvious mystery because it’s a cozy; this is neither. There is plenty of suspense and action, even though most of the characters are well above the age of senior. And if the action is at a little slower pace than some other novels it’s still there and just as enjoyable.
Mr. Strong really seems to have found his niche. Between this new series and the Hitchhiker series, he has provided many hours of enjoyment for cozy mystery fans. I can’t wait for the next installment. If you haven’t read any of these books be sure and pick one up as soon as possible. You are missing out on hours of delightful reading.
In Poker Chips and Poison. Alice, a feisty nonagenarian is convinced her good friend did not die accidentally. Alice is determined to find the murderer. This clever, well written mystery is set in the Silvermoon Retirement Village which is populated with a lot of interesting characters. They certainly have more exciting activities than most retirement communities. I love that I did not figure out the murder! I am eagerly awaiting book two.
I really liked Alice in the other series and am glad she got her own story. Alice has led a very interesting life and is now old and in a retirement village. She may be old, but she still is sharp and can outwit everyone. She is very clever. When one of her friends dies, she has reason to believe it was not a natural death. With the help on a young woman who works at the retirement village, she tries to find out the real cause of death. Even when her life is threatened, she doesn’t stop looking.
A quick read that is sure to please, can a bored but feisty retirement home resident get anyone to listen to her? Not only did the firey Alice lose a poker tournament, but then, one of her friends is killed and she suspects foul play…or is it? Of course it is, otherwise, where would our story be? Set in New Zealand with well developed and entertaining characters, laugh out loud moments are all enveloped in a great story with an unpredictable ending and moreover, a wonderful start to a new series. I received a complimentary ARC of this book and this is my honest review. Need a good laugh? Get this book now!
In this offshoot of the Murder In … series, Rodney Strong focuses on witty Alice, Amanda’s grandmother and retired con artist extraordinaire, who taught her granddaughter everything she knows and helped Oliver resolve several hitchhiker matters.
Although she’s 97, no one in the Silvermoon Retirement Village is sharper than Alice, and rarely does anyone get the upper hand on her. So when she loses the annual poker tournament to a new resident, it’s a surprise. However, the real shock comes when her friend Betty collapses and dies as the competition concludes.
With the help of her pal, Silvermoon concierge Vanessa, Alice embarks on finding Betty’s killer. Her old skills come in handy as the two pretend to search for a long-lost sister at the funeral home, which gives Alice the chance to inspect Betty’s corpse. She finds something off-kilter, but what does it mean? How does the discovery relate to Betty’s covert exit from the exercise area the day before she died? And why was she complaining about Village lothario Gordon shortly before her untimely death?
The first book in the Silvermoon Retirement Village cozy series puts the irrepressible nonagenarian at the center of the action, and it’s thoroughly enjoyable. Alice may be nearing the century mark, but there’s nothing old about her. Poker and Poison is pure reading joy.
Really cute story. I love the characters. I received a copy of this book and freely give my honest opinion. I think that this book is a great introduction to a new cozy series from Mr. Stong.
My mother used to say that her golden years were tarnished, but sadly she never met 97-year-old Alice. While Alice readily admits that she is nowhere near as strong as in her younger days nor her mind quite as quick as it once was, this feisty senior citizen is a indomitable force in finding the cause behind the sudden death of her friend and fellow resident at the Silvermoon Retirement Village. With the assistance of Vanessa, her young employee friend at the village, and some clever sleuthing, Alice is determined to learn the truth, even if it could be extremely dangerous. Alice is a study in contrasts, snarky and sensitive, with an amazing insight into human nature. However, when it comes to the internet, she is clueless. “The Google” produces some hilarious dialogue and the amusing generation gap between Alice and Vanessa is so well done, so enjoyable and so true. With the references to Alice’s somewhat questionable history, I am anxious to learn more. Having discovered that Alice first appeared in the author’s previous works, these books have vaulted to the top of my TBR list and I can’t wait to find out the details about her fascinating and storied past. I simply can’t help loving Alice and I bet my fellow readers will too! Of note, I received an ARC from the author, but this review is my honest opinion of this wonderful book.
The character of 97-year-old Alice appeared in the author’s Hitchhiker series and now, by popular demand has her own series, Silvermoon Retirement Village cozies. This is the first and I must say I am looking forward to more.
Alice is – well she doesn’t like to be called a con artist – she is far more professional than that and would never hurt anyone – except in self defense. When a friend dies unexpectedly, Alice wonders if it was natural causes or murder? Alice and staff member Vanessa set out to find the answer.
The mystery is well thought out and the characters entertaining and believable. The story is set in Wellington, New Zealand, a beautiful and green country across the ditch from Australia, where I live.
I wouldn’t mind a poker competition at my retirement centre. Bingo and scrabble are the most exciting on offer here, but I could imagine a poker game stirring up some (more) animosities.
I received an Advanced Reader Copy for a free and honest review.
This book was awesome from the start ! The minute I started reading it I couldn’t stop !! So grab a coffee and sit back and relax !!!