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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This is a truly delightful start to a new series featuring 97 year old Alice. When a friend dies at her retirement home, Alice investigates, because the police just aren’t interested. The writing is fresh and skillful. The plot is tight and multi-layered and filled with interesting characters. I’m looking forward to future installments. I received this book free and chose to make a voluntary, unbiased review.
This book was really a fun read. I love the whole idea of a senior sleuth series.
Alice is a feisty character, but willing to admit the limitations that have come with her advancing age.
This makes the book even more enjoyable for someone beyond the age of 50.
Vanessa is a great sidekick/assistant to Alice. I loved both of these ladies!
I look forward to reading more books in this series.
Poker Chips and Poison is the first book in A Silvermoon Retirement Village Cozy Series by Rodney Strong.
Alice is a 97-year-old resident of Silvermoon Retirement Village. When a friend passes away, everyone just assumes it was due to her age, but Alice thinks otherwise and convinces Silvermoon’s concierge to help her investigate.
Alice is a little brusque, but at 97, you never know how long you have so she doesn’t waste time on political correctness or pleasantries.
I look forward to learning more about Alice’s past and the other residents at Silvermoon.
I received a copy of this book and freely give my honest opinion.
An outstanding start to a new cozy series. Until this year I never really read these shorter books. But, I’ve done a complete 180 on them. When done right a 100 to 125 pages is the perfect length. This book was tightly written. As the 1st in a new series there was a lot of introduction to characters, setting,etc.And the author really let you get to know Alice ( the MC), Vanessa (her sidekick/Googler). & the retirement village layout & atmosphere. We meet many of Silvermoon’s residents & employees & get a good glimpse of who they are.Not a wasted word anywhere. The book has a very fast pace & keeps you turning pages.
I love Alice. You will too. She’s led a very unusual & interesting life. Her past makes her a completely unique amateur sleuth with a very different way of looking at people & situations. Her relationship with Vanessa, an employee at Silvermoon is one I really enjoyed. They really like & care for one another, yet still bicker & argue. The great part is it all feels real & natural. It was very easy to picture these women . Actually, all the characters were easy to picture.
Lots of humor, not really any romance, just the way I love my cozies! And a cat !
Cons=
The only con I can come up with is that most cozy fans will probably be able to figure out “whodunit” before the reveal. I didn’t even try, but when the killer was outed my 1st thought was, “Oh, yeah, I should have seen that”. I was too wrapped up in the investigation & other goings on at the retirement village to want to figure it out. Truthfully, to me that’s really not a con, it’s the way I like my cozies, but I know a lot of cozy fans will feel differently.
I do worry that Alice is 97, so I fear the series won’t last as long as I’d like.
Bottom Line=
This was a solid 5+ stars. I highly recommend giving this New Zealand author /cozy a try.
I truly want to thank the author for offering me a chance to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion.