BOOKS IN THIS SERIES CAN BE ENJOYED IN ANY ORDER. Want to get away from the daily grind? So did Ollie! Middle aged Professor Ollie Stratford’s been hounded by a psycho realtor, outrun by a bunch of grandma’s, taken advice from sock puppets, stuck in a brimming toilet bowl, and almost run out of college by a drunken professor. How is that for her first few days in a quiet little Texas town she … few days in a quiet little Texas town she never wanted to live in?
Thrust into the middle of a murder mystery with a dwindling pile of cash and very few leads Ollie starts digging. Along the way, she teams up with an oddball reporter, a dreadlocks Rastafarian haired lawyer, a grandma who teaches mixed martial arts, and a stray dog named Bodie. Can she discover the identity of the killer in time or will she end up being the next victim?
If you like cozy mysteries, clever animals, southern charm, and coffee, you’ll love Texas Troubles, the first in a fun series of Ollie Stratford Murder Mysteries set in a small Texan Hill Country town, with all its quirky inhabitants.
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I enjoyed this book very much. Despite two murders and a bit of romance, it is clean without blood and guts horror or nastiness. Except for Marsha Pennington, of course. She’s such a piece of work, I was expecting blood and guts! What a great villain!
This was a fun, quick, quirky read. I was quite surprised at the outcome. Where I expected romance,there was none. I would recommend this book,and would love to read more.
An interesting story about a 40-something woman who moves from New York City to small-town Texas. She has purchased a property (a fixer-upper) sight unseen and plans to turn it into a bed and breakfast. She has entanglements in real estate and the death of a friend to occupy her when not supervising the remodeling. Interesting group of characters, several plot twists. A good mystery.
“Texas Troubles” earns 4/5 Texas Tall Hats…Big Fun!
The bidding was tight. Two sat down angrily. The man on the phone confidant, until his connection was disrupted. “Up fifty!” She smiled. The gavel sounded, and the property in Texas, outbuildings and all, were hers. More than she could afford, more than she realized, more than it’s worth, but it was hers. What a way to start! A dream coming true for Ollie Stratford, middle-aged professor. I am a newbie to N.C. Lewis Ollie Stratford Murder Mystery which follows new farm owner turned amateur detective. Her first case? Ollie discovers an old friend has been murdered.
It is true that the editing process seems to have been less than successful with several spelling, grammar, and punctuation/capitalization errors. As a retired teacher, that is disappointing, so take away a star for that! The story is very much in the ‘cozy mystery’ genre with an entertaining murder mystery focusing mostly on peripheral events: buyers remorse issues, small town vs big city culture, and even personal jeopardy from poking one’s nose into other’s business. All of that was entertaining, but the investigative style is more ‘a lucky break’ than deductive reasoning. The characters, too, fit the ‘cozy’ genre and in many ways realistic: pushy real estate agents, needs-some-grooming dog, an odd “sock puppet wielding” reporter, and a coiffed-challenged lawyer. All of them were entertaining, even though a few stereotypes or generalities pop up. “Texas Troubles” has some troubles, but overall it was enjoyable, and I’d love to give this author another chance with her next book.
An entertaining story. It has twist and turns that will keep you guessing. Quirky characters and an fun plot make this story worth reading. This is the first I’v read from this author and I look forward to reading more. I received this book as a gift and voluntarily give this review.
Texas Troubles might have been a cute book, but there are so many editing mistakes it takes the pleasure out of the story. No pronouns to speak of, wrong tense of verbs, plural and singular don’t match, puntuation and capitalization are at random. Spent more time trying to figure out what was supposed to be being said, as opposed to just enjoying reading. Won’t be reading anything else by N.C. Lewis until an editor is found and the transcript is cleaned up.