The charming homes of River Bluffs, Indiana, make perfect projects for house-flipper Jazzi Zanders. Less charming is her hothead brother-in-law, who’s a bit of a fixer-upper himself. But could he also be a murderer? Jazzi married her gorgeous contractor Ansel—not his family. But somehow she keeps living with them. So she’s delighted to help Ansel’s brother Radley move out of their home and into … Ansel’s brother Radley move out of their home and into his own place, in the same building as his work supervisor, Donovan. But when Donovan is shot and his apartment ransacked following an argument with Ansel and Radley’s older brother Bain, their sibling becomes a suspect—especially after his missing gun turns up as the murder weapon.
Told not to leave town by Detective Gaff, big brother moves in with . . . Jazzi and Ansel. Now Jazzi needs to prove Bain’s no killer, not only to keep him out of jail—but to get him out of their house. What was the killer looking for in Donovan’s apartment? And what will happen to the next person who gets in the way?
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Jazzi Zanders and her handsome husband, Ansel, have settled into their new home and are happy to welcome friends and family, but not when it includes Ansel’s obnoxious older brother, Bain.
Bain is in town to persuade his other brother, Radley, to return to the family farm. Radley has no intention of going back to that lifestyle and an argument ensues until Bain slams out of the apartment. Moments later, Radley’s work supervisor is murdered on the next floor and Bain becomes the chief suspect after his gun goes missing from the glovebox of his pickup.
Bain is forced to move in with Jazzi and Ansel while the investigation is under way and drives the newlyweds crazy. Jazzi is determined to figure out who the killer is before she does some murdering of her own- on her brother-in-law!
Jazzi tags along with Detective Gaff as he questions some ex-cons and searches for clues, all while renovating a home and catering a wedding.
One of my favorite aspects of the book was Jazzi’s love of cooking a feeding the people in her life. You can tell she gets great joy from caring for others and is an important underlying theme in the story.
I give The Body in The Apartment 4 lovely kisses- A fun read!
This is a series that has only improved with each book. I was not exactly thrilled with the first book as I felt it had too much romance and I am a cozy reader who doesn’t like a lot of romance in her cozy mysteries. Now that Ansel and Jazzy are married the romance is where it should be.
Not much has changed between Jazzi and Ansel except they have some discussions on having a baby. I really hope that does not happen as I think it would change the entire tone of the series. Jazzi is such a neat character in that she does a lot of what some consider “man” work in her house flipping business. I like being able to read about a strong female in a profession that used to be heavily male-dominated.
We learn more about Ansel’s family. Two of his brothers are in this book. They aren’t as bad as previously thought. Their upbringing was just terrible and unfortunately, that is all they knew. Seeing Ansel escape and live his own life has encouraged them.
The mystery kept me guessing until the end. I like that. When I start being able to figure out the killer in a series then I usually lose interest.
This is a clean read but there is some violence with the murders.
I received a complimentary copy from the publisher, Kensington, through NetGalley. Any and all opinions expressed in the above review are entirely my own.
A Wonderful New Installment to an Old Favorite Series
Jazzi is back. And another murder has rocked her world—and her brother-in-law looks guilty. How’s that for starting with high stakes?
And it only get more exciting.
The plot is cleverly crafted and kept me on the edge of my seat. The cast—both old favorites and new characters—continue to keep me riveted on every page. I mean, what woman would love Ansel? But the rest of them shine in their own right. It’s nice to see them continue to develop and grow, just like friends in the real world. And the pets and the recipes are happy bonuses I look forward to in each book.
I love that this world is expanding and hope this series continues on for a long time to come. I suspect there are many more stories to tell. And I’ll happily devour all of them.
House flippers, Jazzi, Ansel, their families and friends are back in the fourth Jazzi Zanders mystery novel. This time around the stakes are higher as Jazzi finds herself immersed in two separate murders.
The book starts with a bang—literally. Ansel’s brother Radley is in River Bluff when their older brother Bain arrives to try to get Radley to return to the family farm. After an argument between Radley and Bain, Radley’s boss is shot and killed. Bain becomes the prime suspect when it’s discovered his gun is missing from his truck. Murder #1, but things are far from over. It isn’t long before another killing occurs.
As Jazzi and her detective friend Gaff begin to fit the pieces together, it becomes apparent the two murders are related. Getting there—unraveling multiple threads, false leads, numerous suspects and motives makes this the most intricate Jazzi mystery to date. There are a lot of characters to keep track of, each with plenty of motive. If you like your cozies complex, while maintaining a wonderfully breezy feel, you’ll love this series and this book.
As with most mystery readers, I always like trying to “finger” the murderer before the reveal, but I love the family and friends element in this series every bit as much. This time around there is a wedding to prepare for, the arrival of a new baby, Easter celebrations, and the flush of new romance for new friends. Twine all of that up with a great mystery, adorable pets, two fabulous lead characters, plus lots of home cooking, and you’ve got the winning combination that makes this series a sheer delight!
I like the series.
Murders, beatings, ex-cons and flipping homes mixed with large family and friend dinners, family problems and an upcoming wedding makes for an interesting combination. There are a lot of characters with some that you’ll like, some that you won’t and some that you might learn to like. However, in the end it all comes together nicely for an enjoyable read.
The Body in the Apartment is the fourth installment in the Jazzie Zanders Mystery series.
Jazzie and her husband, Ansel, are helping his brother Radley move out of their home and into his new apartment. But when Ansel and Radley’s older brother, Bain, shows up and tries to convince Radley to come back home to work on the family farm, it puts a damper on what should have been a great day. While the men are moving furniture into the apartment, Radley’s boss is shot to death with Bain’s missing gun and his apartment is ransacked. Told not to leave town by the detective, Jazzie and Ansel have no choice but to let Bain and his grumpy attitude, stay with them until he’s eliminated as a suspect.
I found this book to be an enjoyable and relaxing read. The story moves at a good pace, and the cast of characters are fleshed out. Jazzie is likable, intelligent, dedicated to her friends and family and passionate about her job. It was refreshing to see a heroine not putting herself in dangerous situations and is content to let the police handle the investigation. The murder mystery was interesting but had little to no suspense leading up to the reveal, and the culprit was not a surprise. I found it very unrealistic that a detective would take a civilian to question witnesses and that he would be so reliant on her for help. Overall, this is a lighthearted and fun cozy mystery, with delicious-sounding food, heartwarming family relationships, and plenty of romance. I will definitely be reading future installments in this series.
I received an ARC from Kensington Books through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in the review are completely my own.
This was an extremely intriguing book that I had a hard time putting down. Jazzi and Ansel are helping Ansel’s brother, Radley, move into an apartment. Radley is moving into the same apartment building as his supervisor at work, Donovan. Donovan stops by to say hello as they are moving in and leaves. Shortly thereafter, the group hears gunshots and find Donovan has been shot. Unfortunately they are too late to save him and Donovan dies. Ansel’s oldest brother, Bain, had shown up and come along and it turns out that it was Bain’s gun that he had in his unlocked car that killed Donovan. Now Bain is stuck in town until he can be cleared since he had fought with Radley and Donovan while there. Later on, a friend of Jazzi and Ansel, Didi, has her home being watched and she and her young adopted son come to Jazzi and Ansel’s house. Walker, a friend of Jazzi and Ansel, is there and is immediately smitten by Didi and her son, River. He offers to take them in and keep them safe. After some more incidents, it seems that the trouble Didi is having and Donovan’s death are connected. Jazzi gets roped into helping Detective Gaff in between working on rehabbing their latest house. Jerod’s wife, Franny, has her baby and Bain ends up helping out with the house. I enjoyed seeing this mystery play out, seeing Walker and Didi find love, and seeing a new side to Bain, who has previously been a bit of a pain. It is a lot of fun to see how Jerod, Jazzi, and Ansel can take these houses and come up with designs to make them real showplaces. I can’t wait to see what’s next!
I love reading about Jazzi and Ansels’ adventures. They such a great team both at work and at home. I always enjoy reading stories with strong family values and this series hits the mark.
This book is the best yet in the series and I really enjoyed it. The mystery was very good and I liked the glimpses in to the lives of the characters that weren’t mystery related. That made for a nicely well rounded story. Looking forward to .the next book.
Just finished binging this series and loved it. Loved the characters, plots, everything about them. A very enjoyable read.
It’s the fourth mystery for Jazzi and Ansel. Newly married but they have Ansel’s brother, Radley, living with them. Soon Radley will be moving into his own apartment and, an added plus, his apartment is in the same complex where his boss, Donovan, lives. What should have been happy times are soon marred by the arrival of Ansel and Radley’s brother, Bain. He is bound and determined to force Radley back to work on the family farm. No way is that going to happen and a fight ensues. Donovan gets involved, defending Radley’s choice. It isn’t long before there is gunfire and Donovan is killed. Bain becomes the prime suspect when the police find out that the murder weapon was his.
Jazzi has a good friendship and working relationship with Detective Gaff and she finds herself deeply involved with finding the real killer.
Besides the well crafted mystery with plenty of twists, turns and red herrings, each book has a very strong sense of family. Every week the family gathers for a meal, everyone helps when things are tough. It makes sense that Jazzi and Ansel let Bain stay with them when the police tell him not to leave town. It’s what family does. The family story line is just as important to this series as the mystery. I’m already looking forward to reading the next book, The Body from the Past coming out 9/22/2020.
The Body in the Apartment by Judi Lynn is book four in the A Jazzi Zanders Mystery series. This has become one of my favorite series and I have only read two of them.
One of Jazzi’s brother in laws, Radley, has decided to leave the family farm and move to River Bluffs and now another brother in law, hot head Bain, is in town trying to convince him to move back to the farm. Bain leaves the apartment angry and just a few minutes later. Radley’s supervisor, who also lives in the building, is found shot to death. When it’s discovered that Bain’s gun is missing from his truck, Jazzi knows she is going to have to dive in and figure out who done it. Add on top, the gun is found to be the murder weapon and now Bain is the main suspect and can not leave River Bluffs, he of course needs to stay with Jazzi and Ansel. More the reason to get to the bottom of what is going on. When another person possibly involved turns up missing and later dead, Jazzi knows this is bigger then just a break in gone wrong.
There are great characters, family and friendship, plenty of twists and turns and a wedding in this easy to read cozy. I also enjoyed reading about the meals and food Jazzi prepares. There are recipes included.
I was given an ARC by NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review.
The Body In The Apartment is the fourth book in the A Jazzi Zanders Mystery series.
After attending Jazzi and Ansell’s wedding, Ansell’s brother Radley has decided to stay in River Bluffs. He has been working for Jazzi’s HVAC contractor, Thane, and has finally been able to get his own apartment. He will be living in the same building as his co-worker Donovan lives. As Jazzi, Ansell, and Radley are about to leave to move his belongings, Bain, Radley and Ansell’s brother, pulls up. He has driven down to take Radley back to the family farm. Radley has no intention leaving and they all set out to get Radley set up in his apartment. As they are getting Radley moved in, Bain gets into an argument with Donovan, the next thing they hear is a gunshot and when they go to the hall and see Donovan walk out of his apartment and collapse and in an instant he is dead. Jazzi immediately calls Detective Gaff, who she has worked with in the past. His apartment has been trashed. When Gaff learns that the gun, that was found next to the body, and when it is learned that the gun belonged to Bain and he has mysteriously disappeared, he becomes the prime suspect. Bain is far from being one of Jazzi’s friends, she suggests to Ansell that should ask him to stay until the murderer is found.
Once again Gaff asks for Jazzi’s help in the investigation, he has learned that she has a way of calming people being interviewed and has a good detective’s mind. When Ansell’s friend, Didi, has her home ransacked in a similar manner, they believe that the two must be related, but are stymied at what the connection might be. Jazzi and Gaff need to check out some ex-cons to find the killer.
Another well-written and plotted book in this interesting series. The book has an interesting and believable cast of characters, many that I would enjoy calling a friend.
There are delicious sounding recipes in the book.
I will be watching for The Body from the Past, due out in September 2020.
small-business, family-dynamics, friendship, amateur-sleuth, Indiana, cozy-mystery, murder, greed, small-town
I think it’s nice to see small town detectives utilizing select female civilians on a case because it would ease the ones being questioned as well as protect the department from certain kinds of lawsuits. Too bad that’s probably not a reality (what do I know, I live in a suburb).
Anyway, this is a great cozy involving newly married Jazzi, her extended family, her husband’s brothers, and numerous friends. Even though I had read the first in series, I was glad that there is lots of references so I didn’t feel left behind. Great characters, plenty of plot twists, red herrings, and misdirection plus there is a wedding coming up soon and lots of cooking and baking. Excellent read!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Kensington Books via NetGalley. Thank you!
I liked the story…. But there were so so many characters. I found it difficult to keep track… In the first chapter alone we met: Jazzy, Ansel, Radley, Donovan, Thane, Olivia, Walker, Bain, Franny, Jerod, Gran, Mom, and three pet names. In Chapter two we had to learn Gaff and Darby. Next came Didi, Brooklyn, River, Chad, and Archie…. And we haven’t gotten to all the suspects, their parents, their girlfriends, their jailhouse friends…. Samantha, Radley, Franny, Gil, Gunther, Lizzie, Eli, Eleanor….
I started this book but couldn’t get past the first two chapters. Maybe it was because I hadn’t read the previous books in the series. There were too many characters and I lost interest.