Monday, October 14, 2013

Great Escapes Book Tours Book Review: Strangled By Silk



Book Details:
Title: Strangled by Silk (Poppy Cove Mysteries)
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Number of Pages: 275
Publisher: Cozy Cat Press (January 30, 2013)
Book Blurb:
Darlings! Here’s the scoop on my latest mystery STRANGLED BY SILK. It’s all about Daphne and Margot––two independent young California women in 1957––own their own dress shop called Poppy Cove.

When one of their top clients––Constance Stearns-Montgomery––is strangled to death with her own silk scarf at the opening ceremonies for her new girls’ academy, Daphne and Margot are shocked. They can’t believe that such a horrid crime could take place in their sleepy little oceanside village of Santa Lucia. Worse, they’ve lost one of their best clients. The two women quickly become embroiled in solving the crime. After all, if anyone can track down the killer, it should be them. Margot’s long-time beau is the town’s top cop, and Daphne is a master at using her flirtatious wiles to extract information from unsuspecting men.

Of course, neither girl will let their snooping get in the way of more urgent tasks such as choosing new textiles and accessories for Poppy Cove or planning their fall fashion show or––most important––selecting the appropriate ensemble to wear for each and every occasion. But these two fashion detectives are on the case, and the murderer––and the poorly attired––had better watch out!

Barbara Jean Coast is the pen name of authors Andrea Taylor and Heather Shkuratoff, both of whom reside in Kelowna, BC, Canada. Barbara Jean, however, is a resident of Santa Lucia, California (eerily similar to Santa Barbara), where she enjoys long lunches, cocktail parties, fancy dinner dates with attractive and attentive gentlemen. Her interests include Alfred HeatherHitchcock movies, reading Carolyn Keene, music by popular musicians, such Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett, shopping for new dresses, attending society events and always looking fabulous in kitten heels. STRANGLED BY SILK is her first novel in the Poppy Cove Mystery Series.


Review: Strangled By Silk is a very unique novel, the first in a new series by Barbara Jean Coast, which is the pen name of Andrea Taylor and Heather Shkuratoff.

The first thing you will notice in this series, is the detail to fashion. The two heroines Daphane and Margot own a dress shop named Poppy Cove. The descriptions of the clothes and jewelry made me want to go shopping. Plus, there are 50s Fashion tips at the end! Really, who wants to go shopping, right now?

The other thing that sets this book apart from the rest is the time period. It is set in the 1950s. What a fun time for fashion and for sleuthing! Especially as the murder involves a very prominent member of Santa Lucia society, at the opening of her new girls academy nonetheless.

The best part was not knowing whodunit until the end. There's some great foreshadowing on who it might be, and there's one character that you'll wish did do it, so they could get hauled away for good, but the real killer wasn't someone you will have on your primary list of suspects.

This cozy was such a joy to read! If you like cozies by Rhys Bowen, you might want to give this one a try for its attention to historical detail and its fun society setting.

Rating:  5 flowers



Author Links
Blog: http://welcometopoppycove.wordpress.com/ 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BarbaraJCoast 
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/bjcoast/ 
Facebook: “Friend” Barbara Jean Coast & “Like” Poppy Cove Mysteries
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/BJCoast 

Purchase Links: AMAZON B&N Book World


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Very happy you enjoyed your visit to Santa Lucia, Andrea. Come back anytime. Toodles!

Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard said...

Nice review! I always appreciate when mystery authors keep me guessing, and the 1950s setting and fashion elements sound fun and fresh -- I don't think anyone's done that in a cozy series before.

 
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