Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Great Escapes Book Tours Book Review: Handmade Ho Ho Homicide


Handmade Ho-Ho Homicide

(An Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery)
by Lois Winston

About Handmade Ho-Ho Homicide



Cozy Mystery
8th in Series
Independently Published
Print Length: 212 pages
Digital ASIN: B07VG2QZXV

Two and a half weeks ago magazine crafts editor Anastasia Pollack arrived home to find Ira Pollack, her half-brother-in-law, had blinged out her home with enough Christmas lights to rival Rockefeller Center. Now he’s crammed her small yard with enormous cavorting inflatable characters. She and photojournalist boyfriend (and possible spy) Zack Barnes pack up the unwanted lawn decorations to return to Ira. They arrive to find his yard the scene of an over-the-top Christmas extravaganza. His neighbors are not happy with the animatronics, laser light show, and blaring music creating traffic jams on their normally quiet street. One of them expresses his displeasure with his fists before running off.
In the excitement, the deflated lawn ornaments are never returned to Ira. The next morning Anastasia once again heads to his house before work to drop them off. When she arrives, she discovers Ira’s attacker dead in Santa’s sleigh. Ira becomes the prime suspect in the man’s murder and begs Anastasia to help clear his name. But Anastasia has promised her sons she’ll keep her nose out of police business. What’s a reluctant amateur sleuth to do?
Christmas craft projects included.

Review: If you are looking for a cute holiday themed cozy mystery, this is definitely the book for you. This is probably one of the most relaxing books I've read recently. By relaxing, I mean a book I could get lost in and just enjoy, which I did, immensely.

You have a family member who is basically going all Grizwald with the Christmas decorations much to the chagrin of the neighbors. You have some crazy in-laws and other assorted relatives too.

The wacky characters make for a fun read, especially when her half brother in law is a suspect in the murder of a man that wasn't to thrilled with his decorations.

There is so much to love about this book, including one of the errors at the beginning when Bea Arthur is referenced as Maude's character in the Golden Girls.

I loved Anastasia and her family, because they were so goofy, from her cougar mother to Ira and his unpleasant children. Oh and there's the ex-Marine that comes to whip Ira's kids into shape. He reminded me a bit of Ranger from the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich.

The holiday setting made this read even more fun

This was such a fun quick read and considering the length, I liked how the author wrapped up things without making it feel too hurried. I can't wait to read more of this series.

Rating: 4 flowers


About Lois Winston

USA Today bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick-lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry.
Author Links



Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers blog: www.anastasiapollack.blogspot.com





Purchase Links - Amazon Kobo  -  iTunes    -   Nook


TOUR PARTICIPANTS

October 15 – A Chick Who Reads – REVIEW

October 15 – Babs Book Bistro – CRAFT POST - Reading Is My SuperPower

October 16 – Brooke Blogs – CRAFT POST

October 16 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT

October 17 – The Book Decoder – REVIEW

October 18 – Hearts & Scribbles – GUEST POST

October 18 – LibriAmoriMiei – REVIEW

October 19 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT

October 20 – Cozy Up With Kathy – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

October 21 - Here's How It Happened – CHARACTER GUEST POST

October 22 – Mysteries with Character – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

October 22 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST

October 23 – Laura's Interests – SPOTLIGHT

October 23 – Baroness' Book Trove – REVIEW

October 23 – Eskimo Princess Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 24 – Celticlady's Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 24 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW

October 25 – I Read What You Write – SPOTLIGHT

October 26 – Literary Gold – SPOTLIGHT

October 26 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

October 27 – Elizabeth McKenna - Author – SPOTLIGHT

October 28 – My Journey Back – CHARACTER GUEST POST

1 comments:

Lois Winston said...

Thanks so much for the wonderful review of Handmade Ho-Ho Homicide. I'm so glad you enjoyed the book.

 
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