Publisher: Blueberry Books Press
Source: Kindle Unlimited
Release Date: August 20th 2016
Buying Links: Amazon* | * affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through this link.
Blurb from goodreads:
Magic is about to meet murder in Willow Bay
Angela Martin lives a pretty normal life. As normal as the life of a witch who can talk to animals can be, anyway.
Until she shows up to work one day and finds a dead body.
Of course, in a small town like Willow Bay this means everyone is obviously on edge. Between the cops who have never investigated a murder before, the crazy hot but infuriating guy Angela is sure has something to do with the murder and clients threatening to move to Canada, Angela starts to wonder if things are ever going to be normal again.
But as Angela comes closer to the truth, she finds herself in the murderer's crosshairs. Will she be able to solve the case before she becomes the next victim?
The Purr-fect Crime is the first book in the Willow Bay Witches series of paranormal cozy mysteries. It's a full-length novel full of funny and sarcastic best friends, a touch of magic, a snarky talking cat and a little bit of romance.
"The Purr-fect Crime" is a flawed but fun cozy mystery with humor, a snarky cat, a little romance, fun characters, and a little witchcraft.
The story is actually quite light on the paranormal elements, apart from Angela's ability to talk with animals a la Doctor Doolittle. I liked that Silver didn't go wild with the paranormal aspect; I found it believable. So was Angela's reasoning for getting involved in the investigation. Another plus? The local cops are actually competent instead of bumbling idiots nor are they condescending. Angela and her sister Charlotte and her best friend Sophie are the bumbling ones, seeing as they have never tried to solve a mystery before and have only what they've seen on TV or read in books to guide them. Despite their inexperience, they make headway on solving the murder and related mysteries. Silver did leave some questions unanswered, such as why and how the dead man ended up in Angela's office, but she tied up most of the threads.
Angela, Charlotte, and Sophie are interesting and I liked getting to know them. Sophie works for Angela while Charlotte still attends college. One thing that bugged me was Sophie's age. She's 26 and already completed all of her schooling to be a veterinarian, and passed the national licensing exam, and already owns her own vet practice; it's implied that the practice is a year or two old. We're not told that she's a genius nor that she did an accelerated educational path so, yeah, highly unlikely and improbable. Authors have really got to stop making their heroines so damn young when it comes to certain career fields. It's a minimum of 8 years in the US to get your veterinarian degree, if you don't specialize. If you do, add another year or two to that total. So, that killed some credibility right there. And yes, I realize we're talking about a book where the lead is a witch and talks to animals. That just makes it even more important for the author to get the details right and give her world a solid foundation. Also, the author took liberties with Washington state law regarding estates and wills. The world building is otherwise solid, as is the mystery. Silver gave us clues and red herrings and kept me guessing. There's even a hint of romance for both Sophie and Angela.
"The Purr-fect Crime" was a pleasant way to spend several hours and I'm looking forward to reading more in the series, if only to see how Silver avoids falling into the "Murder, She Wrote" writing traps.
Ahh murder, my favorite subject matter. lol
ReplyDeleteYeah, I totally hear you on the Veterinarian thing (careers in general). I know a lot, including large animal vets. There have been a couple that were done by 25, but didn't have their own practices like that. The only time it's been close to this is two women I know went to work with their dad who has his own practice. So it's a bit different.
Heh, murder is one my faves too. :D We;re murderous, you and I. :P
DeleteI know I shouldn't let little details bother me, but they do. Happily, they don't bother all readers. If I could find that info in 5 minutes on Google, then so could the author. The story would not have been harmed by aging Angela a few years.
A snarky cat? I may live with one of those. I do agree with you regarding all the accomplishments of these young characters. It just doesn't happen like that!
ReplyDeleteYeah, cats pretty much by definition are snarky. :D But this one talks! :D I'm glad to see I'm not the only one bothered by the improbability of Angela's career. I thought it might just be a weird quirk of mine.
DeleteYeah 26 is a bit young to have gotten through all the school AND own her own vet practice. I could see finishing schooling but the business part seems a little farfetched. Other than that this does sound like a fun read!
ReplyDeleteIt was; it's a fun, fluffy, light read. :)
DeleteI'm reading book three and she stated that she graduated vet school 3 years ago. She would have been 15 when she entered college but there's no mention of her being a genius or doing accelerated schooling so, NOPE. Not buying it.
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