One of You : A Tower District Mystery by Lorie Lewis Ham

Thank you to the authors, publishers, and NetGalley for providing these ARCs in exchange for honest reviews. The recipe reviews and food pairing found on my Instagram feed are of my own doing.  

One of You: A Tower Mystery
Tower District Mysteries Book 2
Lorie Lewis Ham
Kings River Life

Tower District Fresno is a place of culinary delights, entertaining esthetics, and murder. Well what did you expect, it is Mysteryfest so of course there is going to be a murder mystery but one would never have expected it to be the Queen of Cozy, that’s right the Queen of Cozy is dead…in Fresno. What started out as a MysteryFest has become a MurderFest and the Tower District’s newest resident, Roxi Carlucci, is going to help find out why. This is the second book in the Tower District Mystery Series and I think that it is every bit as good as the series starter if not better. Book two picks up with Roxi helping her friend Clark to get his bookshop ready for Mysteryfest and the authors of Bradford Publishing, namely Marilyn Bradford the Queen of Cozy.  Everyone liked Marilyn; the same cannot be said about her husband Edward, the owner of Bradford Publishing. Many people were surprised that Edward wasn’t the victim and while he makes for a perfect suspect, he has a really good alibi and an ability to act. 

This is an engaging story full of surprises and unique events that capture your attention with the introduction of each suspect and the secrets they carry. Did Marilyn know those secrets; was her "tell-all" book going to tell all about her fellow authors? The Tower Gossip Twitter account has been hacked and is up and running again adding fuel to the fire and anyone can be a target, even Roxi. How is it that the Tower Gossip is either in step with or a step ahead of Roxi and Stephan? How can Nathan still seem so perfect? There are some serious plot twists that keep you guessing a little like trick or treat, it is Halloween after all.  

This is a great continuation of the series starter but it can be read as a stand-alone. Roxi does a great job helping with both the MysteryFest and the investigation, while also taking care of the furries, being sure to grab great tasting food, brainstorm with best bud Lucas, engage in a little cosplay Camelot style, and hanging out with Clark (she still isn’t looking to start a relationship). As with the first story, the characters are diverse, relatable, and engaging.  I look forward to the next installment and will be trying a glass of Orange Up in the meantime. 

One of Us: A Tower Mystery
Tower District Mysteries Book 1
Lorie Lewis Ham
Kings River Life

I have never had a desire to visit Fresno, even when I lived in the Sacramento area and was somewhat close to the town. After I finished the book I went and looked up the Fresno Tower District and now I am considering adding it to my “cozy mystery destination” list. The food and art deco buildings are just a small part of what makes this mystery so good. The main character, Roxi is a children’s book author who has been dropped by her publisher. Unable to afford the California coast she concedes to move to Fresno and live with her cousin Stephan. Roxi and Stephan are family lower “f” and they are part of a Family with a capital “F” (as in Mob Family). Stephan, having turned his back on the Family business, has his own investigation business and happily extends an offer of employment. In addition he also gets Roxi a volunteer position at the local theater. Roxi has back stage access to the show and the drama but a front row seat to the murder, a most mysterious murder because the victim was so quiet and unassuming that no one could have possibly had a motive for murder.

 Roxi is inquisitive, smart, sassy, sensitive, relatable, and perfect for the role of amateur sleuth. Did I mention that she has a unique pet, a Dumbo rat (yep had to look that up as well).  Another unique aspect to this story is the Tower Gossip website and Tower Gossip Twitter account. Tower Gossip parallels the once popular TV series Gossip Girl, complete with a mysterious figure who seems to know all and teases with bits of details to create gossip and drama. Slightly less mysterious is the cast of suspects who have something to hide. There is a director who is regular Jekyll & Hyde during rehearsals, a dark and complicated writer, the dog walker has to be included because of the murder weapon, a leading man who is too perfect, and an art academy owner who may be in financial turmoil.  In between trips to wonderful sounding eateries

The story draws you in and includes real emotions and real family crisis subjects such as being bipolar and suicide. The clues are easy enough to follow and the red herrings are convincing enough to lead you astray. This is an excellent start to a new series.