Thank you to the authors, publishers, and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. The recipe review and food pairing found on my Instagram feed are of my own doing.
Dying to Sell
Hope Street Church Mystery #9
Ellery Adams and Tina Radcliffe
Beyond the Page Publishing
The latest Hope Street Church Mystery (book 9) has the bible study group getting involved before the body drop at the behest of Grammy Lee. Cooper Lee, a sweet Southern gal who is part of a bible study group made up of a diverse group from a realtor, plumber, baker, and artist. Cooper is a small business owner having just purchased a store front for selling her repurposed bird houses and other unique bits and bobs. If this is your first time reading one of The Hope Street Church Mysteries, you are in for a pleasant and cozy read. Having said that, this series isn't about unicorns and rainbows, it handles very real issues that can be found anywhere, from a small town to a large city. This time around, Grammy Lee, a VERY feisty active adult who is a hoot-n-half and full of sass, has asked the bible study group to get involved on behalf of a friend, before a body turns up.
Grammy Lee’s friend, Esme Saldado, is being pressured to put her house on the market by her granddaughter Mary’s unscrupulous fiancé Ronald Fortune, a slick real estate agent and con man. Grammy is pushing Cooper hard to get the bible study group working on the case. Normally the group tippy toes around law enforcement, trying their best to be helpful but they are often reminded to keep out. This time, Detective Olson hasn’t necessarily given approval for the group to snoop but he is open to any information that they come across, and he even volunteered that the Feds are involved. Which means that they, the bible study group, will need to tread cautiously because not all is as it seems.
This is an uplifting series that has a nice sprinkling of scripture and a great illustration of how important community and family can be, the family that you are born into and the family you choose. All of the main characters add so much to the story and their bible verse discussion is insightful. Cooper isn’t the most confident of characters, she is somewhat self-conscious of her beautiful green glass eye (result of a field hockey accident) that is in contrast to her pale blue eye. All of the characters are well rounded, salt of the earth, caring individuals who often come together and support each other. I like that the group works together instead of one character going off on their own. I also appreciate that Magnolia’s Marvels aka mama Maggie’s recipes are shared at the end of the book. I am making a batch of the Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies to share with my family. Perhaps they can help my craving for the next book which cannot get here soon enough.
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