Tuesday, March 8, 2011

A Deadly Cliche by Ellery Adams

Goodreads Summary:


While walking her poodle, Olivia Limoges discovers a dead body buried in the sand. Could it be connected to the bizarre burglaries plaguing Oyster Bay, North Carolina? At every crime scene, the thieves set up odd tableaus: a stick of butter with a knife through it, dolls with silver spoons in their mouths, a deck of cards with a missing queen. Olivia realizes each setup represents a cliché. And who better to decode the cliché clues than her Bayside Book Writers group?

Adding to the intensity of the story is the looming tropical storm/hurricane Ophelia and the possible discovery of Olivia's father, long thought to have perished in a hurricane during Olivia's childhood.

ast summer I read a Killer Plot by Ellery Adams because the author sent it to me for review. I BOUGHT A Deadly Cliche because I enjoyed the first book so much and I couldn't wait to find out what happens to the characters from Oyster Bay.

Adams has created a wonderful community that readers will want to visit over and over. I'm a big fan of Olivia. Even though she is often reserved in her interactions with others, you can tell that she want's to be less cold. She's trying to loosen up. She's a beautiful, caring, intelligent, self-reliant woman, but she's not perfect. And  she doesn't think she is.

The other characters are just as like able: sweet Laurel, who wants an identity that includes a career in addition to motherhood; Millay, the tough but vulnerable young bartender;   Harris, the young, unassuming computer geek, who just happens to more attractive than he realizes; and Rawlings, Olivia's love interest, who has hidden depths and is the Chief of Police  - are just a few of the delightful characters in this series.

One of the things that makes this series stand out for me, is that while it is indeed a murder mystery, at times the murder really seems to take a back seat to the development and growth of the characters in the book. It's the lives and stories of these characters that take the forefront rather than the murder.  However, don't think that the murder is something the author has just thrown in to make it a murder mystery.  A Deadly Cliche is a well woven mystery that any Cozy fan will enjoy.

To be cliche-ish A Deadly Cliche is a "top of the line" mystery.  If mysteries are your game, you should run out and get a copy today.

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