When Leah Norwood finds the body
of Isabel Meeks in the dumpster behind her store, she can’t believe the police
consider her a suspect. Sure, she didn’t liked Isabel, but then again, neither
did anyone else. Isabel had a condescending attitude and a bad reputation. As
manager of the antique store, Patina, she had made a lot of enemies.
There is Patina’s assistant
manager, the handsome and charming Trent. Isabel was blackmailing him. There is
Patina’s owner, the aloof and influential Anthony Thorpe. Isabel was smuggling drugs through his store.
And there is the entire drug dealing Cantono family. Isabel had lost a box
containing heroin from one of their shipments. That is just to name a few and
didn’t even include the stranger who was seen arguing with Isabel just hours
before her death.
The police have too many suspects
and too many soft alibis. Leah needs to prove to the sexy new chief of police
that she had nothing to do with Isabel’s death.
Leah loves a good mystery. Can
she find the killer before the police arrest her for murder?
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Review:
Dead in a Dumpster is only the second mystery books I’ve read, and
I am happy to say that I was not disappointed and I actually finished it cover
to cover.
I am happy to see that even
though Leah Norwood is attracted to men, she did not go around swooning every
time they are around. She knows her priorities. I like this woman. She’s
portrayed as easy to talk to and she’s really good with people. This made her
the best person to help for the investigation, though the stubborn Chief took a
lot of time figuring that out.
This book is enjoyable enough,
though there were some bumpy parts that I did not find appealing at all. For
instance, I did not find the flow of the plot smooth. There are too many
unnecessary back stories, which dampened my enthusiasm just when I was really
starting to gear up. I mean, it’s great and all that Leah explained who’s who,
but I found the back stories unnecessary long and not important enough for what
was currently happening. I also didn’t like it that I almost immediately
guessed who the culprit was, but then I have a knack for predicting culprits
even though there’s no indication of who it might be. I dunno, I guess the
mystery I will give a perfect rating is the one that will really make me think
and never guess.
Dead in a Dumpster has a good mystery, surprising twists and turns,
and likable characters. I found it to be a light read, but I will recommend it
to mystery lovers.
~ Zee
Excerpt:
“So you found the victim about seven
fifty?” asked the baby-faced young cop.
Why was everyone so young? The name on his badge read Keith
Cisneros. I have always been a little
nervous around police officers. I’m not
sure why. However, I couldn’t be nervous
around Keith. First, he was just too
young. Second, I didn’t have any nerves
left. I was too wet, too cold, and too
miserable. And third, I knew Keith. Not well, but well enough to not find him
intimidating.
We were standing by the dumpster
and trying not to look at Isabel. I don’t
think Keith had ever seen a dead body either because the look on his face made
me think he wanted to follow in my footsteps – scream, run into the nearest
building, and lose his lunch. But the
kid was made of sterner stuff. My
estimation of him rose as he held his ground and questioned me.
“What were you doing out here?”
he asked. Okay, so my estimation of him
fell a little. I glanced at the trash
bags sitting at our feet and tried to keep my voice even as I answered.
“I was taking out the trash.” I don’t think I succeeded as he looked at the
trash and then flushed. Now I felt bad,
like I had kicked a puppy.
“So did you …”
“Cisneros.” A deep, smoky voice cut through the
night. Both of us jumped and then turned
toward the voice. From the shadows, a
figure emerged. If I had any nerves
left, I might have been a little anxious.
The man walking toward us moved like a stalking panther. Smooth, long strides that ate up the space.
He was breathtaking. Not gorgeous or handsome but there was a
power about him that drew the eye. He
wasn’t exceptionally tall, standing about five eleven, but his shoulders were
broad and his hips narrow. Dark hair cut
short in a military style, covered his head.
His face was attractive in a timeless way. Chiseled and clean-shaven but with just a
hint of a five o’clock shadow. He had a
small indentation on the right side of his mouth that was trying very hard to
be a dimple. It was as if he was willing
it not to appear with the strength of his personality alone. He had intense green eyes that swept over me
briefly before settling on Keith.
He looked familiar, but I knew we
had never met. I would have remembered
him. He stopped between us and turned to
Keith. “What have we got?”
“Victim identified as Isabel
Meeks. Gunshot wound to the chest, close
range. She was found about seven fifty
p.m. by Ms. Norwood.”
Keith pointed to me, and the man
turned his eyes to mine. His gaze swept
down my body and back up. He then
dismissed me without a second glance before turning back to the rookie. “Has the ME been called?”
Now, I know that I am not the
most attractive person in the world. I
am what most people would call average.
Average height, average weight, average looks, but being dismissed so
completely really pissed me off. I was
cold, wet, tired, and quite frankly, still a little queasy. And it had been a really bad day.
“Can I leave now?”
Both of them turned toward
me. Keith seemed a little surprised that
I was still there. The other man just
seemed irritated that I had interrupted him.
“You found the body?” he asked
and then continued when I nodded, “We will need to ask you some questions.”
Keith had been asking me
questions. My nerves were shot and my
temper short. I am not usually such a
bitch, but I had enough of standing out in the freezing rain. I probably shouldn’t have mouthed off to a
police officer, but I figured my day couldn’t get any worse. I summoned up my inner diva, gave him my most
haughty look, and asked in a snooty tone.
“And you are?”
He stared at me a minute, his
eyes hard and unyielding. He raised his
eyebrows just a notch, pulled out a badge, and held it toward me. “Chief of Police Alexander Griggs.”
Well, damn, my day just got
worse.
Author Info:
B. L. Blair writes simple and
sweet romance and romance/mystery stories. Like most authors, she has been
writing most of her life and has dozens of books started. She just needs the
time to finish them.
She is the author of the Holton
Romance Series and the Leah Norwood Mysteries. She loves reading books, writing
books, and traveling wherever and as often as time and money allows. She is
currently working on her latest book set in Texas, where she lives with her
family.
Giveaway:
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