Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for Hammers and Homicide (A Hometown Hardware Mystery) by Paula Charles! Today we are featuring a review of the first book in this new cozy mystery series! Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews, and more! It’s a great way to add books to your TBR!
Hammers and Homicide (A Hometown Hardware Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Oregon
Crooked Lane Books (January 16, 2024)
Hardcover : 280 pages
ISBN-10 : 1639105999
ISBN-13 : 978-1639105991
Digital ASIN : B0C9PJXCFG
My Review:
While recent widow Dawna Carpenter is busy running her family’s hardware store after the death of her husband, she is glad that one of her grown children (her daughter April) has moved back to town. Along with her business, dealing with annoying shopkeepers and her volunteer work in the community, Dawna doesn’t have much free time. Then everything changes when she finds the body of a man in the bathroom of her store. And this isn’t just any man–it’s Warren Highcastle, a new to town land developer who was ruffling feathers with his purchase of the old theater in town. He didn’t care for the historic significance of the building; his plans included tearing it down and building a hotel.
Dawna and April aren’t just worried about the loss of business while the store is shut down during the investigation, they are also worried about the impact the murder will have on future business. The sooner this investigation wraps up the better, so Dawna and April take a deep dive into the background of Warren and begin coming up with suspect after possible suspect. Despite the threats against Dawna and April that appear on the screen door of their kitchen, they won’t give up.
It is simply so much fun to get in on the ground floor of a new cozy mystery series and Hammers and Homicide is a wonderful start. I had no idea I’d enjoy the setting of a hardware store, but I loved the details Charles added to the story–I felt as if I was in the store with Dawna. Dawna is a wonderful sleuth–in her mid sixties, secure in who she is and determined to find the good in all. Her relationship with April was inspiring and enjoyable–there are truly some laugh out loud scenes. I love a character with a good sense of humor.
I was not expecting the paranormal moments sprinkled throughout, but I certainly welcomed them! They gave the story so much heart. The idea that loved ones who have passed away are part of us and looking out for us provides great comfort to this reader. There was a warmth in those moments in the story that made me smile, all while I was trying to follow the clues to uncover the villain. I am certainly looking forward to reading further in this series.
About the Book:
Perfect for fans of Kate Carlisle and Victoria Gilbert, when a body is found in a hardware store, will Dawna Carpenter’s sleuthing measure up to find the killer?
Recent sexagenarian widow Dawna Carpenter thought running her own hardware store after the death of her husband was hard enough. With her adult daughter, April, moving back into town, and Darlene, the annoying boutique owner next door to her shop poking around, Dawna has her hands full. But when she finds a dead man in the bathroom of her store, with a framing hammer by his side, she’s in way over her head.
The victim, Warren Highcastle, was a land developer who was looking to purchase the old theater in town to build a new hotel. Dawna and April, worried about the implications of the crime scene at the hardware store, put themselves on the case. They soon learn that Warren had made quite a few enemies in his short amount of time in town. As the suspect list starts growing, so too do the threats against Dawna and April. Can Dawna and April nail the killer before they strike again?
About The Author:
When Paula Charles isn’t writing under the towering trees of the Pacific Northwest, she can be found in the garden with her hands in the dirt or sitting on her front porch with a good book and a glass of iced tea. She has a love for small towns, ghost stories, and pie. Paula lives on a small farm in Southwestern Washington with her patient husband and a handful of furry and feathered critters. Paula also writes cozy mysteries under the pen name of Janna Rollins.
Author Links:
Website: Cozy Mystery Writer | Paula Charles Cozy Mystery Author
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jannarollinsauthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paulacharles_jannarollins/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show41170333.Paula_Charles
Purchase Links:
PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books – Amazon – B&N – Kobo – Bookshop.org
TOUR PARTICIPANTS:
- February 5 – Mystery, Thrillers, and Suspense – SPOTLIGHT
- February 5 – Literary Gold – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
- February 5 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
- February 6 – fundinmental – SPOTLIGHT
- February 6 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT
- February 6 – Guatemala Paula Loves to Read – REVIEW
- February 7 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW
- February 7 – Maureen’s Musing – SPOTLIGHT
- February 7 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
- February 8 – Ascroft, eh? – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
- February 8 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – REVIEW
- February 8 – Eskimo Princess Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
- February 9 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW
- February 9 – #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee – SPOTLIGHT
- February 9 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
- February 10 – Angel’s Book Nook – AUTHOR GUEST POST
- February 10 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – SPOTLIGHT
- February 11 – StoreyBook Reviews – CHARACTER GUEST POST
- February 11 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
- February 12 – Melina’s Book Blog – REVIEW
- February 12 – Sarah Can’t Stop Reading Books – REVIEW
- February 12 – Novels Alive – REVIEW
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