Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for Paint Can Kill: Cara Mia Delgatto Mystery Series by Joanna Campbell Slan! Today we are featuring a review of book nine, the newest book in this 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! There is also a Rafflecopter Giveaway for a $25 Amazon Gift Card. 

Paint Can Kill: Cara Mia Delgatto Mystery Series
Cozy Mystery
9th in Series
Setting – Hobe Sound, FL
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Spot On Publishing (December 15, 2023)
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 252 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8870813547
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0CLYY79CV

About the Book:

It’s raining outside, and it’s raining inside. Hey, that’s Florida. But as sassy entrepreneur Cara Mia Delgatto watches a van full of Highwayman paintings walk out the front door of The Treasure Chest–because the collection’s owner is taking them back–she’s crying on the inside all the way to the bank. There will be no quick fix for this. Instead Cara focuses on an outstanding bill. When she visits the wealthy woman who has stiffed her, Cara stumbles over another stiff, dead body. With multiple crises in her business life, Cara grieves the loss of her live-in love and her rescue Chihuahua. The man and the dog have left a huge hole in her heart. Will Cara survive all these losses?

Cara Mia Delgatto Mystery Series is a clean read

Features a female amateur sleuth and her friends

Includes Florida lore and history

Shares ideas for upcycling, recycling, and repurposing

Celebrates friends, family, and fur babies

 My Review:

I so enjoyed traveling to Florida in Paint Can Kill: Cara Mia Delgatto Mystery Series by Joanna Campbell Slan, especially since I did it from the cool of my house! While this is book nine in the series, it can be read as a stand-alone which works well for readers just discovering Cara. As a new reader to this series myself, I enjoyed the backstory and felt it added so much to understanding and loving Cara as a character. 

While this mystery has many of the essential cozy elements (small town, wonderful side characters and pets), it feels unique to me as it doesn’t shy away from feelings of grief and loss. This isn’t by any means a ‘sad book,’ but it certainly feels true to life and unafraid to touch on all emotions–especially love and grief.  I also appreciated the author’s honest portrayal of what it was like during the pandemic, especially in the beginning. This isn’t always a fun topic to revisit, but it was handled gracefully and wasn’t the entire focus of the story. 

The mystery is solid and the pacing excellent. I love Cara’s friends – especially how different they were from each other. The addition of pets adds so much heart to the story. A truly enjoyable read. 

About the Author:

Joanna is a New York Times Bestselling, USA Today Bestselling, and Amazon Bestselling author as well as a woman prone to frequent bursts of crafting frenzy, leaving her with burns from her hot glue gun and paint on her clothes. And the mess? Let’s not even go there.

Otherwise, Joanna’s a productive author with more than 80 written projects to her credit. Her non-fiction work includes how to books, a college textbook for public speakers, and books of personal essays (think Chicken Soup for the Soul).

Currently, she writes six fiction series: The Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series (Agatha Award Finalist, contemporary, St. Louis setting, crafting), the Cara Mia Delgatto Mystery Series (contemporary, Florida setting, DIY, and recycling), the Jane Eyre Chronicles (Daphne du Maurier Award Winner, 1830s England, based on Charlotte Brontë’s classic), The Confidential Files of Dr. John H. Watson Series (late 1800s, based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s books), the Tai Chi Mystery Series (featuring a mature female amateur sleuth!) and the Friday Night Mystery Series (set in Decatur, IL in 1986 with a spunky female heroine.)

A former TV talk show host, college teacher, and public relations specialist, Joanna was one of the early Chicken Soup for the Soul contributors. She won a Silver Anvil for her work on the original FarmAid concert to benefit farmers.

In her ongoing quest never to see snow again, Joanna lives with her husband and their Havanese puppy, Jax, on an island off the coast of Florida.

 You can email her at jcslan@joannaslan.com or visit her website .  

Author Links:

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Purchase Links:

Amazon 

TOUR PARTICIPANTS:

• April 8 – Mystery, Thrillers, and Suspense – SPOTLIGHT
• April 8 – Teatime and Books – SPOTLIGHT
• April 8 – Maureen’s Musing – SPOTLIGHT
• April 9 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
• April 9 – Sarah Can’t Stop Reading – REVIEW
• April 10 – Ascroft, eh? – CHARACTER GUEST POST
• April 10 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
• April 11 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
• April 11 – Sneaky the Library Cat’s blog – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
• April 11 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – AUTHOR GUEST POST
• April 12 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – AUTHOR GUEST POST
• April 12 – Literary Gold – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
• April 13 – Guatemala Paula Loves to Read – CHARACTER GUEST POST
• April 14 – Maureen’s Musing – SPOTLIGHT
• April 14 – StoreyBook Reviews – AUTHOR GUEST POST

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