Tortie Shorties on Mystery Monday

Welcome to this week's edition of Tortie Shorties on Mystery Monday!

We hope you enjoy our choices.

If the Haunting Fits, Wear It (A Haunted Vintage Mystery) 

From the publisher: When Cookie Chanel lands a dream assignment of providing vintage hats for a high-society Kentucky Derby party, she’s brimming with excitement. Leaving her mother and best friend to mind the store at It’s Vintage Y’All, Cookie packs up her psychic cat and races to Kentucky. But before she can hang her hat, her enthusiasm is dampened when the rider of the potential Derby-winning horse is put out to pasture. Now she’s saddled with the jockey’s ghost, who insists she find his killer. With suspects ranging from an odds-on favorite to a dark horse, Cookie may just find herself in a dead heat before the photo finish...

Tortie Shorties Review: This is the fifth book in the series and the first I've read. What made me decide to jump right in without catching up with previous installments is the Kentucky Derby theme because I'm such a huge Triple Crown fan. It can easily be read as a stand-alone because the book takes Cookie away from her home turf, a vintage clothing shop named It's Vintage Y'All. The fashionista hops into her red 1946 Buick convertible with her beautiful cat Wind Song (who is also her grandmother and uses Ouija boards and Tarot cards), the ghost of her friend Charlotte Meadows, and the new spirit of Maureen who she meets in an attic before leaving town and asks for Cookie's help in finding her killer, and off to Kentucky they go. Cookie's client Danielle has hired her to provide clothes and hats for Derby parties, and at the very first event Cookie stumbles upon the body of jockey Ramon Gooden, who was supposed to ride Danielle's horse. And now Cookie has two murders to solve...

This book is a quick and easy escapist read with a fun setting and interesting characters. The mystery itself wasn't all that difficult to figure out but the antics of the ghosts kept the pages turning quickly. At the very end there's a special appearance by the ghost of an extraordinary horse that brought tears to my eyes. It was completely unexpected and unforgettable. Now I need to catch up with Cookie's previous adventures!

A Just Clause (A Booktown Mystery) by Lorna Barrett

From the publisher: Tricia Miles, mystery bookstore owner and amateur sleuth, is in for a surprise when her ne’er-do-well father, John, comes to town—and promptly becomes a prime suspect in the murder of a woman with her own scandalous past. Even Tricia’s faith in the old man is shaken when the Stoneham police break the news that her father is a known con man who has done jail time.

But what about bestselling thriller author Steven Richardson? Is it a coincidence that he arrived for a book signing just before the crime or that the victim was found with a signed copy of his latest bestseller?

From merlot to murder, Tricia is determined to clear the family name before another body shows up and ruins Stoneham’s first—and highly anticipated—wine and jazz festival.

Tortie Shorties Review: This is a series that I adored and read religiously for years but for some crazy reason the last few titles never left my TBR pile. I decided it was time to revisit Stoneham and it was so wonderful to spend time in Tricia and Angelicle's cozy little world once again.

The sisters' lives are thrown into a turmoil when their father John comes to town. He's a con man and in no time at all gets into trouble when a local woman is found murdered after arguing with and slapping both John and an author visiting Haven't Got a Clue for a book signing. The victim has quite a colorful past herself, but of course John tops the suspect list. Adding to Tricia's troubles is the fact that her home above the shop is being renovated, forcing her to live elsewhere, and her separated (and unlikable) parents are making life miserable for the whole family. A second murder of another suspect was a complete surprise, and the resolution kept me guessing until the very end.

If you're new to the Booktown mystery series I would highly recommend binging on the entire series this summer. A Just Clause is #11 and the delightful cast of characters is still going strong!

Disclaimer: As members of the Amazon Associates affiliate program, if you click on our links and buy something Mudpie gets a little money for her piggy bank! I received review copies of both of these books in exchange for my fair and honest opinion.