Yvonne
This is a weekly meme for all you ‘page surfers’ out there!
MYSTERY AT THE ABBEY HOTEL by CLARE CHASE
TEASER TUESDAY / TEASER EXTRACT
CHAPTER 24 – KINDLE 56%
“Eve and Harper were sitting at a window table in the Cross Keys, looking out over the village green. The wind blew the branches of the bare oaks, but there were signs of spring: daffodils danced in the breeze and the flowering currant by the village store was festooned with deep pink blooms.
The first signs of growth and renewal normally left Eve feeling uplifted but today they served to accentuate Harper Reece’s anguish. Life and opportunities were opening up for her, just like the spring flowers, but they came with a terrible loss.
The woman looked so desolate. She seemed nervous too, glancing over her shoulder every minute. Had Edmund wanted to sit in on the interview? Eve bet he had, and although Harper must have convinced him not to, she probably thought he’d gatecrash their chat any minute.
Eve suggested he join them for the latter part of the meeting, to give his thoughts on Debra, She hoped the request hadn’t sounded too contrived. She wanted Harper to herself at first, but seeing more of her husband later could only be helpful”
So, you have taken a look, would you read the book?
Let me know what you think in the comments section below.
Just to give you an extra helping hand to make your mind up, let’s take a look at the book’s premise
MYSTERY AT THE ABBEY HOTEL –Â (Eve Mallow #5)
Eve Mallow’s stay at the luxurious Abbey Hotel takes a turn for the suspicious when the owner is murdered – leaving Eve surrounded by suspects!
Saxford St Peter is Eve Mallow’s beloved home, but she can’t resist the chance to spend a weekend in the nearby Abbey Hotel, famed for its glamorous owner Debra Moran and an array of celebrity guests. For a confirmed people-watcher like Eve, it’s perfect: she can observe the rich and famous while sipping tea in the gardens, her faithful dachshund Gus by her side.
But her relaxing break takes a shocking turn when Debra is found lying dead in the shadowy woods around the hotel. One of Eve’s fellow guests didn’t come to the Abbey for fine food and delightful décor – but to kill.
When the investigation gets underway, Eve finds herself trapped with a wide range of suspects. Could it be Debra’s new friend Harper, who inherits everything? Her ex-husband Chester, still seething over their messy divorce? Or her estranged sister Amelia, who came hoping for reconciliation, only for Debra to shut the door in her face?
As Eve roams the hotel, searching for clues and hunting down alibis, she uncovers a whole host of secrets. But can she find the truth before the killer brings her holiday to a deadly end?
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by:
Ambrosia at ‘The Purple Booker‘
Each week she shares her own teaser lines and invites other bloggers to do the same. So if you have a few moments, why not stop by and see what’s on offer this time, after all, you never know where that next great read is going to come from!
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A hotel like that seems always have lots of dirty secrets. I guess solving Debra’s murder would also help solve the problem between Eve and Edmund. Have a wonderful day, Yvonne!
Hi Angie,
Yes! It’s fair to say that the Abbey Hotel does have lots of dirty little secrets (what a lovely way of putting it, I must remember that!). However author, Clare Chase, has spread so many red herrings throughout this storyline, that knowing what’s what is never quite that easy!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope that all is well with you 🙂
This sounds like a good one and I like the hotel setting. Enjoy it!
Hi Naida,
I have actually already finished this one, ready for the Blog Tour Review in April and it kept me guessing almost until the very end, although I was holding my breath until that final page as Eve cut things really fine in fulfilling my fourth important criteria for a good book, that of the main protagonist managing to stay alive. It couldn’t have got much closer this time!
A great mystery series I am completely invested in!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope that all is well with you 🙂
Is this one a bit of a cozy? It sounds like it would be good.
Hi Kelly,
I’m beginning to lose the plot a little over what constitutes a cozy!
If you compare many books I have accepted for Blog Tour Reviews, which class themselves as cozies and compare them to some of the series some of my fellow bloggers follow, which have indisputable cozy titles and premises, then I would class this as more of a traditional murder/mystery, especially when comparisons are made to Agatha Christie characters such as Miss Marple. I would never have classed an Agatha Christie books as anything other than a MM and definitely not a cozy – what do you think?
Rant over! Anyway, as a murder/mystery, this is a really good series and Eve Mallow is a great amateur sleuth. This is the second book I have read in the series (I also reviewed ‘Mystery At The Old Mill’) and I have become quite invested in the story telling style of author Clare Chase, although I appreciate that you probably wouldn’t dream of jumping into a series at books #4 & 5!
Great to have you stop by and I hope that things are good in your neck of the woods 🙂
I’ve only read one Agatha Christie and I don’t think I’d classify it as cozy… but it wasn’t real “hard boiled”, either.
For me, cozies usually have a fair amount of humor, feature an amateur sleuth, and are often quite preposterous in their plot.
I didn’t really want to say that myself, as this book has been classified as a cozy, but seeing as you have said it, I have to say that I agree with you whole-heartedly.
This series is so much more than a cozy – a traditional murder/mystery, with a little touch of heart and humour!
Thanks for taking the time to reply, I can always rely on your honesty 🙂
I am not sure about the passage, but I like the idea of the hotel & murder combination. 🙂
It is always so difficult to select an extract from about half way through a book, which doesn’t give too many spoilers away, but which is long enough to give a sense of the situation the characters are in at that time.
Eve is our amateur sleuth.
Harper and Edmund are husband and wife, and both suspects in the crime.
It seems as though Edmund is quite a controlling character, so Eve has decide to interview them separately.
Things are never that simple when Eve is around though …!
Sorry the extract didn’t quite ‘do it’ for you, but the book was really good and my review will be up soon 🙂