Monday, March 2, 2020

Death with a Dark Red Rose (A Writer's Apprentice Mystery #5) by Julia Buckley ~ #Book #Review ~ #Cozy #Mystery ~ @BerkleyMystery @juliabucks


Book Details:

Print Length: 304 pages
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: February 25, 2020
Sold by: Penguin Group (USA) LLC
ASIN: B07SSQ1M8N

About the Book:

Writer's apprentice Lena London is enjoying life in Blue Lake and being newly engaged, but is soon drawn into the terrifying disappearance of one of her closest friends....

Lena is starting to feel like having it all may actually be possible! She and suspense novelist Camilla Graham are busily plotting their next novel and she's got a brand-new diamond ring on her finger thanks to her fiancé, Sam West. The only blot on her Blue Lake life is a strange new corporation that has come to town called Plastisource. They seem to be intent on gobbling up prime real estate and changing the landscape of Lena's lovely adopted home.

When she and Sam get a call from their good friend (and Blue Lake detective) Doug saying that his girlfriend--and Lena's pal Belinda--isn't answering her phone and missed a date with him, they all head out to her home. The trio is shocked to discover that Belinda's purse and phone are at her house, along with a single red rose on her countertop--but Belinda herself is missing. Has she been abucted? Could the strange new corporation play a role in her disappearance? Lena is determined to find out and rescue her friend because she knows that the truth can be stranger and much more deadly than fiction....

My Review:

The Writer's Apprentice Mystery series just keeps getting better and better with each book. I've read all 5 so far and they are truly amazing. I love Lena's character and her love and affection for everyone around her. Her relationship with Sam has been taken to the next level and they are so cute together. Lena's relationship with her mentor, Camilla, is one of mother/daughter (at least to me) and there is genuine affection between them - and with Camilla's guy, Adam. The introduction of Cliff in a previous book also brings a nice, loving component to Sam's life and, in turn, Lena's. 

The mystery in Death with a Dark Red Rose begins with the abduction of Belinda, a friend and the girlfriend of local detective, Doug. What starts out as a missing person snowballs into a mystery full of missing, and presumed dead, employees of a plastics manufacturer who unceremoniously decides to set up shop in Blue Lake, shady characters, peeping toms, and danger no one saw coming. I was wholly engaged in this book and did not put it down unless I absolutely had to (I'm looking at you, day job!).

The twists, turns, and red herrings kept my mind actively trying to put the pieces together of this mystery. I didn't feel like there were any dull or slow moments as we spent more time with Lena, Sam, Cliff, Belinda, Doug, Allison, John, and of course, Camilla and Adam. It wasn't until almost the very end that I was able to put the pieces together and have the "ah ha" moment right along with the characters.

One of my favorite cozy series', I was a glad to be back in Blue Lake and can't wait to visit again.

I was provided a copy of this book to review.

My Rating:


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