A Dash of Death

The Hemlock Falls Mysteries, Book 2

By: Claudia Bishop

Narrated by: Justine Eyre

Hemlock Falls is a pretty little town in upstate New York. Sarah Quilliam, with her talent for business, runs the Inn at Hemlock Falls, while her sister, Meg, keeps the guests happy with her culinary abilities. But when it comes to murder, the Quilliam sisters have to rely on other skills - spotting clues, solving crimes, and catching culprits.

Helena Houndswood is the epitome of class - at least when the camera's rolling. Behind the scenes, the celebrated expert on stylish living is just a garden-variety snob with a heart of stone. She's furious to learn that a group of decidedly déclassé Hemlock Falls women has won the design contest sponsored by her television show, It's a Beautiful Life. Now one winner is missing and another is dead - but just how far would Helena go to avoid mixing with the unwashed? After all, murder is so tacky.

©1995 Claudia Bishop (P)2014 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Twisty and fun plot

Enjoyable! An interesting and fresh plot admits a beautiful setting. Inn keeper sisters are clever and believable.

Good story but Beware the *F* bombs

Oh, Lord. I listen to stories as I'm going to sleep. I was pretty shocked at the frequent use of the *F* word in just the first few chapters. As I'd doze in and out, I swear, every time I came back from sleep there was that word. In one paragraph alone I think it was used 5-6 times. It's a shame. It really took away from an otherwise good cozy mystery.

The narrator is slightly annoying when just using her own voice. But she does the reading well and when she changes between characters, her lazy-like nasal drone pretty much disappears. Picture a sassy junior high girl being forced to say I'm sorry but that is totally not sorry, and says, "Okay... I'm soorrryyy." Yeah, that's this narrator.

Overall, like I said, I like the essence of the story. But please don't play it in a car with kids around. It was bad enough that I won't be listening to more of the stories, which seems a shame.

I felt like I was reading a Young Adult book

Quill is incredibly immature and she surrounds herself with people who indulge her immaturity or bully her into things she doesn't want to do. Her investigation shows an irrational thought process and short sightedness on her part throughout the book. This isn't even a town I would like to live in nor would I like to meet the citizens. This is the second book I have read in this series and I will not go any further. I wish Claudia Bishop continued the Dr. McKenzie series intead of this one.