Skeletons in the Attic

A Marketville Mystery, Volume 1

By: Judy Penz Sheluk

Narrated by: Claira Jordyn

What goes on behind closed doors doesn't always stay there.

Calamity (Callie) Barnstable isn't surprised to learn she's the sole beneficiary of her late father's estate, though she is shocked to discover she has inherited a house in the town of Marketville - a house she didn't know existed. However, there are conditions attached to Callie's inheritance: she must move to Marketville, live in the house, and solve her mother's murder.

Callie's not keen on dredging up a 30-year-old mystery, but if she doesn't do it, there's a scheming psychic named Misty Rivers who is more than happy to expose the Barnstable family secrets. Determined to thwart Misty and fulfill her father's wishes, Callie accepts the challenge. But is she ready to face the skeletons hidden in the attic? Find out.

©2016 Judy Penz Sheluk (P)2017 Judy Penz Sheluk

Good Narrator makes the Book worthwhile

This is a Book with a well constructed plot with interesting characters.


The Narrator had a good performance that helped the Book come alive.




This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review

Recommended Fun!

I really enjoyed this story. Cally is a young woman who inherits her fathers estate including a house she had no idea existed. Part of the inheritance stipulates she needs to stay for a year in the house and solve the mystery of her mothers disappearance. It was a good mystery, but FYI it kind of just ends with a few threads left unanswered. I look forward to locating the next book in the series, as this is volume one. I enjoyed the narrator although, it took me a little bit to get used to as she doesn't change her voice for the various male characters. I initially struggled with what was inner monologue or actual conversation but soon found the rhythm. It is narrated as though Cally is telling her own story and the narrator does a fabulous job and has a very pleasant voice. I received a free review copy of this book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Fun Mystery

The author is new to me and I can not wait to get my hands on the rest of this series!! Enjoyed the story and narration. I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review. The fact that I was gifted this book had no influence over my opinion of it.

Excellent Book And Performance!

This Book Is Excellent! Lots Of Surprises And Many Twists And Turns... The Narrator Is Absolutely Superb! She Has The Perfect Voice For This Character... I Look Forward To More Performances From Both The Author And This Narrator...

Slow clap for JPS!

4.5 Stars- Let's slow clap it out for Judy Penz Sheluk. I watch a lot of mystery series on television, but you got me with this one, Judy. I usually wind up being at least a little disappointed in the conclusions of mysteries, but the ending of Skeletons in the Attic was every bit as captivating as the build up to it had been. I'm still marveling at how well Skeletons in the Attic was written. It was a mental scramble right up until the last few minutes.

Penz Sheluk is a new author to me, but I was highly impressed with what she was able to accomplish in 8.5 hours. I enjoyed getting to know Calamity ("Callie") as a memorable and likable protagonist. She showed a great deal of common sense, something which is a scarcity among main characters these days. Furthermore, the cast of secondary characters was just as memorable. I have this bad habit of dismissing secondary characters as "decoration" or plot devices, but knowing this was a mystery and everyone was a suspect, I paid special attention to the background characters and was rewarded for it. Skeletons in the Attic boasted a memorable and also likeable supporting cast.

Also memorable was its setting. Marketville is a small suburb in Ontario, Canada. The last Canadian set story I remember hearing was the Casey Duncan series which takes place in the Yukon. Having never been to Canada and with the Casey Duncan series as my only frame of reference, the Marketville setting was quite a culture shock initially. There were several mentions of Canada Day and Canadian locations of which I had no prior knowledge, so it was a learning curve, but definitely enjoyable. The setting of Marketville was particularly atmospheric and added an extra dimension of depth to the mystery and Callie's backstory.

There were so many red herrings in Skeletons in the Attic that I was constantly being faked out. I spent the last half waiting for the hammer to drop, only for my expectations to once again be subverted. For the first three fourths of the book, I was convinced that I knew the who of the "whodunit", but not the how or the why. As any mystery enthusiast knows, the why is the corner stone of a a great mystery. Around the 75% mark, Penz Sheluk pulled the rug out from under my feet by eliminating my two top contenders. At that point, it was back to the drawing board and all options were back in play. That's when I became a woman possessed, forsaking all other tasks and single-mindedly listening to this audiobook with the intent of solving the mystery before the ending.

And I failed. The resolution rounded a corner and smacked me in the face. I'll admit that it had sort of been one of the [many] options I was considering, but I'll also admit that probably doesn't amount to much. I may have lost this round, but based on my level of enjoyment while listening to Skeletons in the Attic, the loss doesn't hurt that much.

I listened to Skeletons in the Attic in less than 48 hours. Considering how complex this mystery was and how intricately woven the story became as it went on, it's surprising that I was able to listen to it so quickly and easily. That is certainly a testament to Penz Sheluk's ability to weave a good tale.

Narration Review: Claira Jordyn provided an enjoyable listening experience for Skeletons in the Attic. I was pleased with the production quality, as it was worthy of any big time publishing company. Jordyn's tone and overall voicing were satisfying, reminding me distinctly of an actress I've heard on television, although I'm still unable to put my finger on exactly who. However, I did struggle with dialogue scenes, particularly between two female female characters. Even when concentrating solely on the matter, I still found myself unable to tell who was speaking most of the time, which became frustrating over the course of the book. I hate to do it, but I have to distract half of a star due to Jordyn's lack of character distinction. Other than that, this was a wonderful listen and I would not discourage anyone from hearing it, nor would I hesitate to hear another title from Jordyn.

Super!

family-dynamics, female-sleuth, friendship, missing-persons, Toronto, cosy-mystery

A good investigator keeps digging with due diligence, an exceptional one knows when to call in friends and new acquaintances. Callie's investigation is excellent. Anyone can go off track when there is more than one person driving the misdirections, and when most of the people being questioned are skilled liars it is hard to identify the red herrings. The publisher's blurb is a good start, but reading this book is soooo worth the time!
Claira Jordyn gives voice to all the disparate characters, even the despicable ones, and is simply the finest narrator for this book!
I won a free audiobook in a giveaway. Super!

Codicil

Loved this book but every time I heard the word codicil I cringed. Here in Western PA it is pronounced cod - i - cil.

Mixed Feelings...

I found myself totally caught up in this book. The characters are intriguing and interesting, the writer's voice draws you in, and the plot seems to move along well with varied twists and turns.... until the end. In a sudden twist I found way too "deux ex machina" all is revealed - and (no spoilers) I found it unbelievable on too many levels.

However... I like the author's writing, so will probably try another book.

Ms. Jordyn's voice is lovely but she reads "straight" (only slight vocal change for characters) and it's often hard tell who is saying what, and to differentiate between the heroine's internal vs. external lines.

generally, I like this book. It's a good mystery, if not terribly unique and occasionally badly editedPretty Good

Generally, this is a pretty good book. I like the mystery, though it is not particularly unique and is occasionally badly edited. Why I can't give it a higher rating is because the heroine keeps "slathering" (The authors word, not mine) on Cocoa butter lip balm. I wanted to tell her that if she has such dry lips, maybe she should see a dermatologist. As A habit, it's kind of gross. If I were a guy I wouldn't want to kiss such slimy lips. And she puts it on in the middle of talking to people, which is just weird.

And other than that distraction, it's a good story.

Loved the MC

I received this book for free. I am voluntarily posting this review and any opinions posted herein are my own.

This is the first book in the Marketville Mystery series. If you have read this author's other series - Glass Dolphin Mysteries - you will find some crossover in locations and a few characters.

One of the strengths of this book is the MC Callie [Calamity], who is very relatable. She is surrounded by a group of friends, who help in various ways to solve the mystery of Callie's mother's disappearance. I really enjoyed the mystery and how several of the characters are presented in such a way that you are not sure if they are friends or adversaries to Callie. What I felt to be a bit of the downfall of this story was the ending. I do not want to go into any detail as that would be a big spoiler but suffice it to say that the wrap up seemed rushed and to me, a bit unbelievable. I also found Callie's reaction to the solution of the mystery to be oddly lackluster - which seemed to be a bit [for lack of a better term] out of character.

The narrator, Claira Jordyn, has a wonderful warm voice which is very pleasant. Her voice did a great job in conveying the emotionalism of Callie's character.