The Bistro at Holiday Bay, Books 1-3

De: Kathi Daley

Narrado por: Angel Clark

Shelby Morris came to Holiday Bay after receiving a huge inheritance from a woman she'd never met which she'd been destined to share with two half-sisters she'd never knew existed. It took some time for the three very different siblings to settle the estate in a manner that was agreeable to all of them, but in the end, it was decided that Shelby would stay and take care of things.

Shelby was at loose ends once she'd settled the estate since she'd been working long hours her entire life and wasn't used to so much down time. When she found out a hangout down by the commercial fishing dock was for sale, she decided to take a chance and invest in her future.

The Bistro, which consists of a restaurant, bar, rooftop patio, and live music platform, was exactly the sort of thing Shelby needed to find her footing in Holiday Bay. She knows she'll need help, so she enlists the help of new chef and frequent guest to The Inn at Holiday Bay, Amy Hogan, as well as parttime waitress and longtime local Nikki Peyton. Together with the staff and regular customers that appeared to have come with the place, Shelby is certain she'll be able to create something special.

In book 1 in the series, Shelby decides to clean out the second floor of the building which had been used by the previous owner as a storage area. While clearing out the large dusty space she finds a stack of boxes with so much dust on them that she is certain that they'd been there for decades. Shelby opens to boxes and finds items left behind from the owner of the garment factory that had utilized the space half a century ago. During the course of sifting through the old treasures, Shelby finds a journal that appeared to have been left behind by a man who lived in the area in the nineteen sixties and seventies.

Upon examination, Shelby determines that the journal features pages and pages of code, which she suspects, if decoded, will reveal a secret message. The man who left the journal is long dead, so Shelby enlists the help of her staff, customers, local friends, and the ex-cop turned PI who uses a booth in the bar to meet customers, to help her solve the mystery.

In book 2 in the series, it's Halloween in Holiday Bay and the staff at the Bistro will play host to their first holiday event. Things are right on track until a new witch arrives in town and a mysterious visitor turns up dead, plunging the town into chaos and throwing a wrench into the carefully orchestrated plans Shelby and her staff had worked so hard to put into place.

In book 3 in the series, it's Valentine's Day in Holiday Bay and the Bistro is planning a special 'lovers only' event featuring the cool jazz rendering of legendary crooner Duke Armstrong. When Duke shows up dead the morning following the community event, Shelby and the gang set out to identify a killer.

©2024 Kathi Daley (P)2024 Kathi Daley

A bit disappointed

I’m a long time cozy mystery fan (since childhood) and have listened to thousands of audiobooks as well. These stories were not for me. I didn’t find the dialogue between characters natural and the narrator was a bit stilted (almost sounded like AI). The plots themselves weren’t interesting and didn’t seem mystery focused.