Rating: 4 Stars

Publisher: Hodgkin and Blount 

Genre:  LGBTQ Cozy Mystery 

Tags: Kind of sort of Romance

Length: 209 Pages

Reviewer: Kazza

Purchase At: amazon

Blurb:

All’s fair in love and…publishing?

It’s nearly Christmas, and Dashiell Dawson Dane already has enough on his plate: finding a present for his parents, coming up with excuses not to hang the Christmas lights, and finishing this stupid story he’s been writing (okay, maybe he needs to start writing it). On top of all that, Bobby has been acting…well, strange. The last thing Dash needs, in other words, is to play host when Marshall Crowe—celebrity author and, worse, a friend of Dash’s parents—comes to town.

When Marshall dies in the middle of a public reading of his latest novel, Dash can’t bring himself to believe it was an accident, but he’s determined to stay away from the investigation. Until, that is, the prime suspect shows up on his doorstep, begging for his help. The catch? It’s the same woman who accused Dash, not so long ago, of murdering Vivienne Carver—Hastings Rock’s resident cozy mystery author, Pippi Parker. And helping Pippi might just be the death of Dash.

Review: 

Well, well, well. Here I am at series book #4 of this cozy mystery kinda sorta romance. I like this world even though it is so foreign and cold. Even in warmer weather it’s cold. I have no clue what it’s like to have Christmas anywhere other than in a warm climate. Christmas = heat, seafood and charcuterie boards, once upon a time the beach, now our swimming pool. I love the sun, although today was 46C, topping off a week of 40C + weather. Hmm. Some cooler weather might be good. So it’s Christmas in Hastings Rock and Hemlock House, and Dash is feeling out of sorts. I mean, the first sentence in the book is a foreshadowing of things to frustratingly come in this book – a busy not often home Bobby. Sure, since Deputy Bobby and West broke up, he’s been calling Hemlock House home but he’s mostly out, working, surfing, at the gym. 

“Where’s Bobby?” I asked. No one bothered to answer me, but that might have been because the library was so noisy.

One of Dash’s parent’s successful writer friends, Marshall Crowe, is in town to do a reading from his new book at the library. He’s famous for his Chase Thunder series. God, that name conjures up all things anachronistic. However, Pippi Parker, who writes her own brand of cozy books, ones where the characters are in their twenties but use landlines and voice machines to communicate, is also doing a reading. I loved the library scene where Marshall rips Pippi a new one. I know, he was an arsehole.

Instead of trying again, though, Marshall only said, “How’s the writing going? I saw that gay thing.” That gay thing (which was now how I was going to refer to it) was a story that I’d had published at an online crime fiction magazine called The Midnight Messenger.

But… Marshall was reading Pippi for filth before he keels over, dead. Pippi is so awful. She lends herself to it. Sadly, she doesn’t kick off along with Marshall. I know, I’m a bad person, and decides that she and Dash are going to work this “case” together, meaning for her. For her podcast, for her wanting Dash to cowrite a book about Marshall’s death, and let’s  not forget the her merch. All before Marshall’s even buried. She makes every post a winner and isn’t happy when Dash isn’t as ghoulish as she’d like.   

“Dylan, we’re leaving.” Pippi spun toward the door. Then she whirled back, stabbing a finger toward my face. “But you haven’t seen the last of me.”

God… the above quote seemed like such a threat.^ Seeing the last of Pippi sounded like utopia to me. But Pippi haunts us throughout. There’s some humour to be had with her but, dear jeebers, she is a freaking serial pest. Then there’s “turtledove” – aka Stephen, her husband – who runs the local bookstore, and her sons who are the “production crew” for her true crime podcast. Bless, they are so supportive of their deranged wife/mother. In my area, she’d have a blonde bob, drive a Range Rover, and aggravate even further by being in charge of the school’s P&C. Dash does get involved, however, at Pippi’s insistent urging – basically stalking.  

“You must think I’m insane.”
“I think I’m insane,” I said. “I’m currently tag-teaming an investigation with Pippi, remember?”

As for the cozy mystery elements, Pippi has her faithful book fans, she’s a bit of a local celeb, and they didn’t like the shade Marshall was throwing Pippi’s way. So there’s that. There’s also the book agent who just happens to be in town, as well as Marshall’s wife, Ophelia, and his PA, Elodie. Any of them with reasons to bump off Marshall. Then there’s the missing manuscript. Oh, and Pippi is also a suspect because loose lips sink ships, gurl. (That gurl is for you, Cindi.) Pippi said something about Marshall + dying on her podcast. 

As for the Last Picks and the rest of the cast, it’s business as usual:

Dash is falling in love with Hemlock House because it feels like home and the people in his life add to that.

I loved that ninety percent of the day, this house had at least one person I cared about inside it (usually Keme, who was also usually eating cookies that I was sure Indira had baked for me).

Witchy white streak of hair Indira is still baking up a storm, and she keeps people in line.

Fox is shady and I love them.

Millie is loud and endearing and I love her. I laughed when she threw Dash under the Deputy Bobby Bus and left the room.

Keme is still trailing around after Millie, hopelessly in seventeen-year-old boy crush with her.

Deputy Bobby may rarely be around but he saves the day several times, like when someone breaks into Hemlock House and chases Dash.     

Sheriff Acosta has grudgingly come to accept that Dash will stick his nose in no matter what she says about cases while giving him a small degree of latitude to “consult.” 

Overall, in terms of a cozy mystery, it was nice. The friends and the humour were funny and the murder/mystery was well delivered. I love how there’s multiple Marxists in Hastings Rock. It was the most random thing along with a bedazzled Baby Jesus.  

The romance side let it down. For me, this was the book where Dash and Bobby needed to meaningfully move forward. And look, there is some communication toward the end, just like the last book. It’s not enough for this pair to remain so emotionally stunted. They’re individually behaving like there’s significant family or relational trauma in their lives and to my knowledge of what’s transpired in their families and relationships, it doesn’t track. Yes, their families are ambivalent, especially Dash’s, perhaps intrusive in regards to when Bobby came out and then didn’t become a doctor. Sure, they’ve both not long come out of long-term relationships, Dash let’s his anxiety get the better of him, Deputy Bobby has his Deputy Bobby issues, but people deal with these things everyday. 

I’m like a recording because just like in my last review I’m saying the same thing – acknowledge where you’re at and get your individual shit together, guys. I could accept the extra time if they’re working on themselves. But they’re not. Dash is so fearful that a) Bobby will yell at him when there isn’t any history for that thought process. And b) he’s not good enough for someone like Deputy Bobby – sure, strong, masculine, gorgeous, perfect Deputy Bobby. Why would he want dreary Dash? Honestly, DB has his own faults, like the rest of us. Like using good old flight protectors to be anywhere but near Dash. Because feelings.

But that was the whole problem, wasn’t it? Because at some point in the last few months, Bobby had decided he didn’t want to talk to me. Didn’t want to be around me. And there wasn’t anything I could do about that.

I will say that Bobby does drop some hints, but men and hints, yeah, lol, that’s not a thing that works. Anyway, Deputy B behaves like there’s a real possibility he’ll be rejected by Dash. Pffft. We don’t get his POV so I’m having a big old stab. 

I listened to this for the latter part of the book. Andrew Gibson was his fabulous narrating self.  

I’m moving onto the next book with a pile of trepidation that this will drag again – the communication, the relationship. At this stage it feels like dragging something out for the sake of it. I’m uncomfortable with that feeling. For Broken Bird, it’s 4 Stars!