Grounds for Murder by Tara Lush ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

In Tara Lush's debut cozy mystery Grounds for Murder journalist turned coffee shop owner Lana Lewis investigates a murder after her ex-employee is found dead in the alley.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

Dec 2020; Crooked Lane Books; 978-1643856186
audio, ebook, print (320 pages); cozy mystery

Lush is off to a great start with her debut novel in the new cozy mystery series A Coffee Lover's Mystery. I don't drink coffee or like anything coffee-flavored, but I do like coffee shops and I absolutely loved the characters in this book.

After layoffs at her Maimi newspaper, Lana has returned home to run her family's coffee shop. While she loves the beachy business that was her mother's dream, she can't get the journalist out of her system. When an ex-employee turns up dead in the alleyway, she can't help but return to her old beat as a crime reporter - even if it is just to clear her name.

If you are a fan of Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swenson series, then you will love this book. And since it is strictly a coffee shop, you won't have to be worried about packing on the pounds with a ton of yummy cookie recipes.

Though, Lana does bake a sweet treat for the shop each day. The fact that she bakes them in her home kitchen, I had to wonder about food rules n Florida - it just didn't seem to be hygienic. 

Like any good cozy mystery, there are several quirky characters. Lana's dad is a pot-smoking (for medicinal purposes) yogi that is also the town's resident gossip. Lana's new employee is a bit mysterious and a little wild. Plus there are plenty of shop owners, a new sheriff, and a newspaper editor who gave Lana the journalism bug when she was in high school to provide the right amount of levity and as well as enough victims and suspects to keep this series going for a while. It's also a tourist attraction so I'm sure there will be summer hijinks involving visitors so that it isn't the townsfolk always dying and being accused.

If you like to start a series at the beginning then waste no time jumping in with Grounds for Murder - it will be well worth your time and you get to escape the dreary winter blues for the sunny Gulf shores.

Buy Grounds for Murder at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour. 

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