Book Tour and Excerpt: Margaritas and Murder

Hi Everyone!

Just stopping by today with a quick review and excerpt for the Margaritas and Murder book tour.

Personal Review:

If there was one thing I needed when I got back from Labor Day, it was a vacation. I had so much fun returning to the ‘real world’ was hard. Luckily for me I was able to go to Mexico in Margaritas and Murder. I am not a huge mystery reader, but the cover of this book drew me in.

I enjoyed the book and the plot of this book. It seemed to flow and made you want to know what could possibly happen next. I have not read any of the others in the series, so I am not sure how it compares to the others.

As usual, the best part of this book was characters and the setting. I enjoyed that the author introduced us to a number of people who could be suspects. I also really appreciated that it was set in a small town. All in all, I have to say this was an interesting read.

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Excerpt:


MARGARITAS&MURDER: The Sunny Truly Mystery Series-Book 1

I climbed out and stepped into the street for a better view down the driveway. Yep, there it was. In the shadows, I could see a cottage in the rear. 706B. I figured it had to be a converted garage.

A light was on inside, although a bramble of bushes obscured the front window. I couldn’t really tell if there was anyone home or not. I didn’t see a car in the driveway or parked out by the curb. 

I remembered what Lila had said. Scary Carrie had been waiting for a bus when Lila picked her up. Maybe the girl didn’t have a car. My cell pinged again.

A text from Troy. She’s not on the sked tonight. Hmm. So she wasn’t working tonight. I had asked him to call The Celestial and find out if Carrie was on the schedule for tonight.

I contemplated my next move.

Of course, the smart thing to do would’ve been to call Cleve for back up, just in case. But I knew he was with Sam, and besides I just wanted to ask a few questions. Nothing to get nervous about.

Then again, what if Scary Carrie was a nutcase? Would she go into a rant? Or worse, get violent?

I grabbed my Surveillance Survival Kit and found a can of police strength pepper spray, the only weapon I had with me. I hadn’t yet qualified for a handgun. I’d been to the shooting range with Sam for a few lessons, which hadn’t exactly worked out since I tended to close my eyes when I squeezed the trigger.

I shoved the pepper spray into my pocket. “Stop being a paranoid loony. She’ll be nice. C’mon. You’re only asking questions.” 

I headed down the dark driveway. The high-pitched rasp of the cicadas put a knife to my already jittery nerves. I made myself calm down by breathing in the scent of honeysuckle from the vines surrounding the rear house.

I loved honeysuckle. The scent reminded me of my childhood. And with those memories came an image of little Joyce and little Lila, dressed like ballerinas in pink tutus, performing for me, Dad and Mom, in our back yard.

The memory dampened my fear. I had to do this for Joyce. At the front steps, my torso stiffened with apprehension as I croaked out, “Carrie?”

Seconds ticked by. I waited.

Nothing. Leaning forward, I tapped on the screen door. Nothing again, except this time I thought I saw a shadow crossing in front of a lamp inside. It was so fleeting, I couldn’t be sure. I called out again. “Hello? Carrie? Carrie Lynch?” 

I waited, with my stomach roiling. There was someone inside. I just knew it. “Carrie. I’d like to talk with you. Just talk. Could you open the door?”

Silence. I tapped the door again and tried a new tack. “I’m not selling anything. I just have a question about someone you know.”

The door cracked open. A face peeked out. 

“Howdy.” I pitched my tone high, girlish, super-friendly, hoping it would assure her I was harmless.

A sharp voice fired back at me. “Who are you?’

I couldn’t see much of her, but what I did see appeared pretty normal to me: a young woman with a long face, thin lips and intelligent brown eyes.

She had on a Hello Kitty tee-shirt. And didn’t look scary at all.

Maybe this wasn’t her?

“I need to talk to Carrie Lynch,” I cooed.

“Are you gonna tell me who you are?” she growled. Okay. Now she was a little scary.

“I need to ask Car—“

A scowl darkened her face and she slammed the door in my face.

I jumped back. “Hey!”

That ticked me off. She’d almost hit me with the door. I forced myself to calm down and put a smile on my face, hoping it would help me keep a lighter tone. “Look, it’s just a question. Please help me. I only need to…”

Someone switched off the lamp inside. The house went completely dark.

I gnawed on my lip and considered leaving. Maybe this girl was more than scary. Maybe she was dangerous. I decided on one more attempt to get her to talk, and if that didn’t work, I’d leave … in a hurry.

My hand trembled as I took out my phone and switched on the flashlight app. I aimed it at the door and called out, “Joyce is my friend. I know she’s yours, too.”

No response. I stepped back off the front porch, keeping my eye on the door, just in case she decided to open it.

After a minute of nothingness, I sighed and decided to retreat. I was on my way down the front walk when a noise made me halt. What was that?

I whipped around, searching for the source.

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Happy Reading!