A Fatal Collection - Review & Giveaway

Review

A FATAL COLLECTION by Mary Ellen Hughes

The First Keepsake Cove Mystery

Needing some time away from her loser boyfriend, Callie Reed decides to spend some time visiting  her favorite Aunt Melody in charming Keepsake Cove. Their visit abruptly ends when Callie finds her aunt dead in her music box shop, apparently having accidentally fallen during the night. When Callie learns she is Melody's only heir and now owns her shop and cottage, she decides to leave West Virginia for good and start a new life in the Maryland town catering to collectors. Yet, the more time passes, the more Callie questions her aunt's death. What was she doing in the store in the middle of the night? Was it really an accident? Or did it have something to do with her nasty neighbor? Or the controversy she started with the Keepsake Cove Association? And why is her grandfather's music box suddenly playing when no one has wound it up? 

I love the exposition found in the first book of a series, meeting the characters and exploring their world. Mary Ellen Hughes does not disappoint. We meet interesting well developed characters who exist in a charming town. Being a collector, though not of music boxes or salt and pepper shakers, I wish I could walk the streets and browse the stores of Keepsake Cove. Callie Reed is a smart protagonist who doesn't go about deliberately putting herself at risk, although she does find herself in danger.

I enjoy the open ended possibilities we're left with at the end of the first Keepsake Cove mystery. There are lots of avenues to explore and three characters in particular I'm sure we haven't heard the last of!

A FATAL COLLECTION is a fantastic start to a new series. There's a well plotted mystery and a hint of otherworldiness that makes this series debut a hit!

a Rafflecopter giveaway