Review
The First Zen Goat Mystery
Callie Haybeck has started a new adventure. Moving in with her long lost aunt and uncle she’s giving yoga retreats on their farm. The main draw to her sessions are the adorable baby goats featured in her goat yoga classes. After all, who can be unhappy with cute baby goats cavorting around and even on top of them. Her excitement at leading her first group fizzles however, when she discovers two of the women are nothing more than rich mean girls. Looking down on Callie and the farm with snide cutting remarks the retreat is not off to an auspicious start. Callie’s hopes for a better second day are dashed when she finds the body of one of the women in the barn. With a murder victim on her first retreat Callie’s going to need more than baby goats to find inner peace.
Mean girls get their comeuppance in the first Zen Goat Mystery, but murder may put Callie Haybeck out of business before she truly begins! Callie is an interesting protagonist. Klutzy, earnest, and kind, she's also flighty and immature, but I sense this series will have her growing before our eyes. Her wonderful great aunt and uncle are slowly starting to ground her. As you can tell I love Aunt Ellen and Uncle Will. These salt of the earth octogenarians are feisty and fun. I like how her relationship with her new found cousin is growing and I am seriously disliking both of their fathers!
I enjoyed the mystery, even though I knew who the murderer was early on. I still enjoyed learning about the other characters and their very solid motives. I really enjoyed the ultimate confrontation between Callie and the killer, assisted by two of my favorite characters. I also enjoyed the secondary plot, that of Callie finding her lost relatives and what happened to cause the family to split.
AN ESCAPE GOAT is a fun start to a new series that had me wishing I could sample Aunt Ellen's delicious cooking then practice yoga with adorable goats in a charming country setting.
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An Escape Goat: A Zen Goat Mystery by Janna Rollins
About An Escape Goat
Cozy Mystery 1st in Series
Setting - New Hampshire
Publisher: Level Best Books (March 12, 2024)
Print length: 265 pages
After finding long-lost family through a DNA test, Callie heads to Bobwhite Hollow, New Hampshire, to meet a great-uncle she never knew existed. Charmed by the village and more than half in love with her new family, she decides to stay and open a goat yoga studio and retreat space.
When retreat guest Angilene Claudson turns up dead with a wine glass shattered at her side and Callie’s favorite goat lapping up the spill, the death is written off as an accidental overdose. But when the goat gets sick, Callie’s gut tells her it wasn’t an accident at all. With her new business on the line and a possible murderer staying in the guesthouse, Callie sets to work to uncover the truth and keep her family safe.
About Janna Rollins
When Janna Rollins isn't writing, she likes to thumb through New England-based magazines and drool over the pictures. She has a love for red barns, goats, and genealogy. Janna can be found showing her socially awkward side on Facebook or sharing pictures of her tiny one-acre farm on Instagram. She is a member of Sister In Crime, and also writes the Hometown Hardware Mystery series as Paula Charles. Janna lives in Southwestern Washington with her husband and a whole menagerie of furry and feathered critters.
Author Links:
Website: https://www.paulacharles.com
FB: Rainy Day Mysteries - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556817479811
IG: rainy_day_mysteries - https://www.instagram.com/rainy_day_mysteries
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/209244230-an-escape-goat
Purchase Links Amazon - B&N - Kobo - Bookshop.org - Powell's Books -
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ReplyDeleteSounds like a great story.
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