Solid Gold Murder - A Review & Giveaway

Review

SOLID GOLD MURDER by Ellen Byron
The Second Golden Motel Mystery 

 

Foundgold and Goldsgone are in the midst of a modern day Gold Rush after Dee Stern accidentally posts a video of a guest finding real gold in her sluice. Happy that her motel is completely booked and hailed as a hero by surrounding merchants for for their now booming businesses, Dee is nevertheless apprehensive. Her anxiety increases when a 20something tech billionaire and his entourage descend on her motel. Dealing with the obnoxious Sylvan Burr is one thing, but Dee also has to jump through Verity's hoops in order to join Goldsgone's craft fair. When Sylvan goes missing and is later found dead only his girlfriend seems to be grieving. But are they crocodile tears? Almost everyone else recently threatened the young man, including Dee's father and her business partner and best friend. Dee will have to determine just why Sylvan came to Foundgold. Perhaps then she can figure out who killed him!

 

With plenty of laugh out loud moments I truly enjoyed my second visit to the Golden Motel. I love the camaraderie of Dee and her friends, even when things get tough they manage to stick together and try to work things out. I especially love the relationship between Dee and her business partner, best friend, and ex-husband, Jeff. They make a great team, whether it be managing their motel or breaking in someplace to investigate a murder. With no romantic overtones he simply has her back. The secondary characters more than pull their weight and I'm happy to see more of Dee's dad.

 

Annoying young people with no social skills and more money than they know what to do with are prime candidates for murder and SOLID GOLD MURDER takes good advantage. I love how history intertwined with the mystery and of course enjoyed Dee trying to get around the dastardly Verity "Yes-that-Donner" Gillespie.

 

While there may be no Solid Gold Dancers SOLID GOLD MURDER is even more entertaining with engaging characters, friendship drama, a complex mystery, gold, and a bear named Bud. 

 

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Solid Gold Murder (Golden Motel Mysteries) by Ellen Byron

About Solid Gold Murder

Solid Gold Murder (Golden Motel Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series
Setting - California
Publisher: ‎ Kensington Cozies
Publication date: ‎ July 29, 2025
Print length: ‎ 272 pages

Dee Stern’s Golden Motel-of-the-Mountains promises a tranquil getaway for outdoor lovers in the scenic Californian village of Foundgold. But when Dee accidentally triggers a modern gold rush, she suddenly turns her peaceful retreat into a hotspot for mayhem and murder . . .

With the summer season looming, former Hollywood sitcom writer Dee Stern has one small goal—scrubbing her motel’s unflattering moniker as the “Murder Motel.” Dee and ex-husband-turned-business-partner Jeff Cornetta are excited to introduce a family-friendly panning activity complete with fool’s gold just in time for the peak tourist months. Except neither could have anticipated the discovery of a real gold nugget or the ensuing social media frenzy. In a flash, the viral sensation draws grizzled prospectors, wide-eyed adventurers, and trend-chasing thrill seekers to the abandoned mines scattered around the woods . . .

The instant popularity proves great for business, but it also attracts a group of out-of-touch Silicon Valley techies with dreams of striking it rich—again. Dee finds herself particularly annoyed by the insufferably smug Sylvan Burr, a retired CEO who sold his startup before age 30 and won’t let anyone forget it. But things take a sinister turn when Sylvan meets a grim fate at the bottom of a mineshaft, leaving Dee at the center of a deadly mystery that could end her days as a motelier. And while Sylvan had plenty of enemies, Dee suddenly faces adversaries rooting against her own success. Now, with her life and the future of the Golden Motel hanging by a thread, Dee must unearth a minefield of suspects and outwit a greedy killer before she finally digs herself too deep . . .

About Ellen Byron

Ellen is a bestselling author, Anthony nominee, and recipient of multiple Agatha and Lefty awards for her Cajun Country Mysteries, Vintage Cookbook Mysteries, Catering Hall Mysteries (as Maria DiRico), and Golden Motel Mysteries. She is also an award-winning playwright and non-award-winning writer of TV hits like Wings, Just Shoot Me, and Fairly OddParents, but considers her most impressive achievement working as a cater-waiter for Martha Stewart.

A native New Yorker, Ellen is a graduate of Tulane University and lives in the Los Angeles area with her husband, daughter, and a rotating crew of rescue pups. Visit her at http://www.ellenbyron.com/.

Author Links: 

Newsletter: https://www.ellenbyron.com/  

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BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/ellen-byron https://www.bookbub.com/authors/maria-dirico  

Goodreads: Ellen Byron (Author of Plantation Shudders) | Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19130966.Maria_DiRico  

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