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Chalk Lines and Lipstick: A Maren Colepepper Cozy Mystery by Ophelia London

8/20/2015

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Genre: Mystery
Click book cover for Amazon.com
Maren Colepepper had a boyfriend, a best friend and a job as a reporter in a big town when her life decided to knock her down.  She was fired for following a story she was told to abandon, her girlfriend Joey became furious when Maren tried to expose her cheating fiancé, and a day later Maren's own boyfriend left his "I'm outta here" note on a left over Chinese food box.  Her only way out of her seemingly ruined life found her on a trip to Eureka, California, the small town she left years ago.  Her sister Piper, happy to have her back, picks her up at the Greyhound bus station and drops her off at her new job with the local newspaper.  She figures she can take the boredom of Eureka and the newspaper until she gets back on her feet and can return to her big city life.  Who knew that her first day on the new job would include her witnessing a murder, being knocked unconscious, and having the story scooped by another reporter. 

The story, which ends up being a doozy, involves a suspect lumber mill and the foresting of redwoods.  Maren's personal life becomes interesting too, with more than one man to keep her (and the reader) interested.  While working on the story she is followed, shot at, and finds herself trying to stay alive and find the murderer in a town that is suddenly far from boring.

Although marked as a cozy mystery, I found author Ophelia London's writing a bit deeper than most cozy mysteries.  The descriptions of the town and its varied characters were spot on and captured my interest immediately.  She writes with a humor that keeps a heavy subject light enough to be "cozy" and a talent that keeps the humor from taking away from the seriousness of the crime.

There a twists and surprises along the way, and the book was the first in a new series that leaves me anxiously awaiting book number two.

- Beverly


Publisher - Gemma Halliday Publishing
Date of Publication - August 9, 2015
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