I HAVE ALWAYS IMAGINED THAT PARADISE WILL BE A KIND OF LIBRARY

I HAVE ALWAYS IMAGINED THAT PARADISE WILL BE A KIND OF LIBRARY

Thursday, March 12, 2015

MADDY HUNTER





Maddy Hunter has endured disastrous vacations on three continents in the past five years. Despite this, she aspires to visit all seven continents in the future.

"Alpine For You", the first novel in her critically acclaimed, best-selling "Passport To Peril Mystery Series", was an Agatha Award nominee for Best First Mystery.

She lives with her husband in Madison, Wisconsin.

PASSPORT TO PERIL MYSTERY SERIES

Reading the books in this series provide me enough pleasure as to add Maddy Hunter among MY LIKED "MYSTERY" AUTHORS...!

This series features Emily Andrew-Miceli, a travel escort for seniors. 

In my opinion, the entertaining humour, fun travelling adventures, wonderful romance, and delightful atmosphere, generally make the books in this series an enjoyable read. 

Though I guess I should mention that there are times when the writing is not quite as polished, and the focus on the mystery element is not as great, as I could have wished. Also, the senior characters, though usually interesting, sometimes come across as a bit too exaggerated to me. 

BOOKS IN THIS SERIES:

1) Alpine For You



A Trip To Die For...

Accompanying her grandmother on a seniors tour of Switzerland, Emily Andrew had envisioned a vacation straight out of a travel brochure: spectacular scenery, great food, and a classy European hotel, all worlds away from her rural Iowa hometown. But her dream trip quickly snowballs into mayhem when smooth-talking tour escort Andy Simon is found dead. To be sure, Andy was as randy as a mountain goat on Viagra, hitting on every miss -- Swiss or otherwise -- within striking distance. His constant advances were driving Emily cuckoo -- but had someone orchestrated his untimely death? 


For savvy, resourceful Emily, leading the tour in Andy's place is only natural. But she can't remain neutral when a fellow traveler takes a fatal plunge -- she's convinced a murderer lurks among them. With precision timing, sexy Etienne Miceli steps in to investigate, and Emily warms to the suave detective. Still, with the group roster suddenly sprouting more holes than the local cheese, Emily wonders: is there a safe haven anywhere in the shadow of the Alps?

2) Top O' The Mournin'

3) Pasta Imperfect

4) Hula Done It

5) G'Day To Die

6) Norway To Hide

7) Dutch Me Deadly

8) Bonnie Of Evidence




Who kilt Isobel Kronk?

Emily Andrew-Miceli, travel escort extraordinaire, is leading a group of Iowa seniors on a tour of Scotland. And to make the trip even more fun, Emily and her foxy husband, Etienne, have organized a high-tech scavenger hunt. But when one team's underhanded strategizing brings a cursed dirk into their hotel on Loch Ness, Isobel Kronk -- a member of the tour group -- ends up dead. Was it the curse of the dagger, as hotel proprietor Mrs. Dalrymple believes? Was it an allergic reaction? Or is there a flesh and blood killer on the loose?


*****

"They were having a shoppers' special on bottled water in the hotel gift shop," Nana told me as we approached Wick the next day. "Buy one, get two free."
I frowned. "But why did you pay for water when you can get it free on the bus?"
"'Cuz the water in the hotel was on sale, dear. Gettin' somethin' for free don't got the same buzz as gettin' it dirt cheap."


*****

It was a knife. A very old and possibly bloodstained knife. Bad luck could not hitch a ride on an inanimate object by order of a man who'd been dead for over three hundred years. I mean, even if the whole curse thing had been powerful enough to actually frighten clansmen to death three centuries ago, the twentieth century had introduced a concept that people took far more seriously than ancient curses.
Expiration dates.
Everything expired these days-- driver licenses, passports, anti-aging eye creams. Shouldn't curses follow suit?
I shot the knife a defiant look. "I'm revoking your active status and placing you on the inactive list. What do you think of that?"
I paused for a moment's reflection... and hung my head.
Oh, God. I was talking to a knife.

*****

9) Fleur De Lies









2 comments:

  1. Thanks for stopping by my blog, we seem to share a love of cozy mysteries.
    Ann

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Ann,

      It's a pleasure and an honour to have you comment here :-)

      It's always wonderful to discover new authors and their books ...as well as to interact with people who share my love of reading :-)

      Thanks for visiting my blog...!

      Regards, 
      Ramla Zareen

      Delete