Review: Bones and Roses by Eileen Goudge

Bones and Roses

by Eileen Goudge

Publisher: Cypress Bay Mysteries

Pages: 231

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Welcome to the northern California seaside town of Cypress Bay, where the surf’s up, the sixties live on and long-buried secrets are about to surface. 

From home invasions to cheating spouses, Rest Easy Property Management owner Leticia “Tish” Ballard thought she’d seen it all. Almost four years sober after flambéing her real estate career in an alcohol-fueled blowout, she’s finally in a good place in her life when the discovery of skeletal human remains rocks her world and plunges her headlong into solving a decades-old crime. Now she must delve into the darkness of her own past, including the one-night stand gone horribly wrong with Spence Breedlove, who happens to be the lead detective on the case. When the truth comes out at long last, Tish finds herself pitted against an enemy who will stop at nothing in a fight for her own life.

Kritters Thoughts:  What a who dun it!  Tish's mom disappeared to follow a man and a dream when she was young and has never heard from her, but in a twist Tish inherits a storage unit and inside is the body of her mother in the dress that she was wearing the day she supposedly left.  Obviously something is up and Tish is determined to find out because the police and detective that are in charge are people from her past that she believes may not perform at their peak due to some high school drama that still haunts her.

Just a hint longer than a novella, this book was quick and the pacing was perfect!  As the crime didn't happen recently, I enjoyed the added element of tracking through history to find the clues - made the book so much more dramatic.  I also loved the small town feel and how Tish had to help herself since she had burned some bridges and no one really trusted her.  I loved that I could trust her as a narrator, but she wasn't trusted by the people in town.  

I may have figured out the culprit a little on the early side, but it in no way made me disappointed in the ending.  If you are new to the who dun it genre, this is a quick read to enjoy.  On the flip side, if you have read many books in this genre, I would absolutely suggest reading this one as it had a little something different with the main crime occurring years in the past.


Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Ebook 2014 Challenge: 45 out of 100

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from the author.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.