Monday, September 13, 2021

Deadly Summer Nights by Vicki Delaney

First Line: "My neighbor Mrs Francesco heard him at a club in the city."
 
Elizabeth Grady hopes that the summer of 1953 will be a break-out year for Haggerman's Catskills Resort. With the one-two punch of her mother's Hollywood celebrity and her own management and organizational skills, Elizabeth wants to make the resort the family destination for all those people seeking to escape the heat of the city.
 
However, when one of the guests is found murdered in his cabin and a copy of the Communist Manifesto is found among his papers, the local police immediately start shouting "Russian Spy!" and bring in the FBI. With Joseph McCarthy's Red Scare tactics preying on the fears of the nation, the last thing Haggerman's needs is to become known as a hotbed of Communism. It would literally be the kiss of death.
 
Since the obnoxious police chief is content with his diagnosis of the situation, Elizabeth knows that she has to follow her own instincts in order to save the resort from deadly rumors. She's convinced the victim was not a spy, and she does the only thing she can do-- set out to find the killer herself.
 
~
 
Author Vicki Delany has become a prolific cozy mystery writer. Under her own name and the pseudonym Eva Gates, she writes five cozy series. My favorites? I first learned about her from reading her excellent Canadian police procedural series featuring Constable Molly Smith. My favorite of her cozy series is her Sherlock Holmes Bookshop series. Now with Deadly Summer Nights, I think I'm going to be adding another favorite: this Catskill Summer Resort series.
 
The period detail is fantastic, and the name of the resort, Haggerman's, had me singing Kellerman's end-of-season song from Dirty Dancing. As readers follow Elizabeth Grady around, they learn a lot about the running of a summer resort. It ain't easy, especially when there are guests like Mrs. Brownville on site. 
 
Delany has created a well-defined, interesting cast of characters that you want to learn more about-- something that seems as easy to her as breathing, although I'm sure it's not. Elizabeth is a widow and content to remain that way for the time being. Her mother, Olivia, is a Hollywood/Broadway diva who can actually be useful from time to time. Her Aunt Tatiana is in charge of housekeeping, and her best friend Velvet McNally also works at the resort. Elizabeth's also made a friend in town. Lucinda, who works in the diner, is always in the know, so readers know she's going to be a good friend to have in future mysteries. Even Winston the bulldog has a part to play in the goings-on.
 
Between the setting, the mystery, and the characters, I was entertained throughout, and I'm definitely looking forward to the next book in the series. Oh, by the way-- that last line of Deadly Summer Nights? I loved it! 
 
Deadly Summer Nights by Vicki Delaney
eISBN: 9780593334386
Berkley Prime Crime © 2021
eBook, 304 pages
 
Cozy Mystery, #1 Catskills Summer Resort mystery
Rating: B+
Source: Net Galley

14 comments:

  1. Vicki Delany is such a hard-working writer, Cathy, and she's talented, too. I do like her Maggie Smith series, and her Klondike series, too. And this one does look great. The only thing is, she's got so much good stuff out there that I'm not sure how I'm going to keep up!

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    1. Shes so prolific that that's definitely a problem!

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  2. I'm excited about reading this one, though it would take a lot to top the Molly Smith books - ha! Just the title and a bit of the blurb made me think of Dirty Dancing! LOL

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    1. Haggerman's is so close to Kellerman's for me that every time the resort's name was mentioned, I started looking for Patrick Swayze. (Just kidding.)

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  3. I've really enjoyed the Molly Smith books, but I might give the new series a try!

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  4. I am looking forward to this one! It's on my TBR. Now I've got to move it up because you teased us with the last line!

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  5. The characters do sound like fun, and I love that setting! I'll have to try this cozy series. :)

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    1. I hope you get a chance to read and enjoy it, Lark.

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  6. I am looking forward to reading this and will keep an eye out for that last line! As long as I am not tempted to read it first...!

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    1. It won't make sense unless you've read the book. Ha! I foiled you! ;-)

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