Scotched
A Liss MacCrimmon Scottish Mystery
By Kaitlyn Dunnett Center Point Large Print, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-61173-245-0
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Reviewed by Simone Bonim - January 12, 2012
Scotched is a delightful cozy mystery that features the adventures of the indomitable Liss MacCrimmon of Moosetookalook, Maine. There she runs the Scottish Emporium, where you can buy anything Scotch related. On the side she has a habit of solving the odd murder. In this installment of the MacCrimmon mysteries, Liss is thrilled to learn that the first Annual Maine-ly Cozy Con, a mystery book conference, is to be held in Moosetookalook. Best of all, the conference will bring much need income to the small town, especially to The Spruces, a once grand resort hotel. The hotel is owned by the Ruskin's, and Liss just happens to be engaged to marry Dan Ruskin, so she has taken a more than normal interest in the running of the hotel.
Everything is looking up for Moosetookalook, and the conference, that is until J. Nedlinger, a back-stabbing, muckraking blogger and book reviewer with a score to settle walks off a cliff and into eternity. Is her death just a tragic accident, or is one of the authors trying out their next story line? Suffice it to say, that with a town filled with mystery writers, most of whom have plenty of reasons to have despised the reviewer, there is no shortage of suspects or theories about what really happened.
It is up to Liss and her betrothed, Dan, to ferret out just what is up, and who did what to whom, and why - and in the process save the convention upon which the economic solvency of the town rests. Along the way they discover that some writers are willing to go that extra mile to make sure that their plot lines are really authentic! Filled with interesting characters, a solid plot, a touch of humor and romance, some Scottish trivia, and a satisfying conclusion, Scotched is a wonderful addition to Kaitlyn Dunnett's Liss MacCrimmon series of cozy mysteries. Scotched is ideal to curl up with on a cold winter's night, or anytime that you have the time to visit Moosetookalook, Maine and see what a mystery writer's conference is like, and to watch Liss as she uses her unique blend of talents to solve this knotty murder mystery...
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