Title: Ring in the Year with Murder
Author: Auralee Wallace
Pages: 304
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Publication Date: October 31, 2017
Genre: Cozy Mystery
My Rating: 4/5
It’s been a tough year for Erica Bloom. And with hours left on the clock and a killer crashing the party, it’s not over yet…
This New Year’s Eve, Erica’s resolution is to have a great night―even if it kills her. She is, after all, at the party to end all parties: a Great Gatsby–themed gala sure to be the talk of Otter Lake, New Hampshire. With her perfectly finger-waved hair, borrowed pearls, and scarlet flapper dress, Erica is determined to be unflappable, despite the presence of her ex, Sheriff Grady Forrester, and his hot date, a bubbly blonde who has a hard time holding her drink. Literally. . .
In a plot twist as bizarre as a game of Clue, Grady’s girlfriend almost drops dead after her drink is poisoned. Who put the killer ingredient in her appletini? Suddenly the tables have turned and the sheriff has become the prime suspect. Now Erica has until midnight to clear the man she still loves―and in so doing just maybe win him back. That’s if the killer doesn’t pop the cork again… and turn a New Year’s smooch into a kiss of death…
This book was so much fun to read and there was more than a few times where I burst out laughing. I requested this book on Netgalley last September before I took my blogging break but I fully intend on buying a physical copy of this book. I’m bummed that I waited until this month to read this book because this is the perfect New Year’s book to me and I can’t wait to reread it at the end of this year. I know that not everyone is interested in cozy mysteries but if they are a type of book that you enjoy I cannot recommend this book enough.
This book is part of a series that I have never read before but I still was able to keep up with the characters and the author did a good job of sprinkling bits of back story throughout the novel. I loved the two main characters, Erica and Freddie, so much that I plan on reading the past books in this series. The characters were so funny and in so many different ways relatable. The author did such an amazing job of making these characters come to life and I felt as though I was a part of the party. The only downside this book had for me was the romance. I know I have missed the three books prior to this one so maybe it is better explained in those books but I spent the whole book wondering why Erica was so hung up on Grady. He didn’t treat her that great and only seem interested in her when the two of them were alone. At some points of the book it was actually annoying how much she would make excuses for him. Overall though, Erica was a super funny character who got herself into amusing situations.
The reason I requested this book on Netgalley was because the summary mentions the book/movie Clue which is my absolute favorite movie of all time. This book definitely had some Clue like scenarios and Wallace actually name dropped it more than once. The vibe of the book is also similar to Clue although the circumstances of the stories are completely different. So even if you don’t like cozy mysteries but you enjoy Clue I would give this book a try.
Are any of you as Clue obsessed as I am?
~Cassie
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