Lethal in Old Lace: A Consignment Shop Mystery

Lethal in Old Lace by Duffy Brown is the fifth book in A Consignment Shop Mystery series. Reagan Summerside is stunned and thrilled when Walker Boone proposes to her. She barely gets to enjoy the moment when Aunt Kiki disrupts them. Elsie and Annie Fritz Abbot are lacking mourners at Willie Fishbine’s wake (if you knew him, you would not mourn him either). The Abbot sisters are professional mourners and need every cent of their income since they lost their savings in a get rich quick scheme. The next day, Reagan and Aunt Kiki get a visit from Fishbine’s grandson. He witnessed Aunt Kiki stealing a candy bar from his grandfather’s coffin. He wants it replaced and for them to find out who killed Mr. Fishbine. The death was ruled accidental, but the young man has a different theory. Then BW (Reagan’s dog) finds a body partially buried in the Abbot sister’s vegetable garden. Bonnie Sue and Willie Fishbine were both residents of Sleepy Pines Retirement Center. Is someone killing off the residents? With the Abbot sister’s the primary suspects in one of the crimes, it is up to Reagan and Aunt Kiki to get answers. A Consignment Shop Mystery series is best read in order. I am happy that Regan and Boone are engaged. I just hope Regan gets the wedding she desires (her mother has gone into overdrive). The book contains good writing and a fast pace. The characters are established (well developed), and I just love the setting of Savannah. Duffy Brown provides beautiful descriptions of the area. There are several characters with various quirky traits like Aunt Kiki. Boone is a saint to put up with Regan and her family (he is a nice balance to Reagan). Reagan and Aunt Kiki remind me of Lucy and Ethel in I Love Lucy (screwball comedy). The mystery will lead readers on a merry chase. I do wish there had been a little less action. There needed to be some calm moments in between the frenetic ones. Lethal in Old Lace was different from Iced Chiffon (first book in the series). The author seemed to have ramped up the zany antics and quirk factor in Lethal in Old Lace. I loved the reference to Gilmore Girls in the book (my favorite show). There are various martini recipes included. Lethal in Old Lace is an entertaining cozy mystery that will have readers in stitches and perplexed over the killers’ identity.

In Savannah, Georgia, there are two events that ar3e guaranteed to make people talk: weddings and funerals. Just as consignment shop owner Reagan Summerside agrees to marry the hunky Walker Boone, her neighbors, sisters Annie Fritz and Elsie Abbot, step up their business as professional mourners. They are so successful that the Sleepy Pines Retirement Center has hired them as a part of their retirement package. But when the residents at Sleepy Pines suddenly begin dying at an alarming rate, things don’t go so well and the sisters are under suspicion of murder. Reagan begins to look into the deaths. When a body winds up in the sisters’ pink caddy, the evidence begins to pile up against them. When Willie Fishbine dies suddenly, his grandson wants to know why and isn’t above blackmailing Reagan to find out who killed him. Reagan must catch the culprit in time to walk down the aisle. -- Series: A Consignment Shop Mystery Author: Duffy Brown Genre: Cozy mystery/Business Publisher: Crooked Lane Books - Publishing Date: March 13, 2018 Lethal in Old Lace is a fun, intriguing, and easy-to-read book that will give the reader hours of enjoyment. Duffy Brown has woven a story that is seamless from start to finish. There is never a dull moment or a lack of action. This is book six in this series. The character of Reagan is an entertaining person; she has a way of getting to the point without being too pushy. Her life is changing for the better, but she still keeps finding bodies. This time nothing has changed, innocently walking home, she once again stumbles onto a dead body and leaps into an investigation. Even though she swears she isn’t interested and doesn’t want to get mixed up in a murder investigation, she puts herself in the thick of it. Other supporting characters including Reagan's hunky fiancé, Walker Boone, are well developed and an intricate part of the story. They are highly entertaining, massively likable and seem almost real to the point the reader can find traces of them in their own family and neighbors. If the reader has not read any of the other books in the series, it may take them a while to figure out what roles each of the characters play and who they are. However, this will not subtract from the enjoyment of the book. Savannah is a great setting for this series. Having visited this beautiful city, it is easy to know exactly where Reagan is throughout the story and what she sees without the need for too much detail. If the reader hasn’t visited Savannah, they will want to spend time seeing all the sites after reading this book and the others in the series. The city is a living history museum and filled with intelligent residents dripping with southern charm. Overall, Lethal in Old Lace is a fast-paced, highly enjoyable book that at times makes the reader laugh out loud. The clues are subtle but easily understood. When the murderer is unmasked, most reader will be surprised and delighted. This book and the series is recommended to anyone who enjoys a bit of romance, humor, and suspense all rolled into the same story without unnecessary detail or distraction.

Lethal in Old Lace is a delightful romp with the very genteel ladies of Savannah. Georgia has peaches, charm, magnolias, and – ta-da! Reagan Summerside! And her very dignified mother, Judge Gloria Summerside, and Gloria’s delightful sister, Reagan’s Auntie Kiki. These ladies are enough to put Savannah, Georgia on the map all by themselves. Reagan owns the Prissy Fox Consignment Shop on the first floor of her aging Victorian, Cherry House. It was the only thing she from her divorce from the cheating ex. Well, that and his divorce attorney, Walker Boone, and they are dearly looking forward to getting married. Reagan lives on the second floor since the first is where she tries to make enough to pay bills every month. Her dearest Aunt Kiki lives next door with Uncle Putter. Kiki teaches all the girls how to dance for their cotillion. Some of the guys, too! Kiki is Reagan’s partner in crime (solving). Where Reagan goes, dead bodies just show up. She finds the killer, whatever it takes, and Kiki is always up for an adventure. People at Sleepy Pines Retirement Home are dying unexpectedly. Yes, it is a retirement home, but rumors are everywhere. Reagan gets dragged into first one, then another death. The first is a man who wasn’t very lovable, or loved, except by his grandson. He has reasons to bribe Reagan to into finding who killed the guy, thanks to Kiki’s need for chocolate. The second is a woman whose body was first seen in the back seat of the Abbott sisters’ Cadillac, then in the window display at ... the Prissy Fox? When Aldeen, a police detective, is chatting with Reagan, her dog BW brings a dirty blue hat and a red purse, both belonging to a missing woman. As BW happily trots to the Abbott sisters’ back yard, they found a woman’s hand sticking up from the garden. Gaa! Now Kiki is staying at Sleepy Pines to find the culprit, then Gloria joins her to “help her sister” with dressing and other tasks. There is a full complement of laugh-out-loud scenes that give serious competition to Lucy and Ethel’s zaniest stunts, as well as very frightening moments. All this, and a wedding to plan…so many interruptions, so little time! I love Auntie Kiki and Reagan! They are loyal, fun, imaginative, and brave. The Abbott Sisters are also amusing, although I didn’t believe the story of why they buried the poor lady’s body. Only a man like Walker could love Reagan for who she is and not try to change her; the author has designed these characters with such care! There are interesting plot twists that maximize either sadness, hilarity, or fear. There are times that I think, where does the author come up with these things? I guess I don’t care if she continues to dream them up! The author allows us as readers to lighten up and not take ourselves so seriously. It turns out there is no shortage of suspects for either senior, sadly. Or are there two killers on board? The real killer(s) I considered on and off throughout, even though some of the others looked so much more culpable. No spoilers – suffice it to say that there are no loose ends at the end of the novel except…when will we see Reagan walk down the aisle? I highly recommend this novel to those who like their mysteries cozy, their Southerners charming, and their mysteries complex. From a grateful heart: I received a copy of this from the author and NetGalley, and here is my honest review.