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A review by daybreak1012
Murder's No Votive Confidence by Christin Brecher
4.0
Just what I needed! A new (to me) cozy series! (Hang on. I need to stop laughing.) I guess, in all fairness, I am caught up on all but one of the half dozen cozy mystery series that I am reading, which was my 2020 goal, with my new rule going forward to start only a single series at a time and get current with it before adding another. However, you'd think after all the cozies I read this year in order to get myself current, I would at least wait until 2021 before diving into another one. You'd be wrong, though, because here we are.
What I liked about Murder's No Votive Confidence:
The cast of characters - We didn't get to spend a lot of time with all of them, though I feel like we got at least briefly introduced to the people that make up Stella's circle; Stella being our protagonist. From those we did get to know a little better though -- Andy, Peter, Emily -- I am pleased with their development after just a single installment, and I feel there is good potential for achieving additional depth from them as well as the others we met in this book. That bodes well. Of additional importance, at least to me, the characters also feel likable and real and not like obnoxious caricatures.
Location - I appreciate when a series I read takes place in a location that isn't excessively used. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a setting in places like San Francisco or Boston or New York City, if it doesn't feel trite, but I love that I am going to get to know Nantucket in this series! I get acquainted with some place different and the way Ms Brecher is setting the scene gives Nantucket a personality just as important as the characters.
Unique qualities - In addition to the setting, I also like when the main character has something that allows them to stand out from the crowd. There are many cozies that focus on food or baked goods, some of which are series I adore. But Stella is a candlemaker and I feel like that is a fun twist.
The mystery - I mean this is the whole point in reading a cozy mystery series, right? I thoroughly enjoyed the case at hand. It was well constructed. The clues all added up. There were plenty of potential twists and red herrings to keep me guessing. And the resolution was satisfying.
What I didn't care for:
Truthfully, not much. There were a couple of minor typos in the Kindle version I read, but nothing worth griping about. Maybe the only thing with the characters was that so many of them were introduced that it was a little challenging to keep track of them all. It's a little easier when they get folded into the storyline book by book rather than all at once, but as I mentioned earlier, the contact with most of the peripheral characters was relatively minimal, with the exception of three, so again, this is not a major gripe.
I am very pleased with the debut of the Nantucket Candlemaker Mystery Series. This looks to be exactly what I look for in a cozy mystery series: nothing gory, plenty of mystery, a few creepy moments, some good laughs, and a likable cast of characters. For those of you for whom this is important: The content included no language that I recall and nothing racy in the romance department, at least in book one. I already have holds placed at the library for books two and three, and I hope that there will be more to come. I am excited to add this to my list of cozy series!
What I liked about Murder's No Votive Confidence:
The cast of characters - We didn't get to spend a lot of time with all of them, though I feel like we got at least briefly introduced to the people that make up Stella's circle; Stella being our protagonist. From those we did get to know a little better though -- Andy, Peter, Emily -- I am pleased with their development after just a single installment, and I feel there is good potential for achieving additional depth from them as well as the others we met in this book. That bodes well. Of additional importance, at least to me, the characters also feel likable and real and not like obnoxious caricatures.
Location - I appreciate when a series I read takes place in a location that isn't excessively used. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a setting in places like San Francisco or Boston or New York City, if it doesn't feel trite, but I love that I am going to get to know Nantucket in this series! I get acquainted with some place different and the way Ms Brecher is setting the scene gives Nantucket a personality just as important as the characters.
Unique qualities - In addition to the setting, I also like when the main character has something that allows them to stand out from the crowd. There are many cozies that focus on food or baked goods, some of which are series I adore. But Stella is a candlemaker and I feel like that is a fun twist.
The mystery - I mean this is the whole point in reading a cozy mystery series, right? I thoroughly enjoyed the case at hand. It was well constructed. The clues all added up. There were plenty of potential twists and red herrings to keep me guessing. And the resolution was satisfying.
What I didn't care for:
Truthfully, not much. There were a couple of minor typos in the Kindle version I read, but nothing worth griping about. Maybe the only thing with the characters was that so many of them were introduced that it was a little challenging to keep track of them all. It's a little easier when they get folded into the storyline book by book rather than all at once, but as I mentioned earlier, the contact with most of the peripheral characters was relatively minimal, with the exception of three, so again, this is not a major gripe.
I am very pleased with the debut of the Nantucket Candlemaker Mystery Series. This looks to be exactly what I look for in a cozy mystery series: nothing gory, plenty of mystery, a few creepy moments, some good laughs, and a likable cast of characters. For those of you for whom this is important: The content included no language that I recall and nothing racy in the romance department, at least in book one. I already have holds placed at the library for books two and three, and I hope that there will be more to come. I am excited to add this to my list of cozy series!