COZY WEDNESDAY (PART 2) - Let's Play Dead by Sheila Connolly

Continuing on with this cozy feature to bring you another review of a book being released on July 5, 2011.

Cover Illustration
by Ross Jones
Cover Design
by Rita Frangie

A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
A Division of Penguin Books
A Museum Mystery
2nd in the Series
ISBN-10: 042524220X
ISBN-13: 978-0425242209

In the first book of this series Fundraising The Dead, we met Nell Pratt who was in charge of fundraising but the president of the museum was up to no good, and Nell helped to crack the case wide open. So as we enter this story Nell is just getting settled in to her new job as President.

As part of her new duties she is invited to the nearby Children's Museum, Let's Play, to preview a new exhibit.The exhibit is based on the characters from the Harriett The Hedgehog children's book series. In the middle of her visit one of the animal characters malfunctions giving one of the installers a good jolt of electricity. Thankfully it was not a fatal injury and he recovers.

Let's Play president, Arabella Heffernan, has not one but two people check out the repaired wiring before another preview is scheduled. But then a second installer gets zapped and he was not so lucky. This time was a fatal jolt.  

Nell feels the need to help investigate because she was there when the first person was injured. Is someone trying to discredit the museum? Sabotage the exhibit because of the book author? Who is the real target? Hopefully with a little help from her friends Nell can put it all together if all the suspects play nice and answer her questions.  

I am getting to really like the main characters of this series.  Nell is priceless, Marty is a hoot and Shelby and Eric seem to be fine additions.  I was amazed how efficient Eric worked out as Nell's new assistant all without a computer. The hunky FBI agent is very pleasing and the romance between him and Nell is just starting to heat up. Every story has to have the person we all love to hate and this position is filled nicely by Hadley Eastman, a children's author that is hopefully like no other.

The characters are all wonderful, the plot is really good but the ending was very interesting and surprising. Not at all what I expected. It did leave me wanting more and ready to read the next installment to see where the author is taking these characters.  She has set them up nicely. Too bad authors can't write and publish as fast as we read. 

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel  Agent

Sheila Connolly is the author of The Orchard Mystery Series as well and will be here to Guest Post on August 10th.  Mark your calendars today!!!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Berkley Prime Crime, a division of Penguin Publishing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”