Review: Muffalettas and Murder by Jann Franklin

 

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Description:

“Evangeline Delafose is finding Graisseville, Louisiana just as she remembered—boring and uneventful. Until her brother Nate asks her to help solve a murder.

Follow Ev as she navigates clues, dead bodies, and quirky small-town residents to solve a mystery. And of course, show her little brother that she's still got it.

You'll laugh, cry and roll your eyes at the antics of this charming small-town Southern sleuth and her exasperating private investigator.

This book is the first of the Small-Town Girl Mystery Series.”

Author:

Jann Franklin lives in Grand Cane, a small town in Louisiana that only had a population of 217 in the 2020 census. She grew up in a small town in Arkansas, then spent some time living in big cities in Texas, first Waco for college, then Dallas. But now, like Evangeline, the star of her book, Jann finds herself living in a small town again. For more, check out her website.

Appraisal:

This was a fun read. At its heart you’ve got a cozy mystery, with Ev, the protagonist, who has just moved back to the small town she grew up in helping her brother, a policeman, by looking into a murder case that he’s not making any progress on. Trying to imagine who the guilty party might be is difficult because there are a lot of people who are possibilities, but none are obviously the guilty party. As the story goes on people go on the list, then off, sometimes back on, as Ev and her cohort Shorty dig into the evidence and question people around town to put things together.

Shorty, who Ev describes as her “private investigator” is a hoot. He adds a lot of humor, is a unique character, and he keeps Ev both entertained and sometimes confused as he helps her out for a reasonably small price.

The other factor that makes this book unique is the small town atmosphere and culture. If you’ve never lived or spent much time in a small town, prepare to be amused and confused as you get exposed to how things tend to be in small towns where everybody knows everybody, or so it seems. That’s good in some ways, not so much in others, and you’ll get an idea of why that is as you read this fun cozy mystery.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Although one character is inclined to swear, he does his best to keep it under control. If you’re touchy about such words, what sneaks through shouldn’t be too tough to handle and everyone will be amused at the alternative ways of expressing his thoughts this character comes up with.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 60-65,000 words