by Cynthia Chow

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win an ebook copy of Murder at the Moonshine Inn. We also have a link to order it from Amazon, and from an indie bookstore where a portion goes to help support KRL.

When the Hazel Rose Book Group Mystery series debuted two years ago, the setting was 2005 Richmond, Virginia, and the mystery book group experienced very real murder for the first time. Reforming themselves into a historical fiction travel book club to keep the violence at a more comfortable distance, we meet up with the book group eight years later in 2013. Romance writer Hazel Rose has not only become the successful author of six baby boomer romance novels, she has married Vince Castelli, a former Richmond homicide detective who retired to write true crime books. It is not his but Hazel’s experience with murder that has Nina Brown pleading for help in investigating the death of her sister.

Roxanne Howard was stabbed to death in the parking lot of the Moonshine Inn, a shady bar favored by a disreputable redneck clientele. Nina can’t explain why her sister, the former Executive Director of the Alzheimer’s Research Society and current Vice President of fundraising management Hamlin Group, was frequenting the shady biker bar, but it has police pinpointing Rox’s husband Brad as a probable suspect. This in itself is a cause for concern for Hazel, as Brad is her recently discovered cousin who wants absolutely nothing to do with Hazel or her side of the family.

While Hazel wisely refuses to investigate on her own, the book group is more than eager to take part in doing what they can to help solve the murder. There’s safety in numbers, and their eclectic members provide connections to many of the suspects and witnesses. As several of the book group readers pursue Rox’s involvement in fund raising charities and the activities that gave her a lurid reputation, Vince and Hazel take “redneck” lessons to go undercover on a date to the Moonshine Inn.

Numerous plots and characters are interwoven into this second book of the series, yet readers will be able to follow them all to a surprising but logical conclusion. Hazel’s own life has its twists and turns, but even at her most dire moments, she has time to research the sexy interludes of baby boomer romances. The book group’s past experiences with both real and fictional murders has them pinpointing and avoiding murder mystery clichés, and they take into account their security as well as proper legalities. This is an entertaining series that will distinctly appeal to mystery aficionados and book club members.

To enter to win an ebook copy of Murder at the Moonshine Inn, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “moonshine,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen November 26, 2016. U.S. residents only. If entering via email please include your mailing address, and if via comment please include your email address.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & short stories in our mystery section.

Click on this link to purchase this book & a portion goes to help support KRL & an indie bookstore Mysterious Galaxy:

Murder at the Moonshine Inn: A Hazel Rose Book Group Mystery

You can use this link to purchase the book on Amazon. If you have ad blocker on you may not see the link:

Cynthia Chow is the branch manager of Kaneohe Public Library on the island of Oahu. She balances a librarian lifestyle of cardigans and hair buns with a passion for motorcycle riding and regrettable tattoos (sorry, Mom).

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.