by Kathleen Costa

This week we have a review of Easter Hair Hunt by Nancy J. Cohen, along with a recipe perfect for your Easter celebration. Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win an ebook copy of Easter Hair Hunt, and a link to purchase it from Amazon.

Cut, Style, and…Murder?
Marla Shore, now Marla Vail, owns the Cut ‘N Dye, a popular salon in South Florida, and over the last few years, she has made it a successful business. However, she just can’t seem to avoid a murder mystery that too often has ensnared herself and her friends. Upside is that it introduced her to Detective Dalton Vail to whom she is now married and expecting their first child. She has the support of her best friend Tally Riggs, now widow and raising little Luke on her own, but it’s the husband and wife team that is fun to follow.

Easter Hair Hunt earns 5/5 Bunnies & Eggs…Engaging Entertainment!
It’s a big Easter celebration at Tremayne Manor and loads of children are squealing over the eggs they’ve spotted hidden in the grass. Marla and her best friend Tally, with little Luke in tow, are enjoying the festivities, but “Blinky,” dressed as the iconic Easter Bunny, is no where to be found. Marla was hired by regular salon client Bonnie Meyers, nicknamed Blinky for her interesting facial tick, to style her hair for the fundraiser luncheon to follow the egg hunt. With Blinky MIA, the lady of the manor asks Marla to help retrieve stray plastic eggs from the field, but instead she finds more than she expected: a not-for-children Easter egg and the Easter Bunny sprawled under a bush. Blinky! No, Blinky is still missing, but curiously in her costume is a unidentified man…dead!

Crack this one open! Nancy Cohen has penned another well-written book filled with a clever mystery, endearing characters, and a “Oh, Wow!” conclusion. The mystery is engaging with lots of questions needing to be answered: How? Why? Who? Marla is cognizant of her impending due date, so she needs to be careful; it’s good her husband is lead detective because she can’t ignore the fact her friend is wanted as a person of interest. Robbery? Scandal? Murder? I had some good ideas about the drama’s direction, and along with twists and turns, is it this? or is it that?, there’re Fabergé eggs, stamps, and bees…fascinating! Nancy’s writing style is always well-paced using a third-person narrative that highlights all the characters well. Her descriptive language paints a marvelous setting including the Manor and its treasures, people and their reactions, and personalities and tone through expressive dialogue. It is a delightful read making this series a fan favorite.

Put on Your Apron! Nancy always compiles the best easy-to-follow recipes in this series. Whether you celebrate Easter or just gather for weekly family dinners, the set of six enticing treats may make you “Top Chef.” Try the Garlic Cheese Biscuits, Slow Cooker Roast Leg of Lamb, Slow Cooker Mushroom Pot Roast, Roasted Acorn Squash, Rosemary Red Potatoes (see below), and Tilapia Dijon. Yummy!

ROSEMARY RED POTATOES
Ingredients
3 lb. bag of petite red potatoes
1 Tbsp. fresh chopped garlic
1 large onion, sliced
0.75 oz. package fresh rosemary, stemmed and chopped
Olive Oil

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Clean half of potatoes and cut into quarters. Store the rest for another use.
Put the cut potatoes into a large bowl. Mix in garlic, onions and rosemary.
Add enough olive oil to moisten.
Spread onto greased 9x13x2 inch baking sheet.
Bake on the next up-from-bottom rack for 30 to 45 minutes or until potatoes are browned and fork-tender.

Serves 4.

Be a Nancy J. Cohen Fan!
“Mystery and Romance with a Florida Flair”
Nancy J. Cohen is a personal favorite author with several accolades for her sixteen-book Bad Hair Day Mystery series. Former registered nurse, she followed her passion for storytelling to write this popular fiction series. But, she understands the cozy community well and adds bonus recipes to each of her Bad Hair Day books. I was extremely lucky to review her A Bad Hair Day Cookbook (2019) HERE which compiles in one spot the easy-to-follow recipes from her series. Along with the cozy mysteries, she also penned a three-book Paranormal/Fantasy Romance series and five-book Science Fiction Romance. Something for every “taste!”

Facebook—Nancy J. Cohen Author
Website—Nancy J. Cohen
Website—Nancy J. Cohen:Fun Stuff—Recipes

Other Bad Hair Day reviews by KRL reviewer Cynthia Chow
Peril by Ponytail 2015 HERE
Facials Can Be Fatal 2017 HERE
Hair Brained 2017 HERE
Trimmed to Death 2018 HERE

To enter to win an ebook copy of Easter Hair Hunt, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “easter hair,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen April 11, 2020. US only, and must be 18 or older to enter. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. Be sure to check out our new mystery podcast too with mystery short stories, and first chapters read by local actors. A new episode went up this week!

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Kathleen Costa is a long-time resident of the Central Valley, and although born in Idaho, she considers herself a “California Girl.” Graduating from CSU-Sacramento, she is 35+ year veteran teacher having taught in grades 1-8 in schools from Sacramento to Los Angeles to Stockton to Lodi. Currently Kathleen is enjoying year 2 of retirement revitalizing hobbies along with exploring writing, reading for pleasure, and spending 24/7 with her husband of 26+ years.

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.