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    Hammers and Homicide
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    Hammers and Homicide
    Unavailable
    Hammers and Homicide
    Ebook280 pages4 hours

    Hammers and Homicide

    By Paula Charles

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    Perfect for fans of Kate Carlisle and Victoria Gilbert, when a body is found in a hardware store, will Dawna Carpenter’s sleuthing measure up to find the killer?

    Recent sexagenarian widow Dawna Carpenter thought running her own hardware store after the death of her husband was hard enough. With her adult daughter, April, moving back into town, and Darlene, the annoying boutique owner next door to her shop poking around, Dawna has her hands full. But when she finds a dead man in the bathroom of her store, with a framing hammer by his side, she’s in way over her head.

    The victim, Warren Highcastle, was a land developer who was looking to purchase the old theater in town to build a new hotel. Dawna and April, worried about the implications of the crime scene at the hardware store, put themselves on the case. They soon learn that Warren had made quite a few enemies in his short amount of time in town. As the suspect list starts growing, so too do the threats against Dawna and April. Can Dawna and April nail the killer before they strike again?
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherCROOKED LANE BOOKS
    Release dateJan 16, 2024
    ISBN9781639106004
    Unavailable
    Hammers and Homicide
    Author

    Paula Charles

    Paula Charles is the author of Hammers and Homicide. During her childhood, she grew up in a town suspiciously resembling the fictional Pine Bluff, Oregon, where she trailed behind her grandmother in the family’s hardware store until she got put to work counting nails. When she isn’t writing under the towering trees of the Pacific Northwest, she can be found in the garden with her hands in the dirt or sitting on her front porch with a good book and a glass of iced tea.

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    Reviews for Hammers and Homicide

    4/5

    13 ratings6 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Hammers and Homicide by Paula Charles is the debut of A Hometown Hardware Mysteries. I like the fact that Dawna Carpenter is an older protagonist (I wanted to start with something positive). I did not understand why the author made her extremely clumsy (it seems to be the standard to make a cozy mystery protagonist clumsy). We get to all the details of Dawna’s life. I understand the author wanted to establish the character, but we really did not need to know so much about Dawna’s past (and not in such detail). Nor did we need to know so much about the hardware store. I am surprised that Dawna is managing to keep the doors of the hardware store open considering her lack of knowledge and her failure to update her stock. Dawna’s daughter, April, has moved back to town. There is too much attention focused on the mother daughter duo (it overshadows the whodunit). The mystery is simple. It was obvious who would die and who would end up at the top of the suspect list. The police chief is viewed as competent (mostly) by Dawna until he arrests a friend. Dawna along with April investigate the crime. I rolled my eyes more than once at their investigative skills. The suspect pool is miniscule. The clues are obvious (there might as well be a giant noon arrow pointing at the killer). The pacing was leisurely and there were repetitive details. There is humor sprinkled throughout the story. One plot point was left unresolved at the end of the book. My curiosity is not sufficiently aroused to seek out the next A Hometown Hardware Mystery.
    • 5/5
      Dawna is doing her best to keep the hardware store open and to keep her children from thinking that she is loosing it. When a murder occurs at her shop and then another one close by she feels that she needs to do something so that things can get back to normal again. This was an interesting start to a series and there are definitely openings for things to look forward to seeing how they pan out in the next one.
    • 4/5
      I was definitely ready for something on the lighter side after finishing The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan, and Hammers and Homicide proved to be a great choice. Only in a cozy mystery would a book involving a murder be considered light.

      What drew me to this book was the older protagonist, Dawna Carpenter, a recent widow who runs her own hardware store. It's just like any other work day for Dawna until she finds a body in the shared bathroom between her store and the boutique next door. The victim turns out to be a land developer who was in town to buy the town's old theater and turn it into a hotel. The victim had made quite a few enemies in the short time he had been there. When a long time friend of Dawna's is arrested for the murder, Dawna doubles her efforts to find out what really happened, not believing her friend could have committed the crime. With the help of her daughter, there's nothing stopping Dawna, even when danger strikes even closer to home.

      Dawna isn't the most graceful person, nor is she a good cook, but she is a good neighbor and friend. Her daughter April recently moved back to town to work and keep an eye on her mom. I enjoyed the mother/daughter relationship Dawna and April share, with their gentle ribbing and the way they look out for each other. There's a hint of romance between the sheriff and April, perhaps something to look forward to in future books. I did find the tell for who the killer upon first meeting too obvious, but there were still unexpected moments in the book. Hammers and Homicide was funny and entertaining. There's even a paranormal element I hadn't been expecting!
    • 5/5
      This is a terrific introduction to a new series; there is a touch of the paranormal as well as some unexpected twists in this book. I appreciated how I did not detect the culprit until the end of the book; now that is what I call a good mystery. I am looking forward to reading more in this new series.

      Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.
    • 5/5
      small-business, small-town, widow, cozy-mystery, new-series, first-in-series, local-law-enforcement, murder-investigation, amateur-sleuth, situational-humor, verbal-humor, family, family-dynamics, paranormal*****

      Dawna Carpenter is over 60, mother of two, widowed, continues to be proprietor of her small town hardware store, and found the dead body of an unliked developer in her store's bathroom. Oh, and she often converses with her deceased husband. She is also very realistic and likeable. Very good cozy, and I hope that the series will continue!
      I requested and received an EARC from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. Thank you!
    • 3/5
      Dawna Carpenter became the sole proprietor of Carpenters Corner Hardware and Building Supply in Pine Bluff, Oregon, after the death of her husband, Bob. Dawna’s youngest daughter, April, took over Dawna’s design and furniture restoration business, Carriage House Designs. Questions arise the day Steve Harrison is late to work as he’s late the same morning Dawna discovers a dead body in her building.

      One delight of visiting a newly created small town for a debut cozy series is learning the names of the businesses. My favorites in Pine Bluff are Lipstick and Lace, Rocking M Coffee Shop, and Stage Stop Café.

      The very 1st action that Dawna takes as a sleuth is the first time I remember the subject matter being captured in a photograph. I loved the sleuth’s act of taking the opportunity of the moment's spontaneity, even though it is improbable that a police chief would let this item linger out of his sight. For those of a certain age or those that enjoy series from years gone by, the chief’s last name may be a highlight with the addition of his description compared to a cowboy in a commercial of the same vintage. There is a paranormal aspect to the cozy as well. I knew the reveal from the first clue but still enjoyed the progress of the investigation.

      I was puzzled that Dawna never mentioned to April a discovery in town (even photographing it too) that she knew April would enjoy using in her business. A certified letter and phone call also leave questions unanswered, so I’ll revisit Pine Bluff for further developments.

      Thank you to Paula Charles, Crooked Lane Books, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an eARC of this book.