Book Review: Pearls and Poison by Duffy Brown

Can Reagan Summerside clear her mother's name when she is accused of murdering her election time opponent?

In Pearls and Poison, the third book in Duffy Brown's Consignment Shop Mystery series, Judge Guillotine Gloria is running against Kip Seymour, a local construction contractor, for alderman. When Kip is found poisoned, Gloria quickly becomes suspect number one.

Determined to clear her mother's name, Reagan delves into who might want Kip dead. Unfortunately, that is a very long list and many of these people are dangerous. Keeping herself out of harm's way is going to be challenging enough, never mind trying to keep Auntie Kiki safe. With her loyal companion, Bruce Willis (a.k.a. BW) by her side, Reagan will need to tread lightly if she doesn't want to wind up the next victim.

Pearls and Poison is my favorite of this series so far. Brown combines her well-developed characters, a bit of backstory, great dialogue and the essence of the south to create a fast-paced, fun cozy mystery. I've been a fan of the series since the first book and each one gets better as new characters are introduced, bits and pieces of well-known characters' pasts are shared, and each new mystery with its twists and turns evolves.

If you like cozy mysteries, you have to put Duffy Brown on your "to read" list. You won't be disappointed.


Series: A Consignment Shop Mystery (Book 3)
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Berkley; 1st edition (March 4, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0425252485
ISBN-13: 978-0425252482

I received a copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

I read this book for the following challenge:

Book Review: Killer in Crinolines by Duffy Brown

Reagan Summerside and Auntie Kiki are back to their high jinks solving a new murder in Killer in Crinolines by Duffy Brown.

When Reagan's best friend Chantilly is arrested for murdering Simon Ambrose, Reagan knows she can't just sit working at her consignment shop. She must find out who really offed Simon--and the list of suspects seems endless. With the help of Auntie Kiki and some unwanted help from Walker Boone and friends, she won't stop until Chantilly's name is cleared.

I loved Iced Chiffon--the first book in this series--and have already started the third book in the series, Pearls and Poison. Brown mixes a great mystery filled with twists and turns with the charm of the South and the antics of Reagan and her aunt to come up with a superb series that keeps the reader coming back for more. Now five books in, I don't see this series ending anytime soon....thank goodness.

The sexual tension between Boone and Reagan, the savvy of Auntie Kiki in weaseling information out of people, the occasional appearance of boys from the hood, and the numerous other characters in Savannah provide for a fun, unique totally southern cozy mystery you won't want to miss.

Highly recommended!

Series: A Consignment Shop Mystery (Book 2)
Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Berkley (May 7, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0425252159
ISBN-13: 978-0425252154

I received a copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

I read this book for the following challenge:

Book Review: Iced Chiffon by Duffy Brown

Iced Chiffon by Duffy Brown is a fun cozy mystery filled with plenty of twists and turns.

Reagan Summerside has just had to endure a horrible divorce from Hollis Beaumont III. All she has left is the run-down Victorian she's been restoring and a bunch of designer clothes. Needing a job--and money for groceries--she turns the first floor of her home into a consignment shop.

Thanks to her ex-husband's cunning lawyer, Walker Boone, he got everything else, including the Lexus. When Reagan finds Hollis' new blonde bombshell girlfriend dead in the Lexus, she's determined to find the murderer before Boone. Luckily, there are plenty of town gossips visiting her shop that provide helpful information.

I am so kicking myself in the butt for not reading this book sooner. It is superb! I'm such a huge cozy mystery fan, and Duffy Brown has written one that has tons of unique characters, a great plot, and the charm of the South.

The author has set up the potential for a great series. Someone gets killed and the main character gets pulled into the investigation for one reason or another. There seems to be no end to the number of possible suspects. The danger increases as Reagan gets closer and closer. And that ending was a total shocker to me. One other thing that I have to point out is that the secondary characters, especially Aunt Kiki, really shine in this story.

I'm looking forward to revisiting Savannah and Reagan's shop, the Prissy Fox, for another adventure soon. That shouldn't be hard. There are four other books in this series to enjoy.


Series: A Consignment Shop Mystery (Book 1)
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Berkley (October 2, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0425251608
ISBN-13: 978-0425251607

I received a copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

I read this book for the following challenges:

Guest Blogger: Bruce Willis from Iced Chiffon/Killer in Crinolines by Duffy Brown (Chance to Win 1 of 2 Killer in Crinolines Tote Bags!)

When Reagan Summerside is asked to make an emergency bow-tie delivery to Magnolia Plantation for a wedding, she finds the groom face-down in five-tiers of icing and fondant, a cake knife in his back and her good friend and local UPS driver accused of the murder. Can Reagan find the real killer without winding up in the local swamp as alligator meat? Will Walker Boone, pain-in-the ass attorney and once-upon-a-time gang member, help her out or feed her to the alligators himself?

Pets in Cozy Mysteries
by the other Bruce Willis

Bruce Willis here. The other Bruce Willis with ears, wagging tail and daily yard-waterer in Iced Chiffon and Killer in Crinolines.

Have you ever noticed all the pets running around in cozy mysteries? And most of them are cats! What the heck? How did that happen? Does a cat greet you at the door, get your slippers, clean the kitchen floor after you spill the bacon and eggs? No! Cats sniff, turn up their nose and prance off. Dogs have owners, Cats have staff!

Once upon a time I didn’t have such a great life so I ran away and took up living under Reagan Summerside’s front porch. Don’t know why I chose her. Maybe because at the time Reagan’s life in Savannah sucked almost as much as mine.

But she’s an okay gal, even shared her McNuggets and fries with me but kept the martinis all to herself. I mean to tell you I could do with a martini or two on these hot summer nights.

Reagan has a consignment shop on the first floor of her half-restored Victorian. She and her Auntie KiKi who lives next door were going to name me Calvin Klein to fit in with the upscale clothes she takes in. One look at my mangled left ear, crooked tail and scared snout not to mention my questionable linage and they knew I was much better suited as Bruce Willis.

Life is good right now. Reagan says I’m the worse watchdog on the planet but I sure do make a lot of friends. If I fake a limp I can usually finesse a cookie or two from the customers and if I sit in front of the fridge long enough I get my daily dog…hot dog that is. The warm fall days here in Savannah are just made for me snoozing on the porch and one day I can get a slurp of Reagan’s peach martini.

So what is your opinion on pets in mysteries? Paw up or down? Do they distract too much from the mystery? Do you like it when they have a point of view? Do you like cats or dogs best in a book? (That’s spelled d-o-g)

Let me know what you think and I’ll have Duffy put you in the drawing for the two Killer in Crinolines totes she’s giving away.

About Duffy: While others girls dreamed of dating Brad Pitt, I longed to take Sherlock Holmes to the prom. I now have two cats, Spooky and Dr. Watson, and conjure up who-done-it stories of my very own for Berkley Prime Crime.

Visit me online at www.duffybrown.com and friend me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/authorduffybrown

Duffy is generously giving away two Killer in Crinolines tote bags. Answer her questions by posting a comment below:  So what is your opinion on pets in mysteries? Paw up or down? Do they distract too much from the mystery? Do you like it when they have a point of view? Do you like cats or dogs best in a book?

Please be sure to leave your email address along with your comment so we may contact you if you win. Contest is open to residents of the United States who are 18 years of age or older. Two winners will be selected. Prizes will be shipped directly to the winners by the author or her representative. The Book Connection is not responsible for prizes lost or damaged in shipment.

First Chapter Review: Iced Chiffon by Duffy Brown

Iced Chiffon is the first book in Duffy Brown's Consignment Shop Mystery series. The second book in this series, Killer in Crinolines, will be released in May. The author sent me a copy of Iced Chiffon as a thank you gift for hosting her in May.

BLURB:  There’s always something to gossip about in Savannah, Georgia, and Reagan Summerside always seems to be in the middle of it. She’s busy enough running her consignment shop, The Prissy Fox, with her vivacious Auntie KiKi, but now the gossip—and the sales—are about to pick up after a gruesome discovery…

Reagan’s messy divorce has left her with nothing but a run-down Victorian and a bunch of designer clothes. Strapped for cash, Reagan makes use of the two things she has left, turning the first floor of her home into a consignment shop and filling it with the remnants of her rich-wife wardrobe.

Thanks to his cunning lawyer Walker Boone, her ex got everything else, including the Lexus—not to mention a young blond cupcake. When Reagan finds the cupcake dead in the Lexus, she’s determined to beat Boone to finding the murderer. As it turns out, the gossip fiends flooding Reagan’s shop will give her a lot more than just their unwanted clothes—they have information more precious than a vintage Louis Vuitton…

COVER: This is a fabulous cover. You have to see it up close to appreciate it. The grandfather clock is tied into something from the first chapter--you'll have to read to find out what--and what the reader is looking at is the new first floor of Reagan's Victorian that has been turned into a consignment shop. Love the series logo with the orange hat. It also appears on the spine and on the back cover right above the author's website URL.

FIRST CHAPTER: It's only morning when Reagan dishes herself up a heavy helping of self-pity and the last of the pinot. Her lousy ex-husband has left her with a run-down house and a mountain of bills. He even took the Lexus she made the initial payment on. She should have listened to her mother and never married Hollis Beaumont. Reagan is stuck selling her furniture and her designer clothes to make ends meet. Snooty Raylene Carter paying a surprise visit early the next day might be the final straw.

KEEP READING:  Oh yes. Brown has created a zany cast of characters centered around a down-on-her-luck woman coping with the aftermath of her messy divorce. Between her mother, Guillotine Gloria, a judge who doesn't get pushed around, her UPS driver and friend, Chantilly, quirky Aunt KiKi, and an uncle named Putter for his love of golf, you know you're bound to have some mischief.

You can't help but feel sorry for Reagan, kindly named after a certain conservative president. Her ex-husband has left her for a woman twenty years his junior and he's taken just about everything. Reagan is left to put her life back together and try to find some way to pay the bills.

Even if Savannah wasn't mentioned, you could quickly tell by the characters and the details the author provides that the story is set in the south. It's got charm. It's got food. It's got history. I can't wait to see what happens next. Based upon the synopsis, I know it's going to get interesting right quick.

Reading level: Ages 18 and up
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Berkley; Original edition (October 2, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0425251608
ISBN-13: 978-0425251607

I received a free copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, for which I have not been compensated in any way.