Kite Shop mysteries
written as Clover Tate
In Blown Away, the first book of the series, Emmy Adler has two life-altering experiences the same day. One is that she achieves her life’s dream by opening Strings Attached, a shop in the ground floor of a former Victorian home selling the artistic kites she creates. The other involves finding the body of a local chef washed in with the tide. Emmy has no choice but to get involved when her best friend is wrongly accused of murder.
Tate breathes life into a fine group of characters, from quirky to cagey to caring. I envision them holding onto the strings of airborne kites, as they carry the story from one high point to the next. She deftly swirls suspicion around a number of them, building breath-holding tension until the final reveal. Two thumbs’ up for Blown Away.
~ Christine Husom, author of the Snow Globe Shop Mysteries and the Winnebago County Mysteries.
Tate has stitched together a clever plot filled with greed and generosity, whimsy and intent, friendship and murder. Emmy and her kite shop will blow you away!
~ Fran Stewart, author of the Biscuit McKee Mystery Series and the ScotShop Mysteries
Atmospheric. Tate perfectly captures the moody and mysterious Pacific Northwest coast in her soaring debut. With a quirky yet loveable cast of characters, page turning plot, and a strong, artistic heroine Blown Away will leave you nostalgic for summers spent with toes in the sand and colorful kites flying overhead.
~ Kate Dyer-Seeley, author of the Pacific Northwest mysteries
With summer drawing to a close in Rock Point, Oregon, Emmy Adler hopes to beat the seasonal drop in business by winning the annual kite festival. What better way to garner publicity for the handmade kites sold in her shop, Strings Attached? In the days leading up to the festival, Emmy’s ambitions are soaring. Even an argument with reality TV star Jasmine Normand can’t bring her down. But when Jasmine is found dead the morning after their altercation, Emmy’s no longer flying high.
An important competition, a clumsy but well-meaning sister, financial strain and a dash of reality TV — not to mention murder — round out the Kite Shop Mystery with well-written wit and intrigue.
~ The Romantic Times, four stars (compelling, a page-turner)
It’s nothing but blue skies ahead for Rock Point kite shop owner Emmy Adler. Strings Attached is thriving–even winning attention from a big-city reporter who wants to interview Emmy–and Emmy’s relationship with her main competitor, Jack Sullivan, is going strong.
But Emmy’s sunny outlook turns stormy when she finds a woman dead on the floor of the Strings Attached. When the sheriff eyes Jack as the main suspect after his kite charm turns up near the body, Emmy strikes up an investigation of her own. With Strings Attached’s safety breached and Jack’s whole family tangled up in the case, Emmy’s determined to track down the real killer before all her dreams get blown off course.
Next time someone tells you to go fly a kite, pick this read up and settle in for some cozy fun.—Open Book Society