Search - This Old Souse (Bed-And-Breakfast, Bk 20)

I loved this series, but this one, not so much. It was darker than the others and I love them because they are so light and funny. That said, it was still very good.

I like this series a lot. I look forward to the next one. However, this one seemed "off" - as though a good ghostwriter stepped in here. Renie and Bill came off as downright obnoxious, rather than the eccentrics I believe the author was intending. Mike seemed truly irresponsible. Gertrude was saved by her (ill-disguised) concern when she realized her daughter might be in trouble, but was as annoyingly over-the-top as the rest of the gang. Regarding Judith herself, she never seemed all that concerned or frightened; it seemed more that she worked at solving the murder because it "inconvenienced" her.
Two final points: 1) Judith says she "only saw Luke once, [across the room] at the Cafe ..." yet she has a face-to-face encounter with him later that day? 2) Phyliss, the cleaning lady, is a HOOT!

I wanted to read a cozy about Bed & Breakfasts, so I chose this author. It took me a while to get into it - probably 1/3rd of the book - but it finally started to grab me and I'm glad I stuck with it. Characters are fun and developed, even minor characters who make short appearances. The ending had some twists and I wasn't able to guess the outcome, so I enjoyed that. I will read more in this series, but not anytime soon, as this wasn't a grab-me-a-lot book! (This is not the first in the series.)