Peach Clobbered is the debut in the A Georgia B&B Mystery series set in Cymbeline, GA and featuring divorcee, Nina (pronounced Nine-Ah) Fleet. Following a contentious divorce from a pro golfer, Nina uses her settlement to purchase a gorgeous Queen Anne home with hopes of turning it into a Bed and Breakfast.
Nina is settling into her new town with her Australian Shepherd, Mattie, when a knock at the door reveals a penguin. Actually it's Harry Westcott, the great nephew of the previous home owner Daisy Lathrop, who has been claiming since she bought the house that he should be the rightful owner as he's in possession of a letter from Daisy stating she was going to change her will and leave the home to him. Unfortunately, Daisy had passed before the change was made but Harry isn't giving up.
Later that day Nina returns home from a visit to the local coffee shop and discovers Mayor Melissa Jane Green parked in her driveway. The Mayor had originally denied Nina's permit for commercial use to operate a B&B, but now she has changed her mind - with a stipulation. Nina has to take in the group of six nuns who have been evicted from their convent by landowner Gregory Bainbridge. The Sisters of Perpetual Poverty have had to close their cheese making business and while waiting for word on where they will be relocated they need a temporary place to stay.
Nina welcomes the nuns into her home and decides to help them with their protest against Bainbridge who is one of the most despised people in Cymbeline. During a brief break from their silent march on the Town Green, Nina takes a walk over to the ice cream shop and discovers the body of a dead penguin in the alley. Fearing the worst, she is somewhat relieved to discover that the body in the costume is not Harry but instead Bainbridge. With the sisters and Harry named as suspects, Nina takes it upon herself to track down a killer.
A fun, fast paced plot with likable characters, a friendly dog and a mysterious skull. It's a little distracting that Nina is constantly reminding people of the correct way to pronounce her name and her treatment of Harry sometimes borders on bullying, but overall this series is sure to be a hit. I was left a little bit saddened with the ending, but am hoping that we will meet some of the secondary characters again.
Nina is settling into her new town with her Australian Shepherd, Mattie, when a knock at the door reveals a penguin. Actually it's Harry Westcott, the great nephew of the previous home owner Daisy Lathrop, who has been claiming since she bought the house that he should be the rightful owner as he's in possession of a letter from Daisy stating she was going to change her will and leave the home to him. Unfortunately, Daisy had passed before the change was made but Harry isn't giving up.
Later that day Nina returns home from a visit to the local coffee shop and discovers Mayor Melissa Jane Green parked in her driveway. The Mayor had originally denied Nina's permit for commercial use to operate a B&B, but now she has changed her mind - with a stipulation. Nina has to take in the group of six nuns who have been evicted from their convent by landowner Gregory Bainbridge. The Sisters of Perpetual Poverty have had to close their cheese making business and while waiting for word on where they will be relocated they need a temporary place to stay.
Nina welcomes the nuns into her home and decides to help them with their protest against Bainbridge who is one of the most despised people in Cymbeline. During a brief break from their silent march on the Town Green, Nina takes a walk over to the ice cream shop and discovers the body of a dead penguin in the alley. Fearing the worst, she is somewhat relieved to discover that the body in the costume is not Harry but instead Bainbridge. With the sisters and Harry named as suspects, Nina takes it upon herself to track down a killer.
A fun, fast paced plot with likable characters, a friendly dog and a mysterious skull. It's a little distracting that Nina is constantly reminding people of the correct way to pronounce her name and her treatment of Harry sometimes borders on bullying, but overall this series is sure to be a hit. I was left a little bit saddened with the ending, but am hoping that we will meet some of the secondary characters again.
Peach Clobbered was an entertaining cozy mystery. Nina (pronounced Nine-ah) was charmed with the Queen Anne Victorian she stumbled across while looking for antiques in the small town of Cymbeline. She wanted a new start after her divorce from pro-golfer, Cameron Fleet. Nina thought about using the large home for a bed-and-breakfast until Mayor Green turned down her rezoning request. But then Mayor Green finds herself with six nuns and no vacancies in town. Nina gets her home rezoned and immediately has six divine residents. The one fly in the ointment is Harry Westcott who believes the home should be his since his great-aunt, Daisy Lathrop wrote him that she is leaving the turn-of-century home to him. Then greedy developer, Gregory Bainbridge is murdered in the Taste-Tee-freeze Creamery penguin costume which Harry had been wearing earlier in the day. There is plenty of action in the cute story. I liked Nina, but we are not given her complete history. I hope we learn more about her in the next book. The nuns were just delightful. They got to enjoy new experiences and food while staying with Nina plus there was the protest. Harry is an amusing character who I believe we will be seeing more of in future books. He is an actor who travels around in a converted bus. I enjoyed the humor and wit which had me chuckling frequently while reading Peach Clobbered. I thought the story was well-written and it progressed at a nice clip which made it easy to read. I enjoyed the descriptions of Nina's new home and the quaint town. I can understand why Nina was drawn to Cymbeline and her Queen Anne. The mystery had several suspects, a red herring and subtle clues. The take down was an enjoyable and amusing scene. I was sorry for Peach Clobbered to end. Peach Clobbered is a diverting cozy mystery with Harry the theatrical thespian, a rapacious real estate developer, six saintly sisters, several suspicious suspects, and one inquisitive B&B owner.
