The entire mystery, especially the ending, fell a little flat with me. I liked the characters, it was just hard to get into the story itself.

A Tourist Trap novella.

Jill sees sparks fly in this 4th July mystery.

I do love the Tourist Trap mysteries. They are fun to read, with a good set of characters and interesting plots that will keep you guessing.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book from Netgalley. Published by Lyrical/Kensington.

Lynn Cahoon writes great characters and plots and storylines that readers an connect to. I always look forward to her latest installments.

Rockets' Dead Glare
(Tourist Trap Mysteries #9.25)
by Lynn Cahoon 

Kindle Edition, 77 pages
Published June 5th 2018 by Lyrical Underground




Goodreads synopsis:
As sunny South Cove, California, gears up for their annual Fourth of July celebrations, a local murder threatens to kill the fireworks . . .
 
South Cove’s local businesses are up in arms after volunteer fire chief Barry Gleason threatens to shut down anyone who doesn’t comply with the fire code. But when Barry schedules a training burn in an old abandoned barn, he is the only one who doesn't come out alive. Jill Gardner—owner of Coffee, Books, and More—smells murder in the ashes. She’ll have to work quickly to nab a killer with a short fuse—or else everyone’s holiday will end with a fizzle . . .

***

4 Stars

I am not sure why I put off reading this one so long. I think I thought it was a part of one of the two new series Lynn Cahoon was creating. I got thrown off by the image art on the cover, I think. When I finally realized it was a Tourist Trap book and I had somehow missed three entire books (two novellas and one novel) in the series I had to shake my head. This is one of my favorite series; how did I miss it?

This book had so much build up in the beginning. Butthead Barry and his controlling ways was a great murder victim. I wish this had been a full novel. It had the bones for it. Lots of suspects and the fact that Greg and the police force had figured it all so quickly kinda threw me off.

I definitely wanted more of this. It could have been a great full sized novel. Even a a novella it was good but everything happened so fast. And I guess that is a point of a novella truncated everything.

Even though it i small it is a good read. Check it out.

I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.

Enjoyable read, but I enjoy the longer mysteries better. The novella’s are also behind the series itself.

Another excellent edition to a wonderful series! Full of twists and turns that leaves you wanting more and enjoying each moment until the end when the killer is caught.

This novella, set around the Fourth of July, has Jill trying to find out who murdered the Fire Chief without stepping on the toes of her boyfriend who is town homicide detective. Barry Gleason, Fire Chief, had threatened just about every local business with a shut down order due to fire code violations, so when he was found dead there were numerous suspects including Jill.

I love this series and even this short novella is well written with the characters interacting naturally and the clues well placed and the solution well thought out.

This is a short but sweet novella in the Tourist Trap Mystery Series. As the title hints, it takes place around the 4th of July and the businesses in South Cover are planning for Independence Day Celebrations. When the new fire chief is found dead in a house being used for a training exercise, there are only three suspects, the three volunteer firemen who are there for the exercise. There were a lot of people upset with him over his threats to shut down businesses for fire code violations, but none of them were in attendance. Once again, Jill Gardner sticks her nose in the investigation making sure that an innocent man is not railroaded. You get a brief look at the town of South Cove and glimpse the life of some of the main characters. If you have not read any books in this series, this could be a brief introduction to it, but do not make a hasty judgement, as the series is fun, interesting, has lots of local cultures, some quirky characters and great mysteries to solve. A short mystery that was a nice interlude before the next full story in this series.

Rockets’ Dead Glare is a quick, light, summery read, best for readers who are already fans of Lynn Cahoon’s Tourist Trap Mysteries. I figured out the solution pretty quickly, but enjoyed the chance to “visit” with the residents of South Cove.

I didn’t realize until I finished it that the novella, released this summer, actually fits between If the Shoe Kills (review) and Dressed to Kill (review)—it’s #3.25 in the series. That confused me at first, since some of the details didn’t seem consistent with events in more recent books: Sasha’s presence, for example, and the state of the relationships between Toby and Sasha, Darla and Matt, and even Jill and Greg. Once I realized where the novella fit into the series, everything fell into place.

Cahoon has two more novellas slated for publication this year, Deadly Brew and Santa Puppy. Goodreads seems confused as to where they fit in the series; they’re labelled #9.5 and #9.75 on the series page, but the individual book pages number them as #3.5 and #3.75. I’m guessing that they, too, fall between If the Shoe Kills and Dressed to Kill. I look forward to reading them, but I hope the author has at least a few more full-length Tourist Trap Mysteries in the works.

Rockets' Dead Glare is another excellent installment in Cahoon's Tourist Trap mystery series. This novella is a perfect summer read taking place during the Fourth of July. When preparations for the Fourth of July celebration takes a dark turn, Jill decides to try and find out who murdered Barry, the Fire Chief.

One of the reasons I love this series so much is the characters. This novella while short still brings my favorite characters to life once again while Jill and her friends are trying to solve this latest mystery. The main character is great, but I really love the secondary characters especially Aunt Jackie and Greg. I loved how this story still included these characters. The novella is still full of some twists and turns making for an engaging read, and it left me anxious to read another one of Jill's adventures. Overall Rockets' Dead Glare proved to be a great summer read that I would most definitely recommend.

Received a copy of Rockets' Dead Glare from the publisher in exchange for my honest review

I love revisiting South Cove and the small business owners. Jill is the first of the group to get a list of violations from fire chief Barry Gleason and it looks like he's working overtime to stop the local 4th of July festival. When he gets the business owners together for a training session in an old barn he ends up dead. This is a shorter story , book # 3.25 in the Tourist Trap Mystery series and is an easy read. It can be read as a stand alone. Jill and Greg do their usual song and dance over her interfering in his police investigation and the whole gang is ready to help. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The "Tourist Trap' series is one of my favorites. As I was reading this one, I didn't realize that it was really a novella. So I was a bit surprised when the mystery was all wrapped up in just a few pages.

Although I enjoyed the story and mystery in this one, I felt that the mystery in this book was rather straightforward. The characters are still likable, as is the setting. It's written in a easy to read manner and I didn't want to put it down.

Princess Fuzzypants: Zip! It seemed that I had hardly started to read this story and it was over. I guess that is the advantage or disadvantage of a novella. If you are looking for something light and easy for a weekend getaway or the beach, this would be a good choice.
We still have the same characters we have come to love, in the same setting. This time the story takes place just before the 4th of July holiday. The volunteer local fire chief has been ruffling lots of feathers in town. He has decided to come down hard on local businesses for code violations threatening to shut them down just before the town festival. If they took a poll on who is the most despised individual in town, he would win hands down. He may be an obnoxious bully but is that any reason to murder him.
When his body is found in the ruins of a fire he set as a training exercise for his team, the three firefighters at the scene are the prime suspects. Jill believes all of them are innocent. So who killed Barry? There is a neat little twist to the story although I confess I suspected it. Still, it is a fun read and moves along the story lines of all the main characters.
I give it four purrs and two paws up.

This is a novella in my favorite cozy mystery series and very fitting for this time of year. South Cove is getting ready for the fourth of July but Barry is threatening to shut down anyone not up to code. He even hints to Jill that he could overlook things for certain favors...ewww. When he ends up dead Jill goes to solving things even when her boyfriend, the detective of the town, tells her not too.

I enjoyed this but it was a little confusing because it seems like it should have been a long time ago since it has a character that is no longer in it but once I seen that it's suppose to be 3.25, then it makes sense. :) Up around book 3 it fits in just fine.

I love all the characters in this series, even the grumpy ones! It's just a overall fun series that I would recommend to anyone who loves cozies!

I really enjoyed this book. Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for offering it in exchange for my honest review.
Rockets Dead Glare is a well written mystery. I read it straight through. I found it delightful!
.

This is a fun holiday novella in one of my favorite series.
The stories are always well written and fill of excitement.

Lynn Cahoon's Rockets' Dead Glare is a short novel in the Tourist Trap Mystery series. Jill, owner of Coffee, Books, and More, is preparing for the 4th of July weekend. The holiday is uncertain for all of the businesses when the volunteer fire chief threatens to shut down all of them for noncompliance with the fire codes. When the fire chief is found dead during a training burn, three suspects are the focus of the investigation. This is a short story, but it still packs everything needed to make it an exceptional one. I enjoyed the quick, holiday themed read.

I love this series. This is a short and sweet entry in the series, with a bit of a twist. All of my favorite characters make an appearance. My only complaint is that this claims to be book 9.25 on Goodreads, but really the events and relationships have to happen earlier than that.

Still, it's always a pleasure to visit South Cove and I am looking forward to many more.

This is #9.25 in the Tourist Trap Mystery series. While I have not read any of the other books in this series, this has intrigued me enough to decide to go back and read those which came previously. This is a short and easy read. Less than 100 pages. I feel it was a good read to get someone who is not familiar with the series to get a little taste and they, like me, might want more. I enjoyed the writing style and the community feeling of those who reside within South Cove California. Our main character is the owner of Coffee, Books, and More. I love that idea !!! If you are looking for a cozy mystery series and want to get a feel for this series, I recommend this. If you are familiar with this series, this is a nice quick book for a hot summer day at the beach or by the pool. I am giving a solid 4-star review for this quick and cozy mystery.

Rockets’ Dead Glare
A Tourist Trap Mystery, Book #9.5
Lynn Cahoon
5 Stars

Synopsis:

As sunny South Cove, California, gears up for their annual Fourth of July celebrations, a local murder threatens to kill the fireworks . . .

South Cove’s local businesses are up in arms after volunteer fire chief Barry Gleason threatens to shut down anyone who doesn’t comply with the fire code. But when Barry schedules a training burn in an old abandoned barn, he is the only one who doesn't come out alive. Jill Gardner—owner of Coffee, Books, and More—smells murder in the ashes. She’ll have to work quickly to nab a killer with a short fuse—or else everyone’s holiday will end with a fizzle . . . (Goodreads)


Review:

The characters are well developed and well rounded. Aunt jackie is a bit of a stickler but I think she is beginning to mellow a little bit. Amy and Jill have a special relationship and you can tell they are best friends. And Greg, Jill’s police detective boyfriend, seems like a great guy (even if he does not want Jill putting herself in danger). Anytime I get to spend time with Jill and her family, friends and coworkers is time well spent.

The writing style flows smoothly and this novella is a quick easy read. The author is very talented in her descriptive writing and through much of the book I felt like I was right there inside Coffee, Books, and More, watching all the drama unfold. The mystery was well plotted and there were enough suspects to consider and clues to sift through. The ending really surprised me and I like when that happens when I am reading a mystery. Although this book was a novella, it did not seem like one and had everything I look for in a cozy.

I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys a well crafted cozy mystery. With great characters, an engaging setting and captivating mysteries, you cannot go wrong reading this novella and series.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, Kensington Books, and NetGalley, which I greatly appreciate.