I wanted to love this book, thanks to the intriguing plot! Unfortunately, the pacing got the best of me. The first quarter dragged a bit, filled with long descriptions of things that didn't seem to move the story forward. Details like clothing brands and prices felt distracting, taking away from the main plot. Despite the interesting premise, I just couldn't get past the slow start and decided to put it down for now.

A wacky overseas trip starts wrong when Cyd Redondo's mother Bridget & her 2 friends go on a Bali tour booked by Cyd’s archnemesis, Peggy Newsome. Peggy is AWOL so Cyd must fix their itinerary & goes there in person to figure out what is going on. While battling the humidity, Cyd encounters gorgeous resort settings, stumbles upon songbird smugglers & has the challenge of keeping 3 newly hatched endangered Bali Starling chicks alive in her Tupperware container.

This was another hilarious, zany, action-packed misadventure for Cyd.

I received a digital ARC from Netgalley & Beyond the Page Publishing. All opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher. This is the first book I’ve read from this author. The title is what got me curious and then after starting to read I was hooked. I’m going to look for the her first 3 books of this series.

It’s 2007, and Eat, Pray, Love is all the rage. Cyd Redondo’s clients at her travel agency are all looking for trips to Bali, inspired by the book. However, Cyd is shocked when she discovers her mother is on such a trip, a trip she won from Cyd’s rival travel agent. An incompetent travel agent. So Cyd races to Bali to help her mother. What will she find when she gets there?

I’ve enjoyed the earlier books in the series, but this one wasn’t a good. I was expecting the updates on family and set up of the trip, but even once Cyd reached Bali, the pacing was off. The usual mix of travelogue, screwball comedy, and mystery was skewed. Once the mystery really did kick in, we were off and running with lots of twists and a satisfying ending. We did get some great character growth. And I laughed plenty. Fans of the series will still find things to enjoy, but I wish the plot had been stronger.

This is the fourth book in the series but the first book I have read from this new to me author.
I enjoyed this adventure mystery. Cyd is a travel agent with a mother that books a trip with friends to Bali through her archnemesis, Peggy Newsome. In all fairness, Cyd’s mother, Bridgette “won” the trip.

Just as Cyd had feared, it all goes south. Peggy or her agency has failed to dot the “I s” and cross the “t s” and strands the three women in Indonesia. Cyd steps in and gets them rebooked on another, safer airline. She reaches out to a contact in Bali to get them rooms.

The rest of the story is just as chaotic and Cyd arrives to solve the mystery, help clear her mother, and save some baby starlings.

I found it amazing that Cyd could do it all in stilettos and a tube skirt. Just suspend reality and go with the flow. It’s a great escape.

I learned a lot about animal/bird trafficking.

This is a standalone story. I was given an e-copy by Netgalley and am not required to leave a positive review.

If you want to be transported to Bali, book a trip through Redondo Travel and find yourself enjoying the landscape, wildlife, customs, and culture of this marvelous place in Wendall Thomas's Cheap Trills. What Cyd Redondo doesn't know about booking the perfect trips for her clients isn't worth knowing, and if her agency were real, she'd definitely have all my business.

Being broiled alive in a brutal (and seemingly endless) Phoenix summer, I loved sinking into the pages of this book and losing myself in the descriptions of Balinese scenery and wildlife. Speaking of wildlife, it always plays an important role in any Cyd Redondo mystery, and in Cheap Trills, I learned about smuggling songbirds and the fight to protect the endangered Bali Starling. But-- as much as I love learning about wildlife and the customs of other countries-- I wouldn't be a diehard fan of this series if it weren't for Cyd Redondo herself. Cyd is extraordinary, from her knowledge and contacts in the travel business to her smart-alecky view of the world to her ability to kickbox in stilettos to her passionate endeavors to save wildlife. She has a Balenciaga bag that MacGyver would give his right arm for, and one of the highlights of Cheap Trills is discovering that Balinese women also know the importance of a good set of Tupperware.

Cyd Redondo is so very easy to laugh with and to love. I would willingly follow her anywhere. I could even be of assistance in a future adventure. You see, Cyd doesn't have a good relationship with bats, and it just so happens that I was the bat wrangler at a previous place of employment. Think about it, Cyd. I could really help you out!

As you can see, I've fallen head over heels for Cyd and her adventures. If you love mysteries with strong female leads that are light-hearted, visual feasts, let me steer you straight to Redondo Travel. You're going to love Cyd.

This was a DNF for me at 1/3 of the way through. I found that it went ridiculously slowly at the beginning, and seemed to cover events that had no relevance, and had too much detail and description of random things, like the brand, season it came out, and price of items of clothing. It had an interesting premise, but up to 1/3 of the way through I was still forcing myself to keep reading, so I gave up

Bali, cultural-differences, cultural-exploration, verbal-humor, situational-humor, travel-agent, smuggling, fish-and-wildlife-service, snark-fest, laugh-riot, research, 2007, drug-trafficking, murder, murder-investigation, amateur-sleuth, amazing-women, family-dynamics, family-drama, family, dishonest-business-practices, law enforcement*****

Brooklyn travel agent Cyd Redondo is off rescuing her mother from many things. There's the lovely man she met who got murdered, drug smugglers, smugglers of endangered Bali bird species, and an unscrupulous rival with a competing travel agency. The author's attention to detail shows meticulous research into the plight of endangered songbirds being smuggled by a network of villains. Cyd is a hoot, but the relatives and acquaintances are positively wacky.
Underground Tupperware network?!
Absolutely LOVED it!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Beyond The Page Publishing via NetGalley. Thank you!!

Cyd Redondo is a travel agent with a McGuyver skill set, which comes in handy on an emergency trip to Bali because her mother is part of a murder investigation. Cyd finds herself not only tasked with solving the murder but becomes involved in solving a Bali songbird smuggling ring. The book moves at a fast pace, with plenty of viable suspects.

This book wasn’t for me. The characters didn’t hold my interest, and I found myself skimming through my copy. Even though this author’s writing style isn’t a fit for me, it may be for you. If this book appeals to you, give it a try.

I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this book. It seemed to move slowly...then move at light speed. I went back to read a few pages before the jump to light speed...just so I knew I wasn't missing anything.

I'm a first time reader of this author, so perhaps if I had read any of the titles prior to this one, I might have had a bit more understanding of the writing style. It was a cute story that jumped around Bali a lot! I've never been to Bali, so I don't know if you can summon a helicopter when you need it or if you can get fabulous hotel reservations at a moments notice or not. Perhaps this is a travel agents prerogative!

Since this is a cozy mystery/thriller...after the first couple of chapters...I just read the rest of the book for fun. Suspending all normal expectations and just went with the story. As I said before, it was cute, it was fun, the banter was quite witty, and I did enjoy the ending.

3.5 stars from me, rounding up to 4 since it was fun to just go with the storyline...and Cyd's paranoia about her ability to keep some endangered hatchlings alive was fabulous.

If you love stories set in exotic locales, you’ll enjoy Cheap Trills by Wendall Thomas. In the wake of Elizabeth Gilbert’s 2007 bestseller—Eat, Pray, Love—visits to Bali became the rage. The protagonist, travel agent Cyd Redondo, who caters to senior vacationers, warns her clients about the hazards of traveling to Indonesia. Not only is the journey long, involving multiple plane changes on air carriers with questionable safety records, but the destination is fraught with dangers such as active volcanoes, venomous snakes, crooked cops, kidnappers, pickpockets, and the risk of the death penalty for possession of drugs, endangered animals, or large amounts of cash. And no ADA dictating that establishments make accommodations for disabled guests. However, her own mother (Bridget) and two of her friends defy Cyd’s advice and book a trip to Bali with her archrival, Peggy Newsome.
Right away, things go wrong for the trio. Not only did they experience flight delays, missed connections, and lost luggage, but Peggy confirmed their hotel room for the wrong dates, so Bridget and her friends arrived without reservations. And Bridget becomes a person of interest in the murder of a man she met on the flight. Cyd must fly to Bali to straighten everything out. Fasten your seat belts for a hilarious tale involving poaching of endangered species, treachery, and a touch of romance.
Cyd is a colorful character, with fiery red hair (made bigger in Bali’s humidity) which apparently strikes fear in the hearts of the natives, who regard redheads as demons. She can run in stilettos and refuses to let her Balenciaga out of her sight; that bottomless bag of tricks is filled with MacGyver-like tools that she pulls out at the appropriate time to extract herself from tight situations.
Wendall Thomas did a superb job with the setting. I visited Bali once as a cruise ship stop, but she took me much deeper. I could tell she’d done extensive research on the culture, flora, and fauna, but she weaves it into the plot seamlessly; I never felt like I was getting an info dump.
Cheap Trills is the fourth book in a series. Although it worked fine as a stand-alone, there are a lot of references to past adventures, and many of the characters who pop in have a history with Cyd and company. I suspect reading the books in order would enrich my appreciation for this one. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed it without the additional backstory.
Highly recommended!

I LOVED this book! Author Wendall Thomas does an incredible job of making the reader feel like they're in Bali, alongside for all of Cyd Redondo's hijinks. I was drawn to this book because it had so many reviews saying how funny it was and it lived up to the hype! I hadn't read any other books in the series and didn't feel lost at all jumping into this one. But now I can't wait to go back and read the others!

Take a trip to Bali. It will be quite an experience. The adventures of Cyd Redondo are amusing, unlikely, and quirky. The critters she is involved with this time are birds, hence the trills. Autocorrect kept insisting I was searching for Cheap Trolls. Lots of laughs and wackiness. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

It's been ages since I read a Cyd Redondo cozy mystery and thoroughly enjoyed this one. Humour, a lot of action and a solid mystery
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This is the first one I have read in this series and I’m wondering why I haven’t seen it before now. With a trip to Gali on the agenda, Cyd never expected her mother to head into a lion’s den…in that there are so many things going not here that she would NEVER have recommended it for her Mother. But in order to keep her mother and her friends from trouble, things go really crazy.

This one is fun, quirky and really engaging! I am so into this that I’m up for the first three in the series before the next one is released!

Cyd Redondo is a hometown travel agent who specializes in senior citizen trips. After finding a discount with a different travel agent her mother sneaks off on a trip to Bali with her friends only to discover that the trip was booked incorrectly and they have no reservations. Cyd contacts some of her travel agent friends and comes up with a plan to fix her mom's trip and save the vacation. Cyd travels to Bali to make sure the rest of the trip goes off without any issues and finds herself up against smugglers, murderers, thieves and gunmen. This was. a perfect read full of fun characters and lots of action. This was the fourth book in the series but it also works as a stand alone book.

When travel agent Cyd Redondo’s mother and two of her friends sneak off to Bali, not realizing that they don’t actually have reservations, Cyd steps in to save their trip. She’s not expecting to tangle with smugglers and gunmen.

This slightly madcap mystery is a fun read and a perfect mystery for armchair travelers. Although the book does stand alone, I’d recommend reading the earlier books first.

Thank you to NetGalley for free advance copy in exchange for an honest review

A great read.
I have been fascinated with Bali for years and the book is exceptional in making you feel as though you are there.

Smart dialog. Reasonable mystery without "Cheats" that keep you from being able to work it out

I was both disappointed/happily surprised to learn this was book 4 in the series.
I wish I'd read the series from the beginning

Strongly recommend

If you've never been or don't expect to ever go to Bali, this is the mystery for you!
Wendall Thomas brilliantly brings Bali to life in her hilarious mystery Cheap Trills. There is so much entertainment entwined with rich description of the settings and factual information about the area's bird population that this book is more than a fun mystery; it is informative as well.
Well-written and fun to read, with a touch of romance and heaping helping of intrigue, Cheap Trills is definitely one to put on your TBR shelf.
Although it can stand on its own, I do think that the book would be better enjoyed after having read the first three in the series.
I'm glad to have received an ARC of #CheapTrills from #NetGalley.

Birds, Monkeys, murder, and mayhem. Oh my! What a fun, Fast paced, witty, laugh-out-loud mystery. Travel agent Cyd Redondo is like a sexy Indiana Jones in heels. What a fun read. Thank you netgalley for this ARC to read and review. I loved it! 5/5