S. W. Hubbard (1)

Years ago, I used to read lots of thrillers. Then I somehow got a taste for fantasy books and read (still am) mainly books in that genre.
I recently returned to reading (or better listening to) thrillers again. The German ones were nearly all a disappointment, but the English ones I listened to recently have just been great.
Another Man's Treasure is no exception. I loved every minute of it. Such great suspense, convincing plot, great characters, and a wholly surprising ending. I really show more thought I had figured it out long before the conclusion, but I was way off. There are lots of twists and turns, and there wasn't a single moment when I wasn't convinced by them, or didn't buy into them.
I liked the language, too. No permanent swearing (which is always a downer for me), just perfectly normal speech, like actual people would talk. Although this is part of a series, there is no cliffhanger, for which I'm very grateful, because that is something I hate (and most authors nowadays end their books with).

Janelle Tedesco's narration was just perfect. She brought all the characters to life, her pace was perfectly suited to the pace of the story, and it was an absolute pleasure to get lost in her narration.
In fact, I was so drawn in that I couldn't fall asleep -- the story just kept me awake and listening until the wee hours of this morning.

I can't wait to listen to the sequel, which I hope is already available in audio, cause my reading time is very limited.

I got this audio book for free in exchange for an honest review, and believe me, if I'm not convinced, I say so, but this book just blew me away. show less

I had already listened to the first two books in that series, and I keenly awaited the launch of tome 3. Two days ago, I got a free copy for review. Of course I had to listen to it immediately, my other audio books took a back seat for the duration. 🙂

What can I say: I loved it just as much as the first two sequels. The story is firmly rooted in today’s society, with all the problems we are confronted with on a daily basis. There are lots of references to current events in this book, and show more the problems mentioned are certainly a reality for a lot of people. I’ve mentioned it in my previous reviews, but it needs to be said again: I totally love the language. It is so refreshingly ’normal‘, which is one huge factor in making the characters and the story so very convincing. Plus: there is no foul language, no swearing of any kind– it’s like a holiday, because lots of authors seem to think that their stories are more authentic if they use a lot of swearing. Let me tell you: swearing and foul language don’t add any authenticity to a story, at least not in the world I live in. I don’t know anybody who swears a lot, and I don’t want to, either.

This is why I really appreciate the Palmyrton Estate Sale Mysteries: they’re great suspense, convincing and authentic without swearing.

The budding romance between Sean and Audrey has gone up a step, they are committed now, and again, the story convinces without describing any sex scenes ( which really is another beef I have with lots of other stories, where I’m regaled with detailed sexual encounters between the main characters. Again: this is not necessary to make the reader part of a romance. We all have our imagination and I for one don’t need those page fillers. They’re usually ridiculous and boring and make me wish I could skim the audio book the way I would skim a print).

The Palmyrton Estate Sale Mysteries series is a great example of wonderful story telling: the characters, the language, the mystery, the wit and humour: all make this an absolutely enjoyable story.

Janelle Tedesco again excels in narrating the story. Not only does she manage to give each character a distinctive voice, her accent and convincing speech impediment (when narrating Audrey’s father) are masterfully done. I was so engrossed that I had to chide myself and to deliberately switch the audio off in order to get some much needed sleep. It is a ‚page turner‘, and I sincerely hope there’ll be more sequels, cause the characters feel like good friends. show less

Set in New Jersey, Audrey Nealon has a successful estate auction business. While prepping the recently deceased Mrs. Saabo’s estate for sale, Audrey’s crew finds the oddest things – Ecstasy hidden in the kitchen and a trunk of jewelry hidden in the attic. Unexpectedly, her mother’s ring was in that trunk, which brings up all sorts of questions for Audrey, since her mother disappeared 30 years ago, supposedly drowned in a freezing lake after a car accident. Audrey’s pursuit of the show more truth leads her into danger and she starts to wonder just who she can trust.

This book is part cozy mystery (humor, beloved pet), part thriller (stalking, gruesome injury, betrayal), and part murder mystery. For the most part, it all works well together. Audrey is a single child raised by a father that was rather indifferent, if not outright disapproving of her. She managed to obtain a math degree but then decided to go into the estate sale business, gaining yet more disapproval from her math professor father. But she has this dedicated crew of two – Jill with her crew cut hairstyle and piercings, and Tyshon with his prickly dignity and ex-con past. Audrey’s life is cozy and orderly and predictable, that is, until her mom’s unique ring shows up unexpectedly at Mrs. Saabo’s estate.

Just a few days after discovering her mom’s ring, along with the drugs and other jewelry, she’s jumped by a masked assailant that leaves her unconscious and bleeding. The trauma to her head was rather severe and she spends some quality time in the hospital. For the rest of the story, she’s a bit jumpy, especially around strangers or in underground parking lots. While this was realistic, I did get a little tired of her screaming and breaking down so often. I kept hoping she would do something practical, like start carrying pepper spray or a tire iron. This was one of the few things about the story that I didn’t like.

Audrey’s dog, Ethel, was often a source of amusement and cute cuddliness. However, the author often used Ethel as a way to bridge two characters, since Ethel likes everyone who has a treat for her. I really liked this aspect since it was a bigger role for the Ethel than just a beloved pet and comedian. For instance, Audrey’s father really likes Ethel and their mutual love of the dog allows them to have a conversation, even if neither one of them is comfortable with the other.

There’s a little romance in this book. Cal Tremaine, Mrs. Saabo’s nephew handling the estate, is a lawyer who is currently working hard on the campaign for the next hopeful state governor. When Audrey tells him about the trunk of jewelry and the Ecstasy, Cal wants to keep both quiet until after the campaign is over. Audrey is obviously a little smitten with him from the beginning and they have a few impromptu dates. Sex is implied but the curtains always close before we get to anything steamy. The romance never eclipsed the mystery (hooray!) but I did have to endure one lengthy scene where Audrey agonizes over what to wear to a dinner party.

Meanwhile, after Audrey’s attack that left her in the hospital, detective Shawn Kaughlin is focused on Tyshon Griggs because of his past conviction. Shawn is a big stalwart force, but Audrey isn’t sure she can trust him. She defends Tyshon, convinced he would never do something so vicious as the attacker did. Of course, this adds tension to the small team as they continue to work on setting up further estate sales.

At the end, the author gave a little twist that I didn’t see coming and I quite enjoyed being surprised. After the various threads the author had lead me on in the book, I was squinting at each character in suspicion of having done something at some point, but the final telling of who did what and why was quite good. Over all, I enjoyed this book and I expect the series just gets better from here on out.

I received a free copy of this book.

The Narration: Janelle Tedesco did a great job with this book. Her male characters sounded masculine and I really liked how she tossed in regional accents. I was most impressed with her ability to give voice to Audrey’s father, who is recovering from a stroke in the book, so his speech is definitely impeded. show less

Review of eBook

Trout Run, New York has seen an influx of visitors ever since they’d erected Bucky Rheinholz’s chainsaw Nativity on the town green. And when Joseph disappears from the Nativity scene, police chief Frank Bennett is determined to track down the culprit. But what he discovers is nothing like what he thought had happened to the wooden statue.

Ardyth Munger arrives early for the annual Trout Run Municipal Park Clean-Up Day and finds herself assigned to clean the toddler show more playground. There she finds a gold locket and police chief Frank Bennett sets out to find the owner. But when the locket goes missing from the locked drawer where he’d placed it for safety, Frank finds himself wondering about those closest to him. And when he tracks down the story behind the lost locket, it’s nothing like any of them had expected.

A shot meant for a thieving coyote may have struck Rebecca Moran, a not-from-around-here member of a family only recently making a permanent move into their vacation home. Vonn McGrath, the elderly shooter, is devastated. As police chief Frank Bennett investigates, he learns that the Moran family is keeping secrets . . . and the shooting may not be an accident at all.

Three Frank Bennett stories, “Chainsaw Nativity,” “Losers Weepers,” and “Coyote Justice” are contained in this book. [An excerpt from the first book in the Frank Bennett series, “False Cast,” is also included.]

Each of the stories gives readers a glimpse of the Trout Run setting as they establish a strong sense of place; there’s a thread of familiar characters running through each story and readers meet several of the people living in this small Adirondack Mountain town. Each has an unexpected twist and, by the end of the story, Frank has found the solution for each mystery.

This is a quick, but enjoyable, read and a strong introduction to the author’s series. Readers who enjoy small-town tales of intriguing mysteries will find much to appreciate here.

Highly recommended. show less