Watching the Detectives

Ellison has barely had time to recover from the horrifying clown events of the last book, when the decorator she hires to finally redo her late husband's study is killed right in her own home. You can pretty much feel and hear her mother's sigh of disgust when that news spreads. I chuckled out loud at the references to the game Clue, the decorator being the unfortunate Mrs. White. The country club set has all used Mrs. White, and that's how Ellison manages to eventually tie things together, with husbands and wives both releasing bits of information. There's a bit more serious side the story involving domestic violence and in keeping with the Seventies theme, Mulhern really illustrates how hidden a lot of that activity was, particularly show more among women of that social stature. As usual, the bits of repartee between Detective Anarchy Jones and Ellison are some of the best parts of the story and I hope we don't have to wait long for another one of these smart mysteries. show less

Ellison Russell lives in a wealthy Kansas City suburb with her daughter Grace. She's been widowed for six months, and has decided to turn her late husband's office into a study, so is looking for a decorator. At the request of her attorney Hunter Tafft she's allowing his ex-wife Khaki White to offer a bid, even though she knows she won't hire her. After all, she is dating Hunter, and feels it would be awkward to have his ex- (remarried) wife in her home. When Khaki shows up, she begins making asides regarding Hunter that put Ellison on edge. So when Ellison receives a telephone call from her housekeeper Aggie, it's a welcome respite.

It turns out Aggie's car Bess has finally died, and she needs Ellison to pick her up. Ellison leaves show more Khaki to measure the room and tells her she'll be back shortly, and to just lock up behind her when she leaves. That should be the end of her seeing Khaki...but instead it's just the end of Khaki. When Ellison and Aggie return home, she finds her front door ajar, and Khaki in the study, shot between the eyes. In shock, she calls Detective Anarchy Jones for help.

When Anarchy arrives, it's with his new partner Detective Peters, and he thinks everyone - including Ellison - is a suspect. She has no idea who killed Khaki but she knows it wasn't herself or Hunter, (even if her neighbor did see a white Mercedes like Hunter's in her driveway). As it is, she and Grace need to evacuate their home while the police check the crime scene, and if this isn't bad enough, her mother Frances - who is having a disaster in her own home - has volunteered Ellison's home as a replacement for a benefactors' party - in two days' time.

With her hands full of disasters and trying to keep everything together, she allows her mother her way and it appears the party is going just fine. If things were bad before, they're about to get worse. Ellison, making her way around her home greeting her guests, notices the lights are off in the dining room and turns them on only to see another dead body - this time it's Khaki's husband, and someone has done him in with one of her grandmother's candelabra.

But as she's caught up in two murders, you'd think it would be enough, but that's not all. She has friends who are hiding secrets, and not little ones, either. Secrets that could not only get them killed, but Ellison as well...

Julie Mulhern has done it again and given us a captivating mystery to sink our teeth into and happily devour. Her characters are so full of life, so animated, that we are drawn to them instantly. Even those we would rather not spend any time with, such as Frances (don't judge - Ellison doesn't want to spend time with her, either) have distinct and vibrant personalities.

We are transported back in time to the 1970s - Bell bottom pants, colorful (very) clothing, no cell phones or Internet, and ex-baseball player Joe DiMaggio was hawking Mr. Coffee on televisions all across America. It is a world Ms. Mulhern feels comfortable in, and by extension, makes us comfortable in it, too.

What she has given us is a mystery not only with two murders; there is also something darker going on, and we find ourselves involved in situations that have no easy exit; mistakes that are made that can change the life of anyone forever. When Ellison starts questioning her friends - those that used Khaki as a decorator - she becomes embroiled in a type of conspiracy, and one that has roots closer to her own home than she could ever have imagined.

With her life in such turmoil, she makes another decision that could change her life, and time will tell whether it was the right decision or not. I have to wonder if it was based on being new, different, a rebellion of sorts; watching how differences collide will be interesting, to say the least.

When the ending comes, and we find out the murderer, it comes as a surprise - not the reasons why, but who the killer turned out to be. It's a twisted sort of person who can justify things in their own mind that aren't justifiable at all. Watching the Detectives was thoroughly entertaining, delightful to the extreme, and alternately funny and piquant; and even sometimes a little sorrowful. Highly recommended, and I eagerly await the next in the series. show less

I loved this book and the series. Ellison had a knack of finding dead bodies, often on her own property. This book is no exception. When she gets a call from Aggie, her housekeeper about her car breaking down, she heads off to the local shopping center to get her. She leaves her decorator in the house to continue coming up with ideas while she is gone. Well, you guessed it, when she gets back home less than half an hour later, she is dead in the den with a bullet in her head. Of course Ellison calls Anarchy, the handsome detective that she has a budding relationship and he shows up with his new partner. There is a lot going on in this story, with another body along the way and some women who also end up in the hospital.

The mystery kept show more me guessing until the end, which I always like. This book was not just a mystery. This series takes place in the 70s and at that time, police and medical practitioners felt that physical abuse between spouses was a personal matter and they did not intervene. This was an era where women just took it when their husband or boyfriend hit them, it was almost a joke about women hiding their black eyes behind the huge sunglasses of the day. Unlike many, the woman who was abused in this book got out, and her husband's family stood behind her, not her husband who was their relative. It was due to Ellison's persistence that she finally spoke up. So kudos to Julie Mulhern, for dealing with this topic and maybe this will help someone now break the silence and get out. The setting is also very nostalgic to those of us who grew up during that time so it adds another enjoyable dimension. I suppose you could read this book without reading the rest of the series, but who would want to. This is one of the best cozy series I have read. show less

Book received from NetGalley.

I loved this book, while the mystery was great and it took me almost to the end to figure out whodunnit, those weren't the reasons for my high rating of the book. Part of it was due to nostalgia, the books are set in the 1970's and it brought back quite a few things of my childhood, a big plus in my book. The other reason was the fact one of the subplots dealt with an extremely tough topic, made even worse by the time the book was set in. The 1970's was an era where women just took it when their husband or boyfriend hit them, it was almost a joke about women hiding their black eyes behind the huge sunglasses of the day. Unlike many, the woman who was abused in this book got out, and her husband's family show more stood behind her, not their relative when she finally broke her silence after ending up in the hospital. So kudos to Julie Mulhern, for dealing with this topic and maybe this will help someone now break the silence and get out. show less

Welcome back, Ellison! I have missed you so much!

I adore the Country Club Murders series. To start, the series is unique in that it is set in 1970s Kansas City, (and maintaining a monopoly on cozy mysteries sent then and there). The books are filled with delightful and hilarious characters. Strong, elegant, determined Ellison Russell is one of the most sympathetic and admirable main character in mysteries. She is surrounded by strong personalities, and more and more often, by murderers and poor, murdered people.

Although book four let me down a smidgen with all the clowns and Mr. Coffee, [b:Watching the Detectives|34386393|Watching the Detectives (The Country Club Murders #5)|Julie show more Mulhern|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1487975811s/34386393.jpg|55477265] brought no dissatisfaction. Ellison is again cool and capable, and the eye of the storm that consists of grumbling teen daughter Grace, iron-willed, tyrannical Mother, mischievous instigator Aunt Sis, fun-loving best friend Libba, gossipy bridge partner Jinx, and a gaggle of zealously well-behaved women from the country club.

A darker subject emerges, when it becomes apparent that behind the fanatical normalcy, several of her acquaintances (and one of her family members) are being mistreated by their husbands. In the 1970s, while divorce was an option, many of the women in Ellison's circle had no job skills or ability to support themselves. For many women, being married was seen as the only acceptable option for women, as Ellison's Mother consistently preaches. Being independent was scorned, and single women were often seen as failures or reviled. So, if you were in an unhappy relationship, and wanted to be free, you had to be brave enough to defy society, your husband, and often your family, besides finding a way to support yourself and sometimes children. A difficult task, even for women with non-violent husbands. To try to break free when your husband is violent and opposed would be practically impossible. Especially when society and law enforcement would side with said violent, uncooperative husband. which results in Ellison being endangered and under police scrutiny. While being under Anarchy's watch is usually more benevolent than troublesome, Anarchy has a new partner with a penchant for intimidating citizens, and a suspicion that Ellison is a murderess.

Even with such dark subject matter, the book was still filled with Mulhern's characteristic witty one liners, piercing characterization and ridiculous situations.

"I smoothed my expression, less Marie Antoinette on her way to the guillotine, more Marie Antoinette on her way to eat cake.”

"A second man got out of the car. One I didn't know. One who looked as if he'd borrowed Columbo's trench coat, rolled it into a ball, used it as a pillow for a week or two, then decided to wear it.

"He looked like a cross between Dirty Harry and Oscar the Grouch"

Also, 1970s references! Naugahyde noises, rumaki, Marlin Perkins. This series, especially Watching the Detectives, is a treat to read. Great mystery, fantastic characters, entertaining backstory and funny dialogue. Thoroughly enjoyable; I hope there are more to come.

**eARC Netgalley** show less

Domestic violence isn’t considered polite conversation. And even today, (and unless we’ve had personal experience with it) we tend to think that it could never happen to anyone we know. In the fifth of the Country Club Murder series, domestic violence is the subject and what Mulhern does with it is a lesson for every woman on the planet. Once again, Ellison has stumbled into bodies (yes more than one this time) in her home, and once again, that incredibly sexy Detective Anarchy Jones comes to investigate. Ellison finally finds her backbone and stands up to not only her over domineering mother, but to the man her mother is determined she marry. Let’s just hope there’s a book six and that a romance develops between her and Det. show more Jones. I love Mulhern’s style of writing – she tackles serious subjects in a setting most of us will never experience (it is after all the well-to-do country club set in the 1970s), but she builds in a certain amount of humor that causes uncontrollable laughter for some time. Our author just keeps getting better, her characters are gaining deeper substance, and her hint of a romance is just enough of a teaser to spark imagination. Great job and another book I’ll be recommending to my list. show less

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I loved the Mrs. White dead in the study and Mr. White dead in the dining room part of it. The main character, Ellison, is definitely someone I would have to think twice about being her friend. It seems everywhere she goes the bodies start piling up.

There are several quirky characters that really made the story appealing. There is also an underlying theme that is very serious and plays a major role in this cozy mystery. This was my fourth book by this author and she has yet to disappoint me. This series is fun, enjoyable and entertaining.

Huge thanks to Henery Press for approving my request and to Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.