Rest in Pieces

This book was a surprise to me. I truly was judging it by its cover and thought I was going to hate it. However, it was a surprisingly good story. Without give out spoilers, it was a story of murder in a small town. A town in Virginia called Crozet, where everyone knew everyone else.

The main character is a down to earth woman called Mary Minor Haristeen (a.k.a. Harry). Her pets Mrs. Murphy and her Corgi "Tucker" were also a significant part of the story. She is a postmistress in this sleepy little town with a cast of characters. It is when this stranger called Blair Bainbridge moves in that things seems to start happening. Unexplained murders and trying to find out "whodunnit" is the center of the story.

I did not like the beginning of show more the story because it started out as a stereotypical "chick" story. You had your cats, your had your town gossip and men in their "watermelon colored sweater". Give me a break! I also did not appreciate the fact that the author chose the animals to use profanity. It kind of gave a contradiction to the different animals in this story as they seemed to be more aware than the humans. I felt that the humans using profanity was completely in character as most of them in the story were superficial and vain. I don't know, I got the impression that Mrs. Murphy, Tucker and this other fat cat called Pewter were more noble.

The story became interesting however as the pieces started coming together. Finding the murderer was not as interesting as finding out why and how it was done. What was nice in the story was how the murderer pointed out what was missed by the townspeople, forget about what you missed reading it. It was another one of those, that if it were a movie done right, you would need to go back and see it again to pick up the clues. Because, like the murderer, they were right in front of you. The ending did have a unique twist but I hated the fact that there was no way that I, the reader, could have guessed the ending. I feel that not enough information was given throughout the story.

I highly recommend this book. It started out slow for me but it picked up and the ending was original to say the least. For all of you cat lovers out there, if you think that the animals had a major role in this story, you will be disappointed. The animals had a significant role however, even though they were minor. show less

Mrs. Murphy thinks the new man in town is the cat's meow.... Maybe she should think again. Small towns don't take kindly to strangers--unless the stranger happens to be a drop-dead gorgeous and seemingly unattached male. When Blair Bainbridge comes to Crozet, Virginia, the local matchmakers lose no time in declaring him perfect for their newly divorced postmistress, Marry Minor "Harry Haristeen." Even Harry's tiger cat, Ms. Murphy, and her Welsh Corgi, Tee Tucker, believe he smells A-okay. Could his one little imperfection be that he's a killer? Blair becomes the most likely suspect when the pieces of a dismembered corpse begin tuming up around Crozet. No one knows who the dead man is, but when a grisly clue makes a spectacular show more appearance in the middle of the fall festivities, more than an early winter snow begins chilling the blood of Crozet's very best people. That's when Ms. Murphy, her friend Tucker, and her human companion Harry begin to sort throughout the clues . . . only to find themselves a whisker away from becoming the killer's next victims. show less

3.25 stars

“Harry”, the town’s (female) postmistress and a farmer, has a dog, Tucker, and a cat, Mrs. Murphy. The pets talk to each other and other animals in this series (and help solve mysteries). In this one, shortly after an attractive man buys the neighbouring farm to Harry’s, a (non-local) man is found, murdered and in pieces.

It took a long time for this one to get going for me, I wasn’t really interested until about 1/3 of the way in (or maybe a bit further). There was a lot of description going on at the start: of the town, of the people, and their relationships. After the murder was discovered is when it started to pick up for me (though not completely). The end did leave me with enough interest to read the next in show more the series, though. The animals are cute, but to be honest (and as a bit of a surprise), they aren’t the main draw for me, though they do make the series a unique. show less

I'm impressed! I didn't see the whodunnit coming at all on this one. Looking back, I can see hints, but I didn't catch them at the time. I really enjoy the animals in this series a lot. I'll be back for them (and, truth be told, the human interactions, too). Ms. Brown writes fun stories.

I enjoy this series, even if the discussions between the animals about the moralities of humans are a little tiring. The whole 'what makes humans so civilized when they go around killing each other' theme could stand to be a little less blatant. Regardless, what you end up with here is a humorous, entertaining, well woven story. Maybe a little more humorous than the author intended, because the climax of the novel comes off a little like the Keystone Cops. Though I wasn’t surprised by who the murderer was, I was completely surprised by the reason. And I like to be surprised. I’ll continue with this series.

Book # 2 in the Mrs Murphy mystery series featuring Mary “Harry” Haristeen and her menagerie – Mrs Murphy (a grey tiger cat), Tucker (a Welsh corgi), and Simon (an opossum living in the hay loft), as well as two horses, and a four-foot black snake. As glorious fall color paints the trees around Crozet, Virginia, a handsome new man is refurbishing the neighboring farmhouse. But when a dismembered corpse is discovered, suspicion turns to Blair – the new man in town has a tragic secret in his past, but the animals think he smells A-okay. Then a local banker turns up dead, and residents get threatening postcards. As autumn turns to winter, the police seem completely stumped.

I’m having a hard time describing the book because it’s show more so disjointed. There is really very little plot, but rather a lot of description – of the fox hunt, of the town festival, of various townspeople’s relationships, of the gowns women wear to the holiday party, etc. The reveal is ridiculously complicated but thrown in during the last 20 pages. I did like that Harry is a strong, resourceful, intelligent woman who goes about her business without worrying what others think. I also like the relationships she had with neighbors, and even with her ex-husband.

I’d heard about this series for a long time, but never read any of them. Maybe this was just the sophomore slump; that phenomenon that happens when a debut novel is enthusiastically received but the second book falls flat, before the author hits her stride with book three and subsequent books. The series is obviously popular – book # 23 is scheduled for release in 2015 – so I’ll try one more. show less

I really did like this book. It was an easy read with some adult humor. Nice little twist at the end although I figured it out a litle bit early.