Grounds for Murder (A Coffee Lover's Mystery)
by Tara Lush
About Grounds for Murder
Grounds for Murder (A Coffee Lover's Mystery)
When Lana Lewis' best -- and most difficult -- employee abruptly quits and goes to work for the competition just days before the Sunshine State Barista Championship, her café's chances of winning the contest are creamed. In front of a gossipy crowd in the small Florida town of Devil's Beach, Lana's normally calm demeanor heats to a boil when she runs into the arrogant java slinger. Of course, Fabrizio "Fab" Bellucci has a slick explanation for jumping ship. But when he's found dead the next morning under a palm tree in the alley behind Lana's café, she becomes the prime suspect.
Even the island's handsome police chief isn't quite certain of her innocence. But Lana isn't the only one in town who was angry with Fabrizio. Jilted lovers, a shrimp boat captain, and a surfer with ties to the mob are all suspects as trouble brews on the beach.
With her stoned, hippie dad, a Shih Tzu named Stanley, and a new, curious barista sporting a punk rock aesthetic at her side, Lana's prepared to turn up the heat to catch the real killer.
After all, she is a former award-winning reporter. As scandal hangs over her beachside café, can Lana clear her name and win the championship -- or will she come to a bitter end?
What I Thought:
This is the first in a new cozy mystery series, A Coffee Lover's Mystery Series. This is also the fist I have read by this author and I was not disappointed. In this one, Lana has left her job as a journalist to open a coffee shop in Devil's Beach, FL called Perkatory. Her best barista quits days before a big competition to go to work for a rival coffee shop. When this employee is found dead after a big argument with Lana, Lana becomes the main suspect. So Lana has to investigate to clear her name. The setting of this story is great, an island off the Gulf Coast of Florida. There are some funny and quirky characters in this one, like Lana's yoga loving, hippie like father, the police chief and cute doggie. The plot was well thought out. It was very believable that Lana would investigate the murder with her journalism background. This one was well written and flowed well and kept me turning the pages. I look forward to the next book in this series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book.
About Tara Lush
Tara Lush is a Rita Award finalist, an Amtrak writing fellow, and a George C. Polk Award-winning journalist. For the past decade, she's been a reporter with the Associated Press, covering crime, alligators, natural disasters, and politics. She also writes contemporary romance set in tropical locations. A fan of vintage pulp-fiction book covers, Sinatra-era jazz, and 1980s fashion, she lives with her husband and two dogs on the Gulf coast.
Author Links WEB: www.taralush.com FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/LushBooks GOODREADS: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20274256.Tara_Lush INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/lush_books/ Purchase Links AMAZON - KOBO - BARNES AND NOBLE - ITUNES - INDIEBOUND a Rafflecopter giveaway
