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After a mostly stress-free Christmas with her college-age daughter, and despite enjoying a current budding romance with fellow newcomer, Benjamin Cohen, it's time for Cece to focus on Vino y Vida, the Colinas wine bar she manages. Electrical work and an outdoor security camera are needed, and she's hired local electrician Karl Meier to do the job, along with the help of his nephew Ian. But she regrets her choice when she witnesses Karl needlessy berating Ian in her presence. On top of that, Karl leers at her, then presents her with an inflated bill before the work is complete. Still, she's shocked when she gets a call from Karl's ex-wife, Josie, that she's found Karl . . . crushed to death beneath the lift in her automotive shop.
Cece convinces Josie to call the police, even though Josie is terrified. After all, Karl was an abusive husband, was threatening her, and she has no alibi. With Josie's future on the line, and maybe her own, Cece starts her own investigation. From the customers Karl cheated to the other women he harassed, she finds there's no lack of suspects—other than the shelter kittens to whom he was an uncharacteristically sweet volunteer. With a bouquet of motives and unanswered questions, Cece is going to need the help of her twin, Allie, who owns a nearby B & B, as she dives into Karl's past—before the killer catches up with her, and the lights go out for good . . .
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Creators
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Series
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Publisher
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Release date
November 26, 2024 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781496742353
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781496742353
- File size: 1444 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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June 1, 2024
Agatha Award-winning Day (who also writes as Edith Maxwell) offers the second in Cece Barton mystery, set in California's wine country. Wine bar manager Cece investigates the death of an abusive man with help from her twin sister, who runs a B&B. There are plenty of suspects, but also kittens, wine, and scenery. Prepub Alert.
Copyright 2024 Library Journal
Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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December 15, 2024
The manager of a popular Sonoma wine bar struggles to discover who killed an unpopular handyman. Cece Barton wishes she'd never hired Karl Meier to update the lighting at Vino y Vida. Not only was he brusque to her and verbally abusive toward his nephew, Ian, who worked as his helper, but he ran well past the wine bar's opening time, forcing customers to cluster outside waiting to be seated. Cece's second encounter with Karl makes her even sorrier: She gets a frantic call from her car mechanic, Josefina Jarvin--who knows her reputation for solving murders--and when Cece arrives at Jo's shop, she finds Karl squashed like a bug under the lift. Suspects abound, starting with Jo, who happens to be Karl's ex-wife. But there's hardly anyone in the little town of Colinas who hadn't had a run-in with the dead man. Mooncat Smith and Dane Larsen, who work at Vino y Vida, both hate him. So does Ian, his nephew. Even Ian's high school friend Serena nurses ill feelings toward Karl. Still, sifting through the possibilities isn't the greatest challenge for Cece because she can't help second-guessing herself. She wonders if Jo is really her friend or just an acquaintance, hesitates to give motherly advice to her grown daughter, Zoe, and fears she'll never be as successful as her twin sister, Allie. Given all that self-doubt, readers may well be as relieved as Cece herself when she finally cracks the case. Here's hoping her latest success gives Day's heroine the self-confidence to become the cozy sleuth she deserves to be.COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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