Review by Ronny


She Doesn’t Have a Clue is a fun cozy romance mystery novel.
Favourite Quote:
“You kissed me. And you were doing it for him. When I kiss you, it will be for you and me. Nobody else. And you’ll be stone-cold sober.”
Book Synopsis:
A high-end wedding on a private island off the coast of Seattle sounds like something out of a magazine. But for bestselling mystery author Kate Valentine, it’s more like a nightmare.
Why Kate agreed to attend her ex-fiancé’s wedding is its own enigma, but she’ll plaster on a fake smile for two nights, with the aid of free champagne, naturally. And because the groom happens to be her editor, she’ll try to finish a draft of her latest Loretta Starling mystery as a wedding gift.
When the bride is poisoned and Kate stumbles across a dead body, she finds herself in a real-life mystery that eerily echoes the plot of her latest novel. And the only person who seems willing to help Kate catch the killer is Jake Hawkins, aka: the Hostralian; aka: Kate’s biggest romantic regret.
As the wine flows and the weather threatens to hold every guest hostage, bitter resentments and long-held grudges surface amongst the colorful crowd. Anyone could be capable of murder, it seems. What would Loretta do? Unfortunately, Kate doesn’t have a clue.
Review:
I’ve been on a cozy romance mystery kick these past couple of months. They have just been hitting all the right buttons for me lately. This book didn’t hit all those buttons, but it was still an enjoyable read. If you like Knives Out or Murder Mystery (with Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler), then you will like the mystery elements in this story. The author brings together a cast of characters, all of which have larger-than-life personalities and their own personal agendas. Of course, because all these secondary characters have such strong personalities, it creates plenty of opportunities for delicious and highly entertaining drama.
Overall, I enjoyed the mystery elements in this story. The author does a great job setting the scene by having all these characters stranded on this island while a storm rages on around them. This isolation means it’s up to the two main characters, Kate and Jake, to uncover the sinister plot that seems to be unfolding in front of their eyes. As a reader, I was kept guessing and was surprised by the big twist at the end of the book. In the first quarter of the story, the author introduces us to all the characters, and it becomes pretty apparent that they all have a grudge against Kennedy (the character who someone tries to kill over the course of the story) and her ruthless aunt who controls the family fortune. I loved all the different moving elements in this story because they made it feel like you were trying to solve a puzzle.
I liked the characters. Kate is a mystery author and finds herself struggling to write her next book. She feels lost and lacks the motivation and inspiration to write. The one thing I did struggle with was how Kate’s POV was handled at times. There are scenes where we all suddenly slip into Loretta’s POV (Kate’s mystery heroine) and watch a scene from one of Kate’s books unfold. It kind of created a jarring reading experience because one moment, you were in Kate’s POV, and the next, you were in Loretta’s with no clear transition. There is a part of me that understands why the author did this; Kate feels like her own identity has blended so much with Loretta’s that she no longer feels like her own person. But it still made for a slightly confusing reading experience. Kate’s character was fun to be with, and she was a great amateur sleuth. She does grow as a person in this book, and I enjoyed watching her find her spark again.
The romance was ok. It can be hard to blend story elements like romance and mystery. You have to make sure they weave together seamlessly and help move the plot along in a cohesive and interesting way. This is kind of a second-chance romance, which may be why I didn’t enjoy the romance as much. Kate and Jake have a history, but it’s unclear if it was a romantic one or a friendship that ended badly. But it’s pretty clear that Kate is harbouring some pretty big romantic feelings for Jake. I can see the chemistry between these two, and I enjoyed their banter. I just wasn’t super fond of some of the miscommunications that seemed to keep bubbling up between them. It felt slightly unnecessary and not really believable.
She Doesn’t Have a Clue is a fun, cozy murder mystery with a splash of romance.
Thank you, St. Martin’s Press, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review