BOOK REVIEW: A Killer in King’s Cove

A Killer in King’s Cove by Iona Whishaw
Publication date: October 4^th, 2016

I was very excited to receive a copy of this book in a publisher giveaway. The Lane Winslow Mysteries follows, of course, Lane Winslow, an ex- intelligence officer in a post WWII world. It’s 1946, and  Lane has left London to move to the quaint countryside of British Colombia. Little does she know that trouble has followed her. When a dead Englishman shows up, Lane starts looking like the #1 suspect. To prove her innocence, she must figure out what truly occurred and unmask the real killer.

What I Liked:

• This book is the literary equivalent of a puzzle. It kept me guessing, as I struggled to fit the pieces together in time (I definitely didn’t though). I always enjoy a book that trips me up.
• The cast of characters in this book is interesting, especially for a tiny town in the wilderness. Apparently, that brings all the unique ones running. I don’t know, I enjoyed all of them and I’m excited to see more of them in the rest of the series.
• There’s a distinct lack of a thriller/suspense vibe, even though it’s a mystery. I, for one, appreciated this. Extremely suspense-driven plots stress me the hell out and keep me from truly enjoying a book. It also keeps me from reading more mysteries, since it’s a common plot device in the genre.

What I Didn’t Like:

• The plot is pretty slow building. I would even call it downright meandering sometimes. It picks up eventually, but it’s a little annoying.
• Some of the language and wording threw me off since it takes place in the 1940’s, but you get used to how they talk pretty fast.

Recap:

Overall, I’m really excited to see where this series goes. Even though I wasn’t a huge fan of this first book, I think this series has a lot of promise and I can’t wait to follow Lane and Darling around on more misadventures! I think this book is a good starting place for anyone who is interested in dipping their toes into the mystery genre. I can definitely see myself continuing with it, even if its solely for a change of pace.

3.5/5 stars

xoxo, Bree

*Thank you to TouchWood Editions for providing me with an eBook set of the Lane Winslow Mysteries series in exchange for an honest review (reviews?).*