Description (from cover):'In New York Times bestselling author Denise Swanson's 'slightly zany' new mystery series, Devereaux Sinclair loves running her old-fashioned store in her small Missouri hometown. If only murder didn't keep landing on her doorstep...
Dev's five-and-dime may be doing well, but her love life is in turmoil. She's torn between Deputy U.S. Marshall Jake Del Vecchio, who is on an undercover assignment, and her ex-beau Noah Underwood, the local doctor from a high-society family. So she welcomes the distraction when Elise Whitmore offers her a great deal on antique chocolate molds that would be perfect for her Easter gift baskets. But do the molds actually belong to Elise's soon-to-be-ex-husband? In buying them, has Dev committed a felony?
When Elise is found shot to death, the mystery deepens--and Dev's good friend Boone, who discovered the body, is taken into custody. With the help of her best buds, Dev must clear Boone's name and find the real killer. Good thing that when it comes to amateur sleuths, they broke the mold with Dev Sinclair.'
My thoughts:
Okay, so I find this mystery series to be cute, but over the top in the romance department. Sure I love a little of all that, but this series lathers it on thick. It was better than the first, because it wasn't as cheesy and corny, but still sometimes I found myself going 'ugh'. A little over the top on the back and forth of who Dev is interested in and it's like pick a dude already and get on with the story. The mystery in this one was good, with a slew of suspects and motive, it most definitely was not a super easy one to figure out, but not mind boggling either.
This is a series for people who enjoy a little romantic intrigue with their mysteries. Not necessarily the series for me, but I can see some people really enjoying these. The back and forth between boyfriends gets really annoying to me and it's hard to enjoy a book where the characters are irritating me with their shallowness. I really like the theme of the series, the five-and-dime shop set in a small town in Missouri and the main character Dev is likeable in a sense. Nothing really stands out to me about this book and makes it really a special read. It was just mediocre and bland and mushy.
I am hoping that the next book won't be so focused on the main character's love life and that she will choose one dude and stick with it. I understand that the author is trying to create romantic mystique, but I felt like it fell seriously flat. This book reminds me of Harlequins for some reason and that just makes me shudder. I might give the next book a shot, but if the third in this series makes me feel the same way, it's time to call it quits.
Overall Rating: 1.5
Title: Nickled-and-Dimed To Death
Author: Denise Swanson
Series: Devereaux's Dime Store Mystery #2
Publisher: Signet
Publication Date: March 5, 2013
Pages: 272
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Get It: Amazon; Barnes & Noble
Disclaimer: This book was selected from the library by myself and I reviewed this book without compensation of any kind. All thoughts and opinions are solely mine.
