Description (from cover):'From Steve Hockensmith, author of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls, along with tarot expert Lisa Falco--comes a new mystery filled with twists, turns...and tarot!
Much to Alanis McLachlan's surprise, her estranged con-woman mother has left her an inheritance: The White Magic Five & Dime, a shop in tiny Berdache, Arizona. Reluctantly traveling to Berdache to claim her new property, Alanis decides to stay and pick up her mother's tarot business in an attempt to find out how she died. With help from a hunky cop and her mother's live-in teenage apprentice, Alanis begins faking her way through bogus tarot readings in order to win the confidence of her mother's clients. But the more she uses the tarot deck, the more Alanis begins to find real meaning in the cards...and the secrets surrounding her mother's demise.'
My thoughts:
Alanis' character in this book is not the typical cozy mystery character who is all for justice and keeping everyone safe. Alanis is cocky, self-sure and uses her past to determine just who killed her mother. She is surprised to learn that her mother has passed away and left her an inheritance. Alanis didn't speak to her mother for many years and when she learns that she has inherited The White Magic Five and Dime in Berdache, Arizona, well she is curious to say the least. Her mother was a force to be reckoned with when she was alive as she was a notorious con-woman. Alanis can't help but to use what she has learned from her mother to help her solve the mysterious murder of her mother.
I enjoyed this one mainly because the main character was so different and unique from typical cozy mysteries. I will say that it was interesting to learn about tarot and how people can interpret the cards to determine someone's future. As far as a mystery goes, it was just okay. Nothing really too exciting and just an okay debut novel. I have read this author's other book Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls and hated it, so I was surprised that I did enjoy this one.
It was interesting to read a cozy mystery that has a different sort of main character, however, this one needed something a little more to make me really like it. I most likely would continue with the series and am curious to see how the author plans to take the series forward. Here's to hoping that the next one is a little more entertaining to read.
Overall Rating: 2.5
Title: The White Magic Five and Dime
Author: Steven Hockensmith and Lisa Falco
Series: Tarot Mystery #1
Publisher: Midnight Ink
Publication Date: July 8, 2014
Pages: 336
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.
