ABL Review At-A-Glance
- Title: Killer in the Band
- My Rating: 4
- Genre: Mystery
- Author: Lauren Carr
- Format: audiobook*
- Publication Date: September 18, 2016
Synopsis
Summer has arrived! The Thorntons expect it to be a summer of change and change it does, but not in the way Joshua had expected.
Joshua’s eldest son, Joshua Thornton Jr. (J.J.) has graduated at the top of his class from law school and is returning home to spend the summer studying for the bar exam. However, to Joshua’s and Cameron’s shock and dismay, J.J. decides to move into the main house at Russell Ridge Farm, the largest dairy farm in the Ohio Valley, in order to rekindle a romance with Suellen Russell, the lovely widow twice his age.
The May/December romance, bonded by a love for music, between the symphony conductor and young musical prodigy had bloomed many years earlier.
The move brings long buried tensions between the father and son to the surface–not the least of which being J.J.’s inexplicable dislike for his stepmother Cameron. But when a brutal killer strikes, the Lovers in Crime must set all differences with Joshua’s son aside to solve the crime before J.J. ends up in the cross-hairs of a murderer.
My Thoughts…
When I sat down to write the review for Killer in the Band, the third book in the Lovers in Crime series, I thought really hard about what makes Lauren Carr’s books so good. It’s not like I haven’t read a good mystery before, but each time I read one of her books I know I will like it. So what is it?
Part of what makes her books so wonderful is the humor. You would think a murder mystery wouldn’t be very funny, but I have consistently found myself laughing out loud while listening to these books.
Sometimes, it’s the animal characters. Between the dogs, cats, and horses, the animals are a huge supporting cast and make up a lot of the charm in each scene. Each animal has its own personality with a lot to say, and finally in this book we meet someone who can talk to them. Well, maybe not truly, but she seems to understand animals better than most. I hope Poppy, the horse whisperer, stays around for a long time. If only to tell me why the cat keeps running out and scaring people.
Part of Lauren’s greatest comes from the plots. While similar in theme, a murder mystery, I have never felt like she was retelling the same story. Everything feels new and fresh, even when the case is decades old. She also seems to throw one more twist in even when you think you have it all figured out.
Conclusion…
Killer in the Band is just another installment in a fabulous series by an amazing writer. If you don’t believe me, check Goodreads. The average rating is stinking ridiculous for nearly every book she has written. I can’t wait to listen to book #4 and continue my journey with Cameron and Josh. Right now, I need to go get some ice cream, because there are only so many times a girl can be told about a sundae without needing one.
*Special thanks to Lauren Carr, iRead Book Tours, and Acorn Book Services for a copy of Killer in the Band in exchange for an honest review.
While studying for her college degree in English and journalism, Lauren worked as an editor and layout design artist with the federal government in Washington, DC. It was there that Lauren learned the foundations necessary for book publishing.
Lauren’s debut mystery, A Small Case of Murder was a finalist for the Independent Publisher Book Awards. On the heels of that success, she accepted an offer from a traditional publisher for A Reunion to Die For.
When it came time to publish her third book, Lauren rejected offers from two traditional publishers, choosing instead to independently publish It’s Murder, My Son, which made it to #1 in sales on Amazon in cozy mysteries. She has never regretted her decision to become an independent author.
Realizing that she could use her experiences to help other writers achieve their dreams to become published authors, Lauren established Acorn Book Services, offering professional services to independent authors.
The international best-selling author of over twenty-five murder mysteries, Lauren has gone on dozens of virtual blog tours (most with iRead Book Tours!) and has seen first-hand that how an author publishes is irrelevant to success. The key is exposure to potential readers. Virtual blog tours are an excellent avenue for book promotion. Book spotlights, reviews, author guest posts and interviews are forever, unlike in-person book events, which become a memory as soon as they have finished.
With her vast experience, it seemed only natural for Lauren Carr to jump at the opportunity to join the iReads Book Tours team. She lives with her husband, and two spoiled rotten German shepherds on a mountain in West Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
You can usually find Lauren plotting her next murder mystery in her writer’s studio on her mountaintop. Visit Lauren’s website https://mysterylady.net/ to learn more about her murder mysteries, Acorn Book Services, and now iReads Book Tours!
Connect with the author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Instagram
BOOK TOUR SCHEDULE:
Sept 9 – Rockin Book Reviews – review of The Root of Murder / guest post /
Lovers in Crime series spotlight / giveaway
Sept 9 – Working Mommy Journal – review The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 9 – Amy’s Booket List – review The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 10 – The Quirky Romantic – review of The Root of Murder / author interview / giveaway
Sept 10 – Hall Ways Blog – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 10 – Life as Leels – review of Dead on Ice
Sept 11 – Literary Flits – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 11 – My Reading Journeys – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 12 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – book spotlight / giveaway
Sept 12 – A Fountain of Books – review of Dead on Ice
Sept 12 – Bound 4 Escape – review of Killer in the Band (audible) / giveaway
Sept 13 – Words and Peace – book spotlight / author interview / giveaway
Sept 16 – Svetlana’s Reads and Views – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 16 – Working Mommy Journal – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 16 – Amy’s Booket List – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Sept 17 – Hall Ways Blog – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 17 – Laura’s Interests – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 18 – Literary Flits – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Sept 18 – Read and Review – book spotlight / guest post
Sept 18 – Sefina Hawke’s Books – review of The Root of Murder / series spotlight
Sept 19 – #Redhead.with.Book – Lovers in Crime Series book spotlight / giveaway
Sept 19 – Life as Leels – review of Real Murder
Sept 20 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 20 – Nighttime Reading Center – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 23 – Amy’s Booket List – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 23 – Christa Reads and Writes – review of The Root of Murder / series spotlight / giveaway
Sept 24 – Fundinmental – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 24 A Fountain of Books – review of The Real Murder
Sept 25 – Library of Clean Reads – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 25 Laura’s Interests – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 26 – FUONLYKNEW – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Sept 26 – Mystery Suspense Reviews – review of The Root of Murder / guest post
Sept 27 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 30 – Amy’s Booket List – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Sept 30 – Svetlana’s Reads and Views – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Sept 30 – Life as Leels – review of The Root of Murder
Sept 30 – Older & Smarter? – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 1 – Bound 4 Escape – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Oct 1 – Dab of Darkness – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Oct 2 – Literary Flits – review of Real Murder
Oct 3 – Books for Books – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Oct 3 – My Reading Journeys – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Oct 4 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 7 – Bound 4 Escape – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Oct 8 – A Fountain of Books – review of Killer in the Band
Oct 9 – I’m All About Books – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Oct 9 – Kristin’s Novel Cafe – review of The Root of Murder
Oct 10 – Books for Books – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Oct 10 – Svetlana’s Reads and Views – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 10 – Locks, Hooks, and Books – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 11 – Pause for Tales – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 14 – Celtic Lady’s Reviews – Lovers in Crime series spotlight / giveaway
Oct 14 – My Reading Journeys – review of The Root of Murder / guest post / giveaway
Oct 15 – Dab of Darkness – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 15 – Bound 4 Escape – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 16 – A Fountain of Books – review of The Root of Murder / author interview
Oct 17 – Books for Books – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 18 – B for Bookreview – Lovers in Crime series book spotlight / author interview
Oct 21- Nighttime Reading Center – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 21 – Laura’s Interests – review of The Root of Murder / guest post / giveaway
Oct 22 – Dab of Darkness – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 22 – Books Are Love – review of Dead on Ice / giveaway
Oct 23 – Books Are Love – review of Real Murder / giveaway
Oct 23 – Books for Books – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 24 – JBronder Book Reviews – review of The Root of Murder / series spotlight / giveaway
Oct 24 – Books Are Love – review of Killer in the Band / giveaway
Oct 25 – Jypsylynn – review of The Root of Murder
Oct 25 – Adventurous Jessy – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 25 – Books Are Love – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Oct 25 – Svetlana’s Reads and Views – review of The Root of Murder / giveaway
Thank you so much for the wonderful comments about my mysteries. I am so honored that you enjoy each of them. I am certain that your followers who enjoy murder mysteries will love them as well. Here’s wishing each of your followers luck in the giveaway.