Jokers Wild
(Mah Jongg Mystery Series)
by Barbara Barrett
About Jokers Wild
Cozy Mystery
6th in Series
Publisher: Bowker (July 5, 2020)
Paperback: 232 pages
ISBN-10: 1948532220
ISBN-13: 978-1948532228
Digital ASIN: B0856RP32V
“The show must go on.” That applies even to playwright Marianne Putnam, when the director of her one-act play, “Jokers Wild,” fails to show for curtains up on opening night at the community theater in Serendipity Springs, Florida. When the director’s wife begs Marianne to accompany her to their home to check on him, they find the man floating in his pool. Dead.Though not known for his pleasant disposition—her relationship with him had been tense since nearly ramming into his car in a parking lot, but after all, he was the director—who would have wanted to murder him? Surely no one in the production crew, cast or the staff of the community center where the play was to be staged. Maybe it was the wife, who Marianne had overheard arguing with him. Or perhaps someone from his theater connections back in the Big Apple.Since she was there when the body was discovered, Marianne is considered a suspect. That doesn’t mean she can’t help her three Mah Jongg friends—Syd, Micki and Kat—assist the sheriff with the investigation. But who’s there to help her when her path crosses the murderer’s.
REVIEW
*I received a free copy of this book which I voluntarily chose to write an honest review for.
Welcome back to the Mah Jongg group. Marianne is so excited her mind cannot focus on the game because her one act play won a competition and is about to be performed. The rest of the group is happy for her and supporting of her endeavors. Her excitement dwindles a little though when she meets the new cantankerous director. The show must go on though so she sucks it up and is determined to see the project through. Practice and rehearsals are plagued with pranks yet the manage to make it to the performance night only for the director to be a no show. Mari asks his wife of she has seen him and she begs Mari to go with her to check the house. Once they arrive they find him dead in the pool with Mari now a suspect. The sheriff has learned this group cannot stay out of things so he recruits the group to work with his staff (except Mari since the is a suspect). I must say this one an interesting twist to a good story. They all help but in the end Mari manages to solve it anyways placing herself in danger yet again. This is an interesting cozy full of retired characters with lots of personality that all work well together. A fun read for fans of the genre. I really liked it so I give it 4/5 stars.
About Barbara Barrett
Barbara Barrett started reading mysteries when she was pregnant with her first child to keep her mind off things like her changing body and food cravings. When she’d devoured as many Agatha Christies as she could find, she branched out to English village cozies and Ellery Queen.
Later, to avoid a midlife crisis, she began writing fiction at night when she wasn’t at her day job in human resources for Iowa State Government. After releasing eleven full-length romance novels and two novellas, she returned to the cozy mystery genre, using one of her retirement pastimes, the game of mah jongg, as her inspiration. Not only has it been a great social outlet, it has also helped keep her mind active when not writing.
Jokers Wild, the sixth book in her “Mah Jongg Mystery” series, features four friends who play mah jongg together and share otherwise in each other’s lives. None of the four is based on an actual person. Each is an amalgamation of several mah jongg friends with a lot of Barbara’s imagination thrown in for good measure. The four will continue to appear in future books in the series.
Barbara is a member of Sisters in Crime, Sinc-Iowa, Romance Writers of America and the SpacecoasT chapter of Romance Writers of America.
She is married to the man she met her senior year of college. They have two grown children and eight grandchildren.
Now retired, she is a resident of Florida, although she spends her summers in Iowa, her home state. She earned her B.A. degree in History from the University of Iowa and her Master’s Degree in History from Drake University.
When not in front of her laptop creating her next story, she plays mah jongg, travels and enjoys lunches with friends.
Author Links
- Website: barbarabarrettbooks.com
- Newsletter subscription: https://subscribepage.com/BBCozies
- Facebook: https://bit.ly/2aXZvG9
- Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8181756.Barbara_Barrett
- Twitter: Twitter.com/bbarrettbooks
Purchase Link - Amazon
TOUR PARTICIPANTS
September 15 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW, GIVEAWAY
September 15 – Dee-Scoveries – SPOTLIGHT
September 16 – I'm All About Books – SPOTLIGHT
September 16 – A Wytch's Book Review Blog – REVIEW
September 17 – Christy's Cozy Corners – SPOTLIGHT, GIVEAWAY
September 17 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT
September 18 – I Read What You Write – SPOTLIGHT, RECIPE
September 18 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
September 18 – Readeropolis – SPOTLIGHT, GIVEAWAY
September 19 – Celticlady's Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
September 19 – Author Elena Taylor's Blog - AUTHOR INTERVIEW
September 20 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW
September 20 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
September 21 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW
September 21 – eBook Addicts – SPOTLIGHT
September 22 – Ascroft, eh? – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
September 22 – Reading Authors Network – SPOTLIGHT, GIVEAWAY
September 23 – Literary Gold – SPOTLIGHT
September 23 – Reading, Writing & Stitch-Metic – SPOTLIGHT, GIVEAWAY
Have you signed up to be a Tour Host?
Click Here Find Details and Sign Up Today!
Thanks for featuring "Jokers Wild." Your readers should know it's a stand-alone book, even though it's #6 in the Mah Jongg Mystery series. Although if they want to start at the beginning, they should check out "Craks in a Marriage."
ReplyDeleteBarbara