Getaway With Murder

Getaway with Murder by Diane Kelly brings plenty of mystery, atmosphere, and secrets to the first book in her new cozy mystery series. The Mountain Lodge Mystery features 50-year-old Misty Murphy who has just signed her divorce papers and purchases a mountain lodge in the Blue Ridge Mountains in northwestern North Carolina.

The inn is old and needs some work and handyman Rocky Crowder comes highly recommended. Opening day brings a full house of guests with a group from a yoga studio and spa. Unfortunately, the peaceful feelings don’t last long when a yoga instructor is found dead. The story is mainly told from Misty’s point of view, but there are a few chapters interspersed with thoughts from her cat, Baroness Blizzard also known as Yeti. While Yeti’s chapters aren’t necessary, they provide some humor and I enjoyed them.

Misty is independent, resourceful, organized, and good with people. She quickly starts to make friends, but is worried about bad reviews with the events occurring at the lodge. Will she make a success of the lodge or go bankrupt? Rocky, the handyman, Brynn, her assistant, and diner owner Patty play pivotal roles as secondary characters and the yoga guests are a mixed group of personalities to lend a sense of realism.

The setting was perfect for this novel and Ms. Kelly does a great job of transporting readers to the mountains of North Carolina. The winding roads, the trail descriptions, and even the southern foods were authentic. There are a few plot twists along the way along with plenty of suspects. The dialogue and pacing were on target. The characters and humor enhance it with both relatable characters like Misty and Rocky and obnoxious ones like the yoga studio owner and a bit of everything else in between. I also liked the fact that Misty worked with the police rather than hiding her sleuthing activities.

I was immediately drawn into the Misty’s life and enjoyed the unraveling of the mystery and the development of friendships. Themes include murder, relationships, friendship, family, life’s curveballs, and starting a new business.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, which was suspenseful, engaging, and atmospheric. In both of the books I have read by this author, I had a connection with the writing style that I found relatable, vivid, and irresistible. I can’t wait to find out what happens during the next book in the series.  I recommend this to those that like cozy mysteries with a more mature main character.

St. Martin’s Press – St. Martin’s Paperbacks and Diane Kelly provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. This is my honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way. Publication date is currently expected to be October 26, 2021.