Killers of a Feather (Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries Book 2), by T. C. LoTempio

 

I am delighted by this new-to-me series. Author LoTempio does an excellent job introducing the characters and giving us a glimpse of Fox Hollow, the small town where the story takes place. Although the fact main character Shell McMillan is shown to be a former TV series star quite a few times, that fact seemed extraneous and I wound up liking not only Shell but the supporting cast, so to speak. They seemed to be well-rounded and likable, even her rather over-the-top, seemingly self-centered retired actress mother. Ah, family ties. Heck, even the critters involved such as Honey Belle the parrot and cats Purrday and Kahlua's personalities shown through. Is Purrday as smart as he seems? Let's hope so since Shell has a tendency to find herself in dangerous situations at times.

As for the mystery, it centers about the murder of former resident Johnny Draco who many accuse of swindling them out of significant sums of money and simply disappearing when the investment fell through. Could Rita have killed him? How about her husband? Or the former girlfriend? Or any other of the many who felt they'd been swindled? Why is Shell's detective boyfriend focused on Rita? Could Shell's habit of thinking aloud get her into trouble? Why is she keeping secrets from Josh? Who left the threatening note for her? How about those mad White Boarding skills shown by Shell, Gary, Olivia, and Ron? Why does  Shell.....oh, never mind. No more teasers but, oh, what unexpected twists, turns, and danger before all is said and done. Read the book. I'll be reading the first one in the series to play catch up while you're doing that.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #BeyondThePagePublishing for inviting me to Fox Hollow for the grand opening of Shell's pet store. I'm looking forward to many return visits and that local theater production.