Book 65, 2023
Jul. 5th, 2023 06:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I finished reading A Trip with Trouble last night. It's the second book in Diane Kelly's "Mountain Lodge" series of cozy mysteries. The main character is Misty Murphy, who owns and runs the Mountaintop Lodge in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Things are going well for Misty. Her lodge has proven to be popular, and her most recent booking is an all-female motorcycle club who've rented out the entire lodge. Misty enjoys meeting the various women who make up the club and learning about their diverse backgrounds. When the ladies invite Misty and her employee, Brynn, to join them on a ride, they both jump at the chance. What began as an invigorating ride on a beautiful Autumn day turns dark, however, when the club's sweep rider, Gerri, fails to appear at one of their designated stops. As they retrace their route in search of her, Misty finds Gerri's walkie along the road. Further investigation leads them into the woods, where Gerri is found dead near her mangled bike. When police rule her death a homicide, Misty starts pondering who had the means and motive to kill Gerri. In the meantime, a mysterious white van has been cruising the lodge's parking lot, leading Misty and her hired hand, Rocky, to fear someone may be trying to steal a valuable motorcycle or two. Misty wonders if the van is connected to the murder, and if one of the riders is involved.
This was fast-paced and kept my attention. The two main plot points of Gerri's murder and the lurking van wove together well. There was no shortage of suspects in the murder, from Gerri's late husband's family to the potential bike thieves to another rider's stalkerish ex. Misty and Rocky continued their slow dance of romance, but I appreciated the unhurried pace. Other characters were portrayed well, from Brynn to Patty (who owns the diner next door) and the ladies of the motorcycle club. The mystery kept me guessing until the end.
Favorite lines:
♦ "These ladies are wearing more cowhide than a herd of Holsteins."
♦ "It's going to take a lot more than some lousy frozen lasagna for me to give in to your charms."
♦ The guy must be smarter than he'd looked in his mug shot. Heck, I'd convict him of third-degree stupidity on that photo alone.
Fun, fast, and lively--four stars.