Something's Rotten in Paradise by Aysia Amery

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Finished reading Something's Rotten in Paradise last night. It's the first book in author Aysia Amery's "Maui Mayhem" cozy mystery series, which features Ginger Lee--caterer, amateur sleuth, and someone who can see ghosts and past lives.

Ginger is excited to be hired to cater a family dinner. The dinner turns into more of a soap opera when the matriarch invites her husband's bastard son and the man who raised him. Her husband is humiliated, her children are aghast and furious, and the long-lost son just wants a kidney. By the time the night is over, two people are dead, and it seems someone is trying to frame Ginger for at least one of the deaths. However, with the help of her two assistants, a friend in the police department, the ghost of one of the victims, and the ghost of her little sister, Ginger may solve this one before the police do.

This was a short read, so not a lot of backstory was given. There was enough so that things made sense, and I presume future books will flesh characters out more. Ginger was likable, and I enjoyed her interactions with her husband, her employees, and her friend Pako. The mystery was wrapped up rather quickly and without much drama or fanfare.

Favorite line: ...as hilarious as throwing your pet a Frisbee and a tennis ball at the same time and watching the frenzy.

This was okay for a short, sort of mindless read. Enjoyable, but nothing to really sink your literary teeth into. Giving it an average score.