If Errands Could Kill (Minivan Mom Mystery Series) [Kindle Edition]

Jim Bronyaur (Author)

Book Description

Up at sunrise to enjoy the quiet of a sleeping household, Eve Bailey gets her coffee, prepares breakfast for her three children, and has a spare tie ready knowing that her husband, Ben, will definitely spill something on the one he is wearing. Their oldest daughter, Delaney, is one game away from moving onto the soccer championships, their son, Cody, skipped school yesterday, and innocent 7 year old Penny is trying to communicate with her goldfish. Eve’s days are that of a typical stay at home mom.

Her typical day changes drastically after she drives Cody to school as part of his punishment for skipping school. Cody’s creepy science teacher, Mr. Jackson, approaches Eve to let her know that her check for Cody’s field trip had bounced. Knowing it had to be an error, Eve heads to the bank to figure it out. While in line, she chats with her mother in law who works at the bank. Then she notices Janet, another bank employee and self-made town outcast, acting very strange at the back counter.

Eve’s concern grows when she is leaving the bank and sees Janet open the gas tank door and then drives away. Against her better judgment, Eve follows Janet. What happens next is something unheard of in quiet Marysville, Pennsylvania.
Janet is murdered in front of Eve’s eyes, and the police find drugs in her car.

Murder and drugs? It doesn’t make sense. Eve is now a witness and determined to disprove the “drug deal gone wrong” theory.

Can she convince the police that she knows who the killer is, save her family, and make it to Delaney’s big soccer game in time?
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The Minivan Mom Mystery Series is a creation from horror, thriller, and mystery writer, Jim Bronyaur.

Jim has had over a hundred pieces of fiction published and won Best Horror Short Story for 2010.

If you enjoy horror or thrillers, be sure to check out Jim's other books here on Amazon including Within the Walls (part one), The Failed, The Devil's Weekend, and more!

Don't miss his next crime series, featuring one of the most interesting characters you'll ever meet: Johnny Cooper. The first book of the Johnny Cooper crime series is titled "Nice Day For a Red Wedding" and is scheduled for a 2012 release.

*New release!*

The second book in the Minivan Mom Mystery Series is now available! Don't miss A Mess to Die For, available on Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Mess-Minivan-Mystery-Series-ebook/dp/B008247FRW/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1337091228&sr=1-1

Product Details

• File Size: 233 KB
• Print Length: 242 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 061561020X
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B007EHCKEG
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #340,941 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant! A book for your "must read" list. March 18, 2012

By Elizabeth Marshall

Format:Kindle Edition

"If Errands Could Kill" by Jim Bronyaur is a brilliantly written thriller with an unlikely main character of a stay at home mom that becomes involved in an unlikely drug related murder.

Bronyaur develops the characters from page one and cleverly describes Eve's character by explaining how she, at the age of seven, made a deal with her mom to keep her real name of Genevieve a secret because it was too old. The Bailey household is just a regular family; Eve and her lawyer husband, Ben have three children, Delaney, their eldest daughter who is mad about playing soccer, son, Cody, who just tried skipping school, probably just to see if he could get away with it, and cute seven year old daughter, Penny who is trying to learn how to talk to her goldfish with bubble language.

Eve's regular life is turned upside when, driven partly by curiosity and partly by being a good neighbor, she witnesses Janet, a self-made town outcast who works at the bank, being shot; apparently in a drugs deal that went bad. Being the type of person that always sees the best in people, Eve doesn't believe the popular story, based on the evidence that the police found in her car, that Janet was involved in drugs and that her shooting was a drugs killing. Nor does Eve believe the village gossip that Janet was having an affair with an unknown man, possibly from out of town. Eve just could not let the murder of Janet go and, despite being told by her husband, Ben, to just let the police pursue their investigations, Eve continued to try and work out how Janet ending up being shot. The only leads that Eve has are the black Lincoln car from which the killer had shot Janet and the mystery of why Janet had opened the flap to the gas tank before driving away from the bank to her death.

The book builds to a thrilling climax as the mystery develops and Eve starts being intimidated and threatened. Eve is determined to get to watch Delaney's championship soccer game despite being kidnapped, tied up and held at gunpoint.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading the next book in the "Minivan Mom Mystery Series".

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT new series!!! MUST READ! March 21, 2012

By Angels R Kids/Furkids

Format:Paperback

PDF format free from author for honest review

Stay-at-home Mom's can really be super heroes, but how dangerous of a situation is too much for a Mom? Eve is "wonder Mom", she takes care of all the household duties, keeps the kids in order, goes to her daughter's soccer games, makes sure the other two kids are taken care of too, makes sure her husband always has a spare tie (for those oops moments of his) and has decided to take up finding a murderer too!

To prove a point one day, Eve takes her son to school (an embarrassment tactic to make sure he never skips school again) and her life is changed forever. At the school her son's teacher sees here there and swings by her car to tell her that there was a problem with her check she made out for her son's field trip and he just wanted her to know so she could get it straightened out before the trip so her son could still go. Well, Eve knows there are more than enough funds in the bank and there should be no reason for any issues, so she decides to go to the bank and check it out. That is where her day changes from normal "Mom stuff" to amateur sleuth. In the bank she notices Janet (a woman from the neighborhood and bank teller) acting funny and extremely out of the ordinary. When Eve is outside getting ready to go back home after straightening out the check issue, Janet comes out and opens her gas door on her car and then proceeds to drive off. Confused, but also wanting to help Janet in case any light was on in her car due to the open gas door, Eve follows her in hopes to catch her when she stops to tell her the door is still open. Following her and then stopping because of a phone call on her cell, Eve witnesses something she never would have imagined seeing that day...Janet being murdered...shot in her car by someone in a black Lincoln. Eve calls police, but she just can't let it go, she wants to help solve the murder because she thinks the police are looking at all the wrong leads. Her husband, mother in law, and the local police tell her to back off and let the police do their job. Eve just can't bring herself to do that though. She just knows they are looking at leads that were meant to lead them away from the real killer. So, she takes it upon herself to investigate more and try to figure it all out for the police. Is this a smart thing to do? Will this "helpfulness" lead to Eve's own murder?

I just loved this book! From page one I was hooked on the character Eve and her personality. Eve is the perfect wife/Mom. She makes sure everyone's needs are met and that the house is always in order and that her wifely/motherly duties are always done before her personal wants. In a small town like Eve and her family live in nothing happens that they all don't know about. I love that fact in this book. It makes the murder all that much more...out of place or mysterious. This book takes off near the beginning and doesn't let the reader rest until the end. It is action filled and has comedy too. Not only is the plot very well written, but the characters are developed in such a way that you can't help but think of people you know that they remind you of. Every time I thought Eve had it figured out and so did I something would be added that made me and the character back pedal our conclusions and re-examine things. When Eve does figure it out, it may well be too late to matter, for now the murderer has another target set...Eve.

Great read and book, would highly recommend to anyone wanting a small town mystery and unforgettable characters.

5/5 Stars!!

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A great start April 13, 2012

By S. Schairer

Format:Kindle Edition

IF ERRANDS COULD KILL by Jim Bronyaur

IF ERRANDS COULD KILL is an indie publication from author Jim Bronyaur. If Errands Could Kill is the first book in Jim's new "Minivan Mom Mystery" series. Jim has previously self-published many short stories and novellas, but this is the first instalment in his new series.

Eve Baily is a stay-at-home wife and mother, raising 3 children in a typical suburban neighborhood. Like most families, her children are involved with soccer, class projects and trips, as well as the occasional playground fight. Her husband Ben is a lawyer, handling contracts and business accounts, but the family is well respected in the small community of Marysville Pennsylvania. With her only son Cody's class trip days away, the science teacher informs Eve, that the cheque has bounced, and Cody will not be allowed to attend, without payment. Hoping to straighten out the issue at the bank, Eve doesn't realize that the world she once knew is about to change.

Witnessing what she believes to be a potential case of fraud, Eve follows bank employee Janet Vanden out to her vehicle, but notices that Janet has opened her gas tank before she drives away. But a simple case of fraud, has suddenly turned into something bigger when Eve witnesses Janet's murder. When a large black Lincoln quickly leaves the area, Eve knows of only one potential person in town, with enough money to afford the luxury automobile. But when the police interview Eve, they reveal more information about the murder than first believed. Perhaps someone was being set-up?

Eve, hoping to gather her own information about the murder, sets out to investigate, but soon realizes that she has crossed the line with both the police and the potential suspects. When she follows the black Lincoln around town, she is quickly swept into melee of rumor, innuendo and threats against her life. But when her husband learns that his wife has continued to involve herself with the murder case, she is asked to step back before she gets hurt, but not before the victims husband, wants to meet with Eve. Hoping to learn more about his wife's murder, Ted Vanden becomes distraught and defensive when he is suddenly pushed deeper into the rumor mill, with stories surrounding a possible affair and drugs.

Throughout the storyline, the Bailey family and their issues with time management, school activities and sports teams, play a secondary but important role within the novel. As part of the Minivan Mom Mystery series, Jim has woven real -life activities into a mystery, letting the reader know-that family is important and will not step aside. Life continues, even when you should NOT be investigating a murder.

Eve's investigation soon threatens the stability of her family and the town. The police believe the murder is drug related, but Eve suspects that the police have been set up, as well as the victim. When Eve reveals what she knows and suspects, she is suddenly thrown into a scenario, where life or death, are her only options.

Jim Bronyaur writes an interesting mystery without the use of sex, foul language or graphic violence. The premise and scenario could be taken from any news headline, but Jim wraps the package with a nice secondary storyline involving the heroine's family and home life. The one drawback-the suspect, perhaps, was a little too obvious. I wanted to smack Eve a couple of times, for her involvement with the investigation, especially when she was risking her life as well as her family, but shouldn't all good storylines emotionally involve the reader? A good writer will always pull the reader into the story. I have no problem recommending IF ERRANDS COULD KILL.

See all of my reviews at: thereadingcafe.com

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