Customer Reviews

A Real Basket Case (Five Star Mystery) (Five Star First Edition Mystery)

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

Claire Hanover is not very happy these days. Her husband Roger spends way too much time at work, the kids are grown and out of the house and her gift basket business isn't much consolation. Rather bored and lonely, this wasn't the way her life was supposed to go at all. Then, there is the fact that her close friends are divorced and generally bitter towards men in general. Men aren't the good guys they may have been years ago and Roger is one of them.

Her good friend Ellen seems to believe that what Claire really needs is a good fling and suggests that Enrique is just the one to show her a good time. It won't be serious and there won't be strings and of course, it won't hurt anyone. Beyond that, Enrique teaches a couple of exercise classes which is how Claire met him and gives a great massage. Even if it doesn't lead to anything else, Ellen is convinced that a really good massage will help adjust Claire's outlook on life. Backed into a corner by Ellen, Claire finally allows Enrique to come over to give her a massage.

Whether it could have led to something more, Claire will never know because Enrique is gunned down in her bedroom while giving her the massage. As it happens, Roger is home and there to hold the gun and for Claire and the police it initially appears that Roger did the deed.

Claire, slowly realizing what Roger must think she has done and what they stand to lose, begins to try to figure out the case. The police consider it an open and shut case since Roger was there holding the gun that fired the fatal bullet and she no doubt was committing adultery. They see it as nothing more than the husband gunning down his wife's lover in a fit of rage. The fact that Roger also believes she committed adultery makes her finally realize how close she has come to losing him. She soon becomes determined not only to save her marriage but to save her husband. Unlike her basket making business, her blundering could get her killed and yet she soldiers on in her efforts to gift wrap the real killer for police.

This cozy style mystery is a real treat to read. Claire quickly becomes a character the reader cares about and one alive in every sense of the word. As her character development continues to grow throughout the novel it becomes clear that Claire is relying on inner resources she never knew she had. At the same time, several of the secondary characters also grow and change and none are given short shrift in terms of plot or development. While the focus is primarily on Claire, the other characters play major roles and contribute to the overall read.

Full of twists and turns along with plenty of suspects is sure to keep readers entertained all the way to the end. Clearly the start of a series and a good one at that, this is a book that is sure to please a lot of readers.


Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2007

I opened the book just before I went to bed thinking I'd read just a few pages. I didn't close it until mid-morning and I hated reaching the end. I longed for another book to keep up with Claire's adventures.

Claire Hanover could be the woman next door. Middle aged, recently empty nested and in the process of having her marriage grow distant so it can hopefully grow closer. Then her husband is caught with the gun in his hand. She knows he didn't do it, but who did? Claire's world is upside down. She is so believable you want to invite her in for coffee and comfort. The story is all hers, her vulnerability is so touching, it's almost heartrending. Through the story she grows, toughens up, changes in ways she never thought possible and manages to keep her core values. The ending is a shocker, one I never saw coming despite the well placed clues. Can't wait for more from this writer.

Those of us who live and work in beautiful Colorado Springs know that
violence and crime abound in a few unsavory, local neighborhoods. But
in A Real Basket Case, even the affluent Broadmoor and foothills residents
aren't immune to danger, kidnapping, drugs and murder.

When a sexy, Latin aerobics instructor/massage therapist/gigolo is killed in Claire Hanover's bedroom, the once bored, unfulfilled, gift basket maker must become an amateur sleuth to clear her husband of the murder charges.

Love, loyalty and latent inner strength propel Claire through a clever investigation. She holds her own in confrontations with a hostile detective, jealous women, drug addicts, drug dealers and friends who may be enemies in disguise. Aided by her inherent honesty and tenacity, she solves the crime.

Clues snake through this satisfying story like a well-woven basket. All in all, Beth Groundwater has provided a terrific read for both new and veteran mystery aficionados to savor.

P.S.
The ending is really, really good.

A housewife not feeling appreciated, a part time gift basket maker, an amauter sleuth trying to prove her husband's innocence, an acquaintance of a drug dealer. Believable? Well, maybe. But the writing is crisp, the story flows smoothly, scene descriptions are clear, a bit of humor, and I was never sure 'who did it' until the final chapter.
Thanks for introducing a new character with lots of potential for future escapades.

Claire Hanover is feeling lonely. Her Colorado Springs gift basket business is enough to fulfill her. Her husband is working night and day and ignoring her. Her friend Ellen, who has been bitter since her divorce, gets her to join her exercise class. When their handsome aerobics instructor, Enrique, shows interest in Claire, Ellen urges her to have a fling. Claire agrees to a massage. What she didn't realize was that it would in her bedroom! Just when the massage was about to start, Enrique is shot and Roger, Claire's husband, is in the doorway with the gun.

At first Claire isn't positive Roger is innocent, but soon realizes he's being framed. The police are happy they've got their man, so she sets out to prove his innocence. She finds herself with many unsavory people in the course of her investigation, especially the drug dealers. Then there are the many gym ladies he supplied with cocaine or seduced for money. Can Claire sort out the suspects and find the killer before the killer finds her?

I really enjoyed this book. I can't wait to read the next! Claire is such a fun character. The story kept my interest at every turn. It did have some situations where I found myself saying, no way would I do that. I felt a normal person would have called the police, but Claire persevered and won me over! I hope the author writes fast!

I highly recommend this book.

Beth Groundwater's A Real Basket Case combines a good mystery with a stong relationship story. Claire Hanover must solve the murder when her husband is accused of the crime, while trying to patch up her marriage. The novel contains strong characters with a mystery that keeps you guessing.

In Colorado Springs, middle aged Claire Hanover suffers from an empty nest syndrome with her two children Michael and Judy at college and her spouse Roger, the Chief Finance Officer working late hours and ignoring her. She has some satisfaction with her gift basket business, but that fails to overcome the loneliness. Her best friend Ellen Kessler suggests she have a fling with her aerobics instructor Enrique Romero especially when he offers her a home massage, which she accepts.

Enrique comes over to her house, but someone shoots and kills him in Claire's bedroom. Immediately afterward, she sees Roger standing next to the bed holding the gun. Police Detective Wilson feels he has an ironclad case of a cuckold husband catching his wife with her lover, but Roger insists he is innocent. Claire believes him though he believes the worst in her. She begins investigating who would have a motive to kill Enrique besides Roger. As she fumbles her way through hookers, drug dealers, irate aerobic students, and some jail time, she soon concludes someone close to her fits might be the culprit.

Though Claire should have hired a professional investigator, readers will know her motives to risk her life are solid as she blames herself for causing the immediate mess by going outside her beliefs when she invited Enrique to her home. The story line is fast-paced as she follows clues that the police ignore because their case against her husband is overwhelmingly solid. Readers will appreciate this fine amateur sleuth as Claire knows if she fails she will become A REAL BASKET CASE.

Harriet Klausner

Claire Hanover's nest is empty, her kids are off on their own, and her husband is a workaholic. She has started her own part-time business creating gift baskets but it doesn't fill her time as much as she would like. She feels neglected by her husband because she comes number two after his rise up the corporate ladder.

She follows the advice of her best friend Ellen to join an aerobics class to get back into shape and meet people. All the women in the class agree their instructor is dreamy and most flirt with him openly through each class. There are rumors that he has had affairs with most of his students but Claire puts up a wall right away letting him know she is married. That doesn't make her immune from his charms and she still agrees to let Enrique to be her personal trainer and she lets him come to her house to give her a massage after a stressful workout.

The massage barely gets started when someone sneaks into her house and shoots Enrique dead right there in her master bedroom. The police arrest Claire's husband for the murder very quickly. Claire is determined to clear her husband of the crime and save her marriage and she will do anything necessary to do just that.

Dollycas's Thoughts
When I finished this book I sat up straight and said WOW!!! This is definitely not your traditional cozy mystery. This is a hold on to the edge of your seat wild ride mystery!!! I got about halfway through and I couldn't put it down. It was a late night as I stayed up to finish it and then couldn't get to sleep.

I do not want to reveal much because you will enjoy it much more just reading it yourself but the lengths this woman, Claire, goes to are astounding. All to save the man she loves. The places she goes, the danger she puts herself in, the people she deals with left me dazed. You want to reach into the pages and shake her and say "Are you crazy?" She starts the book as a woman lost and emerges as such a strong heroine.

This is another book I to shout about from the rooftops, YOU HAVE TO READ THIS BOOK!!!! The book is off my rating scale it is so good! Like mystery and suspense, strong women characters, along with the charm and a little humor found in a wonderful cozy, this book is perfect for you. It is like a cozy mystery on steroids!!!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

A Real Basket Case (Five Star Mystery) (Five Star Mystery Series)

I really enjoyed "A Real Basket Case." Claire is such an interesting character and I liked her from the start. She's an empty-nester (been there); she's loyal to her family and finds strengths she never knew she had in this first of a series by Beth Groundwater. I can't wait to see what she does next. A very well-written mystery with quite a few surprises. I highly recommend it.

Beth Groundwater's debut novel is tightly written with well rounded, fully believable characters. One of the things about cozies is they are usually about amateur detectives who are drawn by circumstances into solving a mystery.

In this case, Claire Hanover has a real doozie thrown at her. While in the middle of a home massage someone enters her home and shoots the man attending to her. Understandably terrified and in shock, a screaming Claire soon finds her husband rushing to the room carrying the gun. Of course the police think they have their man.

Claire, however, is just as certain they do not and sets out to prove her husband's innocence. Not only is Claire trying to prove her husband is not guilty of murder, she is also trying to convince him that the massage was not a prelude to an affair.

Set in Colorado Springs it was fun for me to watch Claire swallow her fears as she confronts the detective, meets with a drug lord and interviews scurrilous suspects all in an effort to free her husband. Which brings me to another aspect of the book I liked. Groundwater doesn't have her heroine jump into her investigation lightly. It was hard for her and she had to screw up her courage in order to accomplish some of the things she did, which added a greater level of believability to the story. As an author of my own cozy mystery I found myself admiring how the character of Claire shared with the reader as she uncovered clues instead of keeping us in the dark until the last page.

What a fun book. Well written, A REAL BASKET CASE is good mystery and filled with characters I'm hoping show up in the second book (I have yet to read it). I would absolutely recommend reading this book. And if you happen to live in Colorado Springs, as I do, you'll find plenty of familiar landmarks that will add to your enjoyment.