Customer Reviews

Reservations for Murder (Lighthouse Inn Mysteries, No. 2)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Tim Myers follow-up to his enjoyable Innkeeping With Murder
finds Alex Winston with murder at his doorstep once again.
Myers does a nice job with the small town characters giving each
chapter the right amount of homey touches to convey the
"Mayberry" cliches needed for this light read. However,
I do wish he gave his lead character more conviction and
development. We never get to know Alex Winston. He seems
to exist just to connect the dots between suspects, ex-girlfriends and current love interests. In addition, Myers
doesn't provide the reader with enough clues to the murder,
so the conclusion seems to come out of nowhere. What elevates
this so-so mystery to four stars is the campiness Myers creates
with his murderer. The last fifteen pages are pure camp and
comedy. The cat and mouse between Alex and the murderer is
over-the-top and played for laughs. This is the most
unintentionally funny murder suspect since Mrs. Voorhees took
revenge on camp counselors twenty-four years ago in Friday The
13th. If they get the right actors, this could be a hoot as
a trashy TV movie. Is this a one time comic rush or can we
expect more of the same from future Innkeeping Mysteries?
Let's hope so.

...Alex is a likeable character. I like the relationship he has with Elise, but hope it will grow. I think that's the only thing I would say negative about this book is that I missed that. With Elise gone, all he did was miss her, but yet he's not sure what type of relationship they have. There was too much of that in this book.

This series is very enjoyable. I always look forward to the next book coming out. The descriptions are very enticing. I would love to stay at The Hatteras West Inn.

I highly recommend this book and the whole series.

Unfortunately after the second book, this series has run its course with me. No real spark or endearing characters that make you want to dive into the next one.

Alex Winston runs a bed and breakfast that has the distinction of having a replica of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse and its outbuildings. What's so curious about that, well, there is no water around just a lighthouse sitting in the foothills of North Carolina.

While embroiled in the daily duties of running the inn and trying to bring the lighthouse back to its glory, Alex agrees to let Shantana run the Golden Days Fair on his property. Things seem to be going smoothly, that is until a local blacksmith is found impaled with a very unique piece of metalwork and everyone seems to be a suspect.

This story quickly bogs down and by the time the killer is revealed, it really doesn't matter because my attention is no longer on the book. My mind has wandered and I was trying to figure out what I was going to read next. Not a good sign.

Alex Winston is an inkeeper who runs the remodeled lighthouse known as Hatteras West in a small town rife with secrets and jealousies. One of those secrets spills over into murder and Alex, ever curious, gets involved with the murder mystery. A craft show on the inn's grounds attracts a lot of locals as well as out-of-towners, so when blacksmith Jefferson Lee ends up impaled by one of his own creations, there are plenty of suspects. Alex follows the trail with the reader close on his tracks, searching through jilted lovers, secret lovers and jealous tradesmen.

Tim Myers is the author of three different mystery series. The Lighthouse Inn series was the first, followed by Candlemaking mysteries and Soapmaking mysteries.

Myers is a fine craftsman. His mysteries are well-thought out and constructed soundly. Some might complain about the lack of characters but MURDER, SHE WROTE was character-lite too and ran successfully for 11 years until the star chose to end the series. His books are meant for a lazy afternoon at the beach, a winter night when the reader is in the mood for a short, effective test of wits.

Although Myers is more informative in his Soapmaking and Candlemaking series, it would have been good to see more history about the area and lighthouses in general. Or maybe it's just because he made it all so appealing and interesting.

RESERVATIONS FOR MURDER is a nifty little mystery that will only take a couple hours to read. The setting and characters immediately feel comfortable.

This books seems to go along the speed of Andy Griffith's Mayberry. Innkeeper Alex Winston forces himself into the detective business, which is a good thing, considering the lack of competence in the local sherriff. Two deaths must be explained in the light mystery. The characters are shallow in development, with the exception of Alex. Myers leaves a few red herrings along the way, so you may enjoy trying to sort the good clues from the bad, but overall, there is very little tension in this story. A pleasant read for somebody who may be recovering from an ulcer, I suppose.

I don't understand which title is the second in the series. There are TWO books listed for #3. I like to read a series in order and can't figure out which one comes next. Help?

Want a quick course in mystery story formula writing? Look no farther: "Reservations for Murder" has them all. Here's a partial list: undeveloped main character with no real human foibles or conflicts; dumb sheriff; small town police force; good cafe where everyone gathers; nice scenery; love interest for the main character; hints of seamy sex for the secondary characters; a murder victim disliked by everybody; many motives for the killing; a lot of tea-drinking and assignations by the rosebushes. Season this recipe with 180 pages of really unimaginative writing and here you have it: a cliche of a novel, written quickly and without much skill, a Saturday afternoon time-waster if it's raining outside and there's nothing on tv.

Nestled in the foothills of the North Carolina mountains lies the Hatteras West Inn. Also on the land owned by the inn's proprietor Alex Winston is a duplicate of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse and its' outer buildings. As a favor to his friend Shantara Robinson, he is allowing the Golden Days Fair to be held on the property. The biggest draw to the fair is Jefferson Lee a blacksmith with a national reputation and an ego to match.

Jefferson is trying to drive his closest competitor, Bill Yadkin out of business. Bill publicly and forcefully disses his rival to Alex. When Jefferson is found murdered on an isolated part of the property suspicion immediately falls on Bill but there are many other people who had reason to want to see the blacksmith dead. As Alex sleuths aound he should remember that too much curiosity can get one killed.

Tim Myers proves that he is no one book wonder as RESERVATIONS FOR MURDER lives up to the promise of his first novel in the Lighthouse Inn mystery series" INNKEEPING FOR MURDER. The protagonist is a likable and believable character whose loyalty to his friends makes him an admirable human being. His inquisitiveness propels him into involvement in a homicide investigation even though he has to take time away from his precious inn. The mystery is a shrewdly crafted puzzle that will catch and keep reader interest.

Harriet Klausner

The preface notes a manuscript of the author's was plucked from a slush pile. Alex's housekeeper, Elise, for his Hatteras Inn, a replica of the Hatteras Light, situated in the foothills of North Carolina, argued with him that the inn needed to attract a wealthier clientele. She said that friendship should not get in the way of the goals for the inn. The conversation arose because a fair was scheduled to take place on the property.

Someone killed one of the blacksmiths. Alex persuaded the sheriff to let the fair continue. Alex called his former girlfriend, a lawyer, to the scene in case any of the fair participants needed to be defended as they were being questioned by the sheriff.

The fair attracted a huge crowd, more to see the crime scene than to see the artisans at work. The victim was trying to drive another blacksmith out of business. Everyone in town knew that the sheriff depended upon Alex to help him solve mysteries.

Gossip spread like kudzu in the town. Elise the housekeeper had to leave because her father was to have a heart operation. Everyone thought that she was gone for good.

Many people had hated the victim. Next a Marilyn Baxter is believed to have been kidnapped and is then found-- her absence caused by an overdose. I don't want to give away any more of the plot of this well-written story.