Customer Reviews

Top O' The Mournin': A Passport To Peril Mystery

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

After reading Maddy Hunter's 'Alpine For You', I looked forward to reading the 2nd in her series 'Top O The Morning'. It didn't disappoint. New adventures in another land with an elderly Iowan tour group mixed with a bunch of New Yorkers and a haunted castle and a little bit of foot fetish, death and humor abound.
The setting is in Ireland and Emily is on the trail of a web-footed ghost from the past that scares the 'death' (or is it life?) out of it's victims.
Etienne Miceli, who Emily fell
for in Maddy's first book, makes a surprise appearance as a member of the tour group and once again there are serious intentions on getting together in the sack. Also making a surprise appearance is Emily's gay ex-husband who adds a little spice and some complications to the mix.
Emily does some sleuthing to expose the so-called ghost while trying to keep sexy Ashley, the tour guide, away from Etienne. The nasty cheap
shots among the females in the group fly and makes for great entertainment. These women go right for the jugular. Many theories are concocted by Emily as to who or what is causing the deaths throughout the book but I must say I never figured it out until the very end.
I am really looking forward to Maddy's next book 'Pasta Imperfect'.

After learning her husband is gay, actress Emily Andrews leaves New York to return home to Iowa where she takes a job as an escort for a bank sponsored senior citizen tours. Last year she went to Switzerland where she was involved in a triple homicide (See ALPINE FOR YOU), caught a killer, and met the love of her life Swiss Detective Etienne Micelli.

This year Emily escorts seniors to Ireland where they stay at Ballybantry Castle, renovated into a hotel but rumored to be haunted. The trip begins wonderfully when Etienne shows up unexpectedly for a rendezvous but the fires burn out when two of the hotel's staff are found dead with wet webbed footsteps found near one of the bodies. Haunting cries in the night, cold spots in unexpected places, and electricity going out for no logical reason turns Emily's job into a nightmare. Meeting her former husband who had a sex change operation and is on a honeymoon complicates matters. When Emily discovers there have been over forty deaths at the castle in two years, she decides to find out who the killer is.

TOP O' THE MOURNIN' is a delightful cozy that is low on gore but rich in plot and characterizations. There is plenty of slapstick humor especially when the heroine and her significant other are repeatedly interrupted during an interlude. The mystery is well constructed and the support cast yields a number of suspects, one of whom has an excellent motive for wanting to destroy the castle's reputation by making it seem better to vacate than spend a deadly vacation there.

Harriet Klausner

I don't read a lot of mysteries but this one caught my eye because it's set in my favorite place in the entire world - Ireland. This book took me back for several pleasurable hours. I enjoyed several laugh-out-loud moments and just adored the main characters. Over-the-top and improbable as some other reviewers have mentioned? Perhaps, but folks this is fiction and I can promise you a great deal of enjoyment is found in this story. I am going to be looking for her first book,ALPINE FOR YOU (love the title!) and will be buying PASTA IMPERFECT as soon as it comes out.

Another delight! "Top O' the Mournin'" by Maddy Hunter is, like the first of this new series, another winner.

From its opening and the hilarity of the faux, but momentarily believable, death of their carriage driver, to having to deal with her ex, Jack, who, having just remarried, is also honeymooning, Emily has her hands full. But, to further complicate matters, Jack is the bride. Jack has had a sex change and is now Jackie. Of course, Emily must also see to her wards, the Iowa geriatric set, who have come on the trip for the cultural experience and to see some of Ireland's charm and scenic wonders.

They will also see bodies - dead bodies. They might as well get used to it. The tourers are staying in a five star hotel, a renovated castle. There are few other guests - because of tales of the "ghost" which haunts its corridors. There is a "ghost" and the seniors, again have death cross their paths. Hotel staff members turn up dead and to all appearances have been "scared to death". It turns out that they have been murdered.

And there is of course Etienne, the Italian Stallion (coincidentally a detective), who helps Emily to keep her active imagination in check and to maintain her focus on her tour guide responsibilities. Etienne, not "Mother Nature", is also the source of Emily's "hot flashes". And Emily, whose heat level is continually on the rise in Etienne's presence, "suspects" she will be proposed to. After all, she and Etienne had been an "item" in Switzerland. They are again - in Ireland.

As far as a mystery is concerned, I must confess the true "culprit" was unknown to me until the very end. I had suspects throughout but was wrong with each of them.

A true delight - beautifully written, humorous, accurate, challenging as a mystery - an all around winner. I am anxiously awaiting "Pasta Imperfect".

I loved this book! It was so much fun to read, I couldn't stop laughing. The characters are fantastic (especially Emily and the sexy detective) and the mystery elements were well-written. I don't agree with a previous review that said the book was too "over the top." I don't think that the reviewer is very familiar with the cozy mystery genre; the characters are supposed to be endearingly eccentric. I would definitely recommend this series to Janet Evanovich fans as well as mystery readers in general. I can't wait for the next book.

This book was TOPS for me!Emily goes to Ireland this time with her favorite senior citizens to go on another adventure. We are not let down this time either. Her love life is lacking and this time is no exception. Every time they are ready to spend a little time together, dead bodies are found or the excellent ending happens.

You will not want to put this book down and Ms Hunter will become one of your favorite authors by page 20!

Enjoy!

You will laugh out loud reading this book! It's great!

Emily Andrew is once again escorting a bank-sponsored group of Iowa senior citizens on a trip. This time it's a ten-day tour of the Emerald Isle. Her beloved Nana is on the trip as well.

First Nana and Emily end up on a death-defying ride in a horse-drawn carriage on their way to the hotel.

Once at the hotel, the Iowa group meets up with the group from New York and meets their tour guide, Ashley Overlock. Emily was not impressed with her beauty.

Then Emily's ex-husband Jack arrives. Only he isn't Jack anymore. Now he's Jackie and "she" is on her honeymoon. Emily is flabbergasted!

Once in her room, Emily is interrupted from unpacking when Bernice bangs on her door. Turns out Bernice left her traveler's checks at home! Emily lends her some money for meals and shopping until Bernice can contact her bank to wire her some money.

Next Emily's boyfriend from Scotland, Inspector Etienne whom she met on the last trip, arrives unexpectedly to spend time with Emily. She is thrilled but there are so many interruptions that she has to attend to.

Next the group goes to Ballybantry Castle where they settle in for the rest of the trip. Immediately Nana and Tilly, her roommate, find a dead body in their room. They end up staying with Emily for a night. There goes her plans with Etienne once again!

Not only is there a dead body, the castle is haunted. Things start going missing, they hear noises at night, and then there's another dead body.

Emily and Etienne are hoping to get to the bottom of things before anyone else dies!

This is such a fun book I read it in one day! I just couldn't put it down! You will love this book. Emily is a fun character but the best characters are all the senior citizens on the tour. You will especially love the Iowans. They are always afraid of being late, so much so they arrive very early for everything!

The different location of each book in this series really adds to the story. I feel like I've been to Ireland now! Great descriptions.

I highly recommend this book. You won't be disappointed!

In this second installment in Maddy Hunter's enjoyable Passport to Peril mystery series, Emily Andrews escorts a group of senior citizens from Iowa on a trip to Ireland. The trip starts out in typical madcap fashion as Emily lands in the water when her horse and buggy driver falls asleep after drinking too much. Emily's trip starts to get better when Etienne Micelli, whom she met in Switzerland, arrives to spend some quality time with her. If only she can keep him away from her ex-husband Jack, who is now a gorgeous woman named Jackie! Throw in a couple of dead bodies, a haunted hotel, food fights, and a bad case of hives and Emily is off on another hilarious adventure!

I enjoyed this extremely funny mystery even more than I did the first one, Alpine for You. I especially like Emily's "Nana" who loves to take pictures of everything, no matter the situation. Hunter writes her speech in such a way that I can almost hear her accent as I read it. There are many funny scenes in the book to keep the reader laughing, including Emily's many attempts to be alone with Etienne and her "pajama party" with Jackie. The book is worth reading just for the dinner scene where everyone finds out who Jackie really is.

Hunter doesn't let the humor get in the way of the mystery, however, and there are a few unexpected twists along the way to the solution.

Highly recommended!

Emily Andrew and her band of intrepid Iowa travelers are back! And I am thrilled. I loved ALPINE FOR YOU. It made me laugh and nod (as an Iowan, I'm allowed) and be glad that Maddy Hunter is writing such fun books. I am equally delighted with Emily's adventures in Ireland and will be anxiously awaiting more tales of the tour bus.

These books are sheer fun. They'll take you for a ride without the hassle. So, sit back, relax and laugh. Thank you, Maddy, for a great vacation -- and I didn't even have to leave home!

I completely enjoyed this book. I discovered Maddy Hunter by accident and am so glad I did. I love the characters in her books and find their antics delightful. I am eagerly waiting for the next installment in this series. Ms. Hunter is becoming one of my favorites.